NVQ, please do something about short courses!

[laurakate]

I'm not worried. It takes ages to get good at something to a professional standard. It takes time and practice, even if you do a longer course.

 

[Jigglyb4ll]

I simply will say, passing your driving test doesn't make u Lewis hamilton.
What u do after u pass, how much u practice, what advice u listen to, natural talent, open minded ness and being prepared to continue to learn are all what makes us better.
Let's stop being ignorant.

Those that are rubbish simply will not last, wether they did a short course or trained for 5yrs!!
If u are good people will return and any business person will know return customers are 5 times more valuable that a new customer.

So be the best and forget about the competition, as they should only serve to keep u on your toes xx

 

[Frenchyfile]

I know several hairdressers that have trained in Shellac, spray tanning, eyelashes so they can provide it when they're not busy in their salons, no one could have asked for proof of qualifications as they wouldn't have been able to provide it!!

If as you say they have trained in Shellac,nails, spray tanning etc,then they are trained! Hairdressers are trained in the structure of skin , nails, body etc as part of their educational qualifications so I would think they quite a bit more qualified than most who just take short courses and think they are beauty pros, I dont see quite the same problem with them, but over all I do agree that It would be better to, keep pro services to real pros.

 

[justnails84]

I have recently done a short course, and can honestly say you get what you put into it....

My nail tech course required lots of practicing for 9 weeks and min of 16 sets of nails. I practice most days and feel I wouldn't have learnt anymore if I had completed a nNvq

Those people are who good at treatments will keep going. Competion will not change this! Those people who Go else where
Always come back if your any good! always

 

[Lil'Gem]

I simply will say, passing your driving test doesn't make u Lewis hamilton.
What u do after u pass, how much u practice, what advice u listen to, natural talent, open minded ness and being prepared to continue to learn are all what makes us better.
Let's stop being ignorant.

Those that are rubbish simply will not last, wether they did a short course or trained for 5yrs!!
If u are good people will return and any business person will know return customers are 5 times more valuable that a new customer.

So be the best and forget about the competition, as they should only serve to keep u on your toes xx

Well put. There have been valid points on both sides of this argument. I agree that for certain subjects formal qualifications are the correct way to learn & develop. I do however think that it is not necessary in all cases.

Personally I only offer spray tanning, glitter tattoos and facepainting. I'm bloody good at tanning as I have invested alot of time researching and developing my skill. I'm only just embarking on face painting in a professional capacity and will take time to research and learn this trade too. I have taken courses for these treatments and took time to research which was the best course to attend. I do not believe that it would be appropriate to go to college for 2-3yrs in my case as I require specific tailored courses for individual treatments.

 

[sandwiches]

I agree with elements of ALL posters in this thread, BUT I do think our industry needs to be more regulated.

I get upset when people do short courses to earn money on the side, I don't have another income and ive put hrs and money into my education, marketing etc. Fighting to survive against people who charge £10 for tans, £15 for nails or £20 for a full set of lashes is hard and a lot of the time they are cheap products that don't last and it puts people off ever having that treatment again, or they take the attitude of 'well I only wanted it for the weekend'

It gives our industry a bad name when people do shoddy work. It makes us look thick which we all know, regardless of which route we took, any decent course take a lot of brain power!

I have a S2 account because I love the kudos it brings being able to say and prove to clients that they only supply to trained therapists, then all that is undermined when you see it can be bought from another wholesaler who doesnt require the same documentation.

I don't know what the answer is, make everyone do a conversion course for what ever product they use?

I know a girl around the corner from me gets a friend to buy her products, because they aren't in competition with each other her friend doesn't mind. I also know she hasn't done a massage course but, and I quote 'I can do it' what about all the hrs of A&P, the contraindications? Even if she's done a day course you can't possibly learn everything you need to know about massage in a 1 day workshop.

Bio sculpture and Eve Taylor have it right, BS are so strict you can not buy from them unless you have trained with them and ET trawl the Internet for people selling their products from unauthorised outlets.

 

[jcpark]

I simply will say, passing your driving test doesn't make u Lewis hamilton.
What u do after u pass, how much u practice, what advice u listen to, natural talent, open minded ness and being prepared to continue to learn are all what makes us better.
Let's stop being ignorant.

Those that are rubbish simply will not last, wether they did a short course or trained for 5yrs!!
If u are good people will return and any business person will know return customers are 5 times more valuable that a new customer.

So be the best and forget about the competition, as they should only serve to keep u on your toes xx

I simply will say, passing your driving test doesn't make u Lewis hamilton.

No very true - learning is continuous. I don't know if this is a requirement in the beauty industry but I have to do CPD every year as a condition of membership with my professional organisation.

Back to your analogy though, you will still have reached a standard of competence with your driving and passed (or failed if you have not reached that standard). Short courses are the equivalent of being shown to drive and being given a certificate!

 

[dandelionpoppy]

Have only skimmed, so this may have already been said.

I think success in beauty is down to a combination of high-level skills and being able to form a relationship with the client.

The first can be assessed and measured. I believe there should be more stringent and moderated assessment, so that qualifications are trustworthy and reliable. There is a lot of slackness in this area of quality control"regulation".
Notice I am not commenting on length of course. This is about high standards. A learner can do a 2 year course and scrape by. Maybe another naturally quick and talented person could do a shorter course. On the other hand I, personally, would not be competent after a short course. In practical matters I'm a slow learner.

The relationship side can only really be measured in the real environment of a salon. If the client doesn't connect with the therapist, then they are unlikely to return.

My hairdresser is both talented and good fun. I can't really afford to go to him, but I still go!

I guess my point is that if someone is doing a shoddy job they will not get loyal clients.
If someone is doing a brilliant job, but they lack enthusiasm, interest in the client and are generally negative energisers then, however good they are, they will not get loyal clients.

 

[Emma-1988]

I am glad people are finding this as well. I am literally setting up on my own this week and have already had a 'friend' who has no beauty background do a course on HD brows and Eyelashes. she now wants to do the nail gel courses and makeup. What makes it more annoying is we work together she is on reception and now is trying to offer what i offer, and i feel i will fail before i even start as i am renting the room where she is working.

 

[laurakate]

Let me put my tuppence in.

I went both routes - NVQ and shortcourses and had various experiences.


My both NVQs, in different colleges, were terrible (nVQ2 in Nail Technology and NVQ2 in Beauty Therapy) - in both cases there were students who hardly attended yet still were allowed to sit exams and gues what?... They passed! Overall teaching standards were poor - no matter what you do, you are always 'excellent'. No fair feedback or constructive critisims whatsoever. So I left mega confindent in my skills. And then reality hit me really badly during the trade test - to an extent that I was unable to get the job even in a substandard place (at thetimes I was not aware what nss are).


So, I decided to retrain privately. I had good and bad experiences, but mainly good.


My NVQ3 in Nails I have obtained purely because I needed this paper to get the job I wanted. So, I looked into curriculum, found out that I already know what is required and then found an assessment centre local to my place.


Sat all exams and passed from the first attempt, with minimal revision of theory. Most of my level 3 skills were gained through short courses and loads of practice.


In my opinion, NVQ does not guarantee certain teaching standards, and certail skill level as a result. It is all about passing everyone whoever is enrolled to get funding.


Yes, there are plenty on short course providers who will take your money and run away, but there are a lot with excellent reputation and high standards too. Research is the key.

Good point. There are good and bad courses both with college and private courses, short and long courses.

I too have an NVQ3 in nail services but know that I would struggle to pass a trade test in this area. I am now working towards my CND Brisa converstion certificate for this very reason.

 

[laurakate]

Short courses are inadequte in certain areas (not saying it takes a year to learn spray tanning and I'm sure that applies to other skills too), however, if you have had NVQ girls that are no good, then that is a failure of their course and the school/college to not only fail to give them inadequate training, but to then pass them too.

The problem is that awarding bodies do not police the courses they accredit. Some don't even care and will accredit anything but even those who do have certain standards do not police them. VCTC are notorious for this. There are government requirements for the numbers of hours required to achieve a certain level of qualification and the beauty industry seems to ignore all this.



Exactly, why were they passed if they were not achieving the required standard? It makes a mockery of those good therapists. Ultimately it is the customers that suffer but it refects poorly on the industry. I've read a number of posts where people are, understandably, frustrated that the beauty industy is percieved as being for the unintelligent. Is it any wonder that that is the perception when it is easy to qualify even if you don't reach the required standard. We should hold our heads high and expect our repective industries to have high standards of training and delivery of service. Only then will it get the respect.

But if someone is given a pass mark on their course but haven't attended and worked hard at it, all they will hold is the piece of paper with the qualification written on it and not necessarily the skills that go with it. I think it will be their own loss more than anyone elses because they will perhaps lack the skills required to get on in the industry.

 

[Zooks]

Let me put my tuppence in.

I went both routes - NVQ and shortcourses and had various experiences.


My both NVQs, in different colleges, were terrible (nVQ2 in Nail Technology and NVQ2 in Beauty Therapy) - in both cases there were students who hardly attended yet still were allowed to sit exams and gues what?... They passed! Overall teaching standards were poor - no matter what you do, you are always 'excellent'. No fair feedback or constructive critisims whatsoever. So I left mega confindent in my skills. And then reality hit me really badly during the trade test - to an extent that I was unable to get the job even in a substandard place (at thetimes I was not aware what nss are).


So, I decided to retrain privately. I had good and bad experiences, but mainly good.


My NVQ3 in Nails I have obtained purely because I needed this paper to get the job I wanted. So, I looked into curriculum, found out that I already know what is required and then found an assessment centre local to my place.


Sat all exams and passed from the first attempt, with minimal revision of theory. Most of my level 3 skills were gained through short courses and loads of practice.


In my opinion, NVQ does not guarantee certain teaching standards, and certail skill level as a result. It is all about passing everyone whoever is enrolled to get funding.


Yes, there are plenty on short course providers who will take your money and run away, but there are a lot with excellent reputation and high standards too. Research is the key.

Exactly the same as me.

I did my L2 NVQ in evenings and worked 6 days a week during the day. I wanted to do the full L3 and had to go back into full time education, not something I could afford and certainly not something I relished but it had to be done, I worked in retail 4 days, went to college the other 3 and worked L2 mobile in the evenings. I had christmas day off between september and april. I had til July to finish but there was no way I was staying in that college longer than needed. 80% of the girls there didnt really want to be there, took weeks off (one took 2 months!!) and still PASSED!!!!! Made me so incredibly angry, especially seeing as I was paying to be there and the majority of them were not. There were 11 girls on our course. 2 attended every day, I was one of them. THEY ALL PASSED. Even the one who missed two months worth.

That being said I earned a good basis of knowledge which was just that. A basis, to be able to top up with various short courses.

I did not feel competent when I left college.

All in all I think you absolutely should have to do an NVQ before certain short courses BUT NVQ standards are an absolute disgrace and need to be sorted out.

Can I also add that terrifyingly the one who missed two months walked out of the cubicle when performing elctrolysis on a client and didnt even go to the tutor, jsut felt she couldnt do it, got up and left, didnt even explain to the client. I saw what had happened and took over. Th was actually my last day thankfully but THAT girl is out there somewhere able to practice electrolysis.

I guess those that do short courses go in to it specifically where as for SOME younger people beauty is seen as an easy option and hey...they get it FREE!