Are you interested in pursuing a career in Cosmetology? If so, then you’ve come to the right place. Pursuing a cosmetology career can be confusing, if even intimidating. In order to help you prepare for your cosmetology job search and upcoming interviews we recently reached out to our Career Services Coordinator at Dorsey School of Beauty located in Taylor – Mrs. Shannon Thomison. With her help, we’ve managed to put together five interviewing tips for those of you pursuing cosmetology careers. Here is what we were able to come up with, thanks to her help:

Cosmetology Careers Interview Tip 1:  Research! Research! Research!

It is very important to research the salon you are looking to interview with. You want to make sure the salon you choose as your first job is a great starting point. You also want to make sure that the environment is one that will help you grow and make your current and future clients happy. This can be done by finding out what services they offer to the public, and looking into things such as amount of parking space for workers and clients, as well as the safety of the salon location.

Cosmetology Careers Interview Tip 2:  Preparation is key.

Prepare for the interview by practicing answering AND asking interview questions. If after you have had your mock interview with Career Services, you will still feel that you need practice: have a friend or family member do a mock face to face or phone interview with you. This will help you prep for salon interviews and help shake some of those nerves. If you still feel that you need help with your interviewing skills, take the interview question sheet that Career Services has given you and write the answers down. This helps you think of what to say, before you say it.

Another tip with interviewing is that you must remember that you are interviewing the employer just as much as they are interviewing you! You must make sure that the salon is a great fit for you just as much as the salon owner/manager wants to make sure you are a great fit for them. A few questions that can ask them are:

• What type of training opportunities does the salon offer (workshops, hair shows, company training, etc.)?
• Will I receive an employee handbook and or a Salon Rules and Policy book?
• Will there be a technical interview following this one?
• What skills would I need to showcase during the technical interview?
• What tools or products will I need to bring with me on my first day in the salon doesn’t supply them?

Cosmetology Careers Interview Tip 3:  Be sure to review and update your resume and portfolio

Always review and update your resume and portfolios as needed. Your resume and portfolio are living documents. You should always add new classes, certifications or hairstyles you learned to both you resume and portfolio.

Here are some housekeeping rules for all Cosmetology e-portfolios on social media. Remember to always have fun when expressing yourself: You are YOUR own brand:

• There should be no personal information or stats posted on your portfolio pages. Your portfolio is for your cosmetology work, and for employers to see ONLY. Please go through and clean house on your portfolio pages ASAP. Use your personal pages for personal stats, photos, etc.
• Please be mindful of your PERSONAL social media page too. Employers take your portfolio page AND personal page into consideration when hiring. If you are posting things that they find offensive or inappropriate to an employer, it could cost you a salon or beauty advising position.
• Mark your personal page PRIVATE! This way, anyone who isn’t a friend or follower of yours can’t see your page.
• Keep it classy and professional. After all, this is a reflection on YOU as a stylist.
• Not all information needs to be shared with the world. Again, this can be seen as you being too open with your personal life and can be a turn off to potential employers.

Cosmetology Careers Interview Tip 4:  Dress to impress.

One of the many great things of working in the cosmetology industry is that you get to dress for the world of fashion! Keep your look polished and fashionable. Use sites like Pinterest to look up salon interview outfit ideas. While cosmetology is part of the fashion world, you should always have a professional and polished look for yourself, your clients, and the salon you work for. Your look is what draws your client to you. They don’t just come to you for fashionable hairstyles, but clothing advice too!

Cosmetology Careers Interview Tip 5:  Have Fun!

This is an interview, not a firing squad! They just want to get to know you! Have fun with it. Talk to them about your love for the cosmetology field and what made you want to be a part of a billion-dollar industry. Remember to have a model ready for the second part of your interview. Once you wow them during the face to face interview, it’s time to show them your skills! Keep the task simple and prep in advance. You may be asked to do a men’s or women’s haircut, a color application or an up-do. Keep the personal talk to a minimum. While it’s nice to get to know someone on a personal level, your future employer wants to know what kind of employee you are, not what kind of friend you are. You are there to do a job – if you make friends along the way, it’s a bonus.

It is our hope that these tips will allow you to feel comfortable with and excel during the interview process so that you will successfully enter the world of working (and licensed) cosmetologists.

Happy job searching?

Cosmetology training in Michigan at Dorsey School of Beauty

If you have a passion for beauty and fashion, then a career in cosmetology may be right for you. Dorsey School of Beauty offers a Cosmetology diploma program that is designed to take a student’s interest in the beauty industry to the professional level. This program includes comprehensive classroom instruction with hands-on training in actual beauty clients with real life clients to foster a complete educational foundation.

Are you ready to learn more about turning your career dreams into a reality?  Contact us today by calling 888-422-1188 or request info online

Taylortown School of Beauty operates as Dorsey School of Beauty and/or Dorsey Schools (Taylor Campus location).

The Taylor, MI campus is accredited by NACCAS and is a Main Campus.

The Madison Heights, MI campus is a Main Campus and the Roseville and Lansing, MI campuses are branches of Madison Heights.

Reviewed and edited 12/6/17