Behind every glamorous movie star is a team of cosmetologists to make her look good onscreen and on the red carpet. Hairstylists, make-up artists, nail technicians, and skin-care specialists work together to create a look of effortless style and grace. Regular folks want to look good, feel glamorous, and follow the latest trends, too. Careers in cosmetology can take you anywhere from the corner salon to a cruise-ship spa, or you could even become a celebrity stylist.
Earning a degree in cosmetology from an accredited career college will prepare you for a career in one of four areas.

Hair
Cosmetology includes all aspects of hair care, from the most basic shampooing and conditioning, to cutting, coloring, and styling. Hairstylists typically work in salons, and much of their pay comes in the form of customer tips. While taking cosmetology courses, you’ll learn how to create all types of haircuts and styles and how to determine what colors and shapes work best for individual clients.
Some hairstylists specialize in a particular kind of hair care. For example, a hairstylist might specialize in dealing with the elderly and seek employment in a nursing care facility. Others might choose to go into wig design and maintenance.

Nails
Nail technicians give manicures and pedicures to customers, usually in a salon or boutique setting. While attending cosmetology school, nail technicians learn how to paint nails, apply false tips, care for cuticles, and massage hands and feet.

Make-up
Makeup artists primarily apply cosmetics to faces, but a good makeup artist should be familiar with all aspects of cosmetology, including styling hair. There are a variety of possible settings for a makeup artist. Some find work doing makeup for special occasions like weddings, while others work in theater, television, film, or fashion shows. Each type of makeup artist receives different training. If, for example, you aspire to be a theater makeup artist, you’ll need to take specialized cosmetology courses in stage makeup.

Skin
The most rapidly expanding branch of cosmetology is skin care, or esthetics. An esthetician works to make a client’s skin more beautiful by applying creams, facial masks, scrubs, and chemical peels. Cosmetology courses also train estheticians in different methods of hair removal and eyebrow grooming. As the baby boomer generation ages, there will be a huge demand for estheticians to help folks maintain youthful-looking skin.

Training
With the exception of shampooers in salons, all of these positions require a diploma or degree from a cosmetology school and a passing score on the state exam to become a licensed cosmetologist. Earning a cosmetology degree or diploma from an accredited career school will give you the training you need to get licensed and work as a professional cosmetologist.

There are many career colleges that offer cosmetology courses to choose from. To see these and other...