Salon and hairdressing career advice for jobseekers

We have provided some advice for anyone looking for routes into the hair and beauty industry and also for salon professionals on how to tailor your CV, applications and interviewing etiquette to help give you the best chance of landing that ideal job.

Gaining qualifications and entry routes.

Thorough training is essential for todays competitive market and National Vocational Qualifications (NVQ's)are qualifications about work based upon standards developed by industry and commerce. They are about raising the standards of peoples competence. That means training more people to a high level so that they can produce good quality products and services.

NVQ's are placed in a framework of 4 levels starting with an introduction at Level 1 through to essential skills required for basic hairdressing, beauty therapy, nails and spa at level 2 to more technical skills at level 3 and the management skills at level 4. On completion of these higher levels students can move on to Higher National Certificate or Diploma (HNC/D) qualification a Foundation Degree or Higher and Honours Degree.

CV and Cover letters

Keep it short and sharp.

The cover letter is your selling tool to show recruiters that your CV is relevant for their job. The best cover letters incorporate key words and skills mentioned in the job ad. But if you are stuck for time, and need to use a standard letter, one trick is to cite where you saw the ad – that’ll have them thinking what comes next really was written for them.

As a good rule of thumb, no more than 2 pages for a CV, and no more than 1 page for a cover letter. Recruiters are likely to make a decision about you at a glance, and remember – the more you write, the more room you create in which to waffle or make mistakes. Don’t forget to spell check.

Be selective about the info you include. A CV is not an autobiography. Only include the information that is most relevant to the job you’re applying for. Otherwise, the relevant info may get buried. Less really is more. Quantify your achievements and skills. Prospective employers don’t just want to see what you did in a previous job, but what difference you made.

Try to avoid unexplained gaps. The more recent the gaps, the more attention they will attract. The best way to show recruiters that you have more work experience that you are just not describing in detail is to include a section in your CV such as ‘previous work experience’ that outlines briefly the kind of jobs you did. You could also just leave the gaps, as long as you come to the interview prepared to be asked about them.
Don’t Exaggerate, don’t over-hype your skills or experience – describing your communication skills as ‘excellent’, for example, will result in harsher treatment of any typos they find.

Don’t shoot yourself in the foot with negative info. Watch out for those quirky email addresses, e.g. ‘im_crazy@hotmail.com’, as they won’t give quite the professional impression you want to convey. Also, don’t include your reasons for leaving any previous job – including them just draws attention to them, so leave it for the interview, and come with answers prepared.

Interviews

Now’s your chance to impress them in person, in the interview. Use the following info as a primer on interview etiquette and on the questions you’re likely to face.

Employers are impressed if they know you’ve done some digging. Best places to look? Their website, for one. If you’re able to drop into the conversation a little piece of info to show you know more about them than the job description they sent you, you’ll definitely win points.

Come with questions to ask them. Good questions to ask are about the company’s vision/direction (‘I’d be interested to learn more about the company’s plans for the next x years’); about what it’s like to work there (‘could you tell me a bit about the company culture?’) and, of course, about the role itself (‘how will success in this job be measured?’ or ‘what’s the most important priority for this job?’).

Dress to match the role. A suit may be standard for a City job, but may be totally out of place in a hairdressing environment but, when in doubt, dress ‘up’. In other words, go more, not less formal. Remember your manners such as showing up on time (late to interview could mean late with work), and thanking them at the end of the interview for inviting you along and considering your application.

It is a good idea to bring a portfolio of images that showcase your experience. Even if they haven't been professionally shot, they are a great way to demonstrate what you are capable of. If possible, take some client testimonials with you as well.

Be prepared for a trade test. Most employers will ask you to do some sort of practical test. They are not trying to catch you out so don't panic. Just do what you do and do it well, but avoid doing anything too clever or too off-the-wall.

Switch off your phone. If your phone goes off, it’ll turn them right off. It’s that simple. If you do forget, and it rings right in the middle of your interview, apologise, and mute it straight away. Answering it is not an option – even if it’s accompanied by ‘excuse me, I’m terribly sorry’, regardless of whether it’s a personal or professional call.

Don’t foul mouth a previous boss or colleagues. What most people who do this don’t realise is that it’s not what it says about your ex-boss that’s so interesting. It’s what it says about you and your poor judgment, your emotional behaviour, your negativity, and your unwillingness to share responsibility for bad working relationships.

Avoid reading from your CV. It destroys any sense of confidence they may be building in you. You should know everything you have written in your CV. Otherwise, they’ll start to question if you really wrote it and, worse, if it’s really true…

Don’t bring up the salary before the employer does. It’s very presumptuous of you and may indicate your interest in the position and the company is based solely on this.