New Jersey’s beauty industry is booming. The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development states that personal appearance jobs will grow 17.9% between 2012 and 2022. This means that there will be over 700 new job openings for personal appearance professionals each year.
 | How to Become a Cosmetology-Hairstylist in New Jersey |
| Steps Toward Becoming a New Jersey Manicurist |
| Qualifications for Skin Care Specialists in New Jersey |
| How to Become a Barber in New Jersey |
New Jersey is home to many notable beauty salons and barbershops. Verde Salon in Collingswood, for example, has been mentioned in American Salon and G Philly Magazine, and it is known for their top-rated hairstylists who specialize in unique areas such as organic color and keratin treatments.
Similarly, the manicurists at Perfect 10 Nail & Hair Boutique, located in Newton, focus on the natural integrity of nails, preferring gel manicures and gel fills to more harsh treatments.
Skin care specialists in New Jersey, such as those at Skin Deep Salon and Spa, perform cutting-edge natural services, such as green caviar luxury facials, algae lift-off facials, salt therapy treatments, vitamin power massages, and reiki treatments.
Finally, the barbers in New Jersey are dedicated to reviving the vintage art of men’s grooming, with shops like Scissorhands in New Brunswick, which offers hot towel lather shaves, shoe shines, and flat screen TV entertainment.
Your career as a personal care professional in New Jersey starts with attending beauty school and becoming licensed by the New Jersey State Board of Cosmetology and Hairstyling. This Board regulates the requirements for all beauty professional licenses throughout the state, such cosmetology-hairstylists, manicurists, skin care specialists, and barbers. Each license is separate and unique, with different education and examination standards.
How to Become a Cosmetology-Hairstylist in New Jersey
As a cosmetology-hairstylist, you will get some of the most comprehensive training of all licensed beauty professionals in the state. In New Jersey, cosmetology-hairstylists are not limited to just styling hair. You would be able to perform various beauty services, including the following:
- Shaving facial hair
- Cutting, curling, waving, and styling hair
- Applying chemical dye, coloring, or bleach to hair
- Applying cosmetics or makeup to the scalp, face, or neck
- Massaging and stimulating the face and neck
- Removing superfluous hair from face or neck
- Manicuring and pedicuring nails
- Hairweaving
Education Requirements for a Cosmetology License
A career in cosmetology starts by attending a comprehensive cosmetology school program. To meet the New Jersey Board requirements, your cosmetology-hairstyling training program will contain at least 1200 credit hours. These 1200 hours include both theory and practical, hands-on instruction. Through these programs, you get to learn everything you’ve ever wanted to know as a beauty professional—from the laws governing the practice in New Jersey to how to complete excellent facials and massages.
The New Jersey Board offers student permits to those who would like to work after completing the first 600 hours of schooling. The student permit will let you practice basic cosmetology, hairstyling, makeup application, hair removal, and manicuring while you’re still finishing school.
Examination Requirements for a Cosmetology License
After completing cosmetology school, you can take the written and practical licensing exams:
- The written exam is administered by the New Jersey beauty professional testing vendor, PSI. This exam will test your theoretical knowledge of cosmetology subjects, such as chemical services, hairstyling, and infection control.
- The New Jersey Board administers the practical exam. This exam will test your ability to perform cosmetology-hairstyling services, such as shampooing, cutting, styling, and infection control procedures.
After passing these exams, the Board will issue your New Jersey cosmetology-hairstyling license. This license allows you to legally work as a cosmetology-hairstylist anywhere in the state.
Employment Opportunities for Cosmetologists in New Jersey
Once you’re licensed, you can to look for part-time or full-time work as a cosmetologist or beauty advisor. Most cosmetology-hairstylists will rent a chair from a salon or spa, or work off of commission. However, there are many salon jobs in New Jersey that will offer competitive hourly pay along with commission.
New Jersey’s salon culture is known for being high-end, fashion-centric, and inclusive of organic and natural methods and products. Along with Verde Salon in Collingsworth, there are others dedicated to staying on the cutting-edge of beauty.
The number one salon in New Jersey, as stated by BE! Magazine, is Just Salon, located in the Short Hills Mall. Just Salon is a European-inspired salon, whose cosmetologists actively participate in the beauty and fashion culture of New York City and use top brands such as L’Oreal. In fact, it is known as one of only five salons in New Jersey to launch L’Oreal’s innovated ammonia-free color technology, a healthy alternative to heavy chemical colors.
Steps Toward Becoming a New Jersey Manicurist
As a manicurist in New Jersey, you will perform more specific, specialized services than a cosmetology-hairstylist. Your focus will be solely on manicuring, pedicuring, nail sculpting, and removing some superfluous hair from face, neck, arms, legs, or abdomen by waxing and tweezers.
Education Requirements for a Manicurist License
To pursue a license as a manicurist, you should be at least 17 years old and have completed high school (or the equivalent). After completing high school, your career as a manicurist will start by completing at least 300 credit hours of manicuring training in order to meet state licensing requirements.
Manicurist programs are often offered thorough New Jersey cosmetology schools or general beauty colleges. In these programs, you will learn everything you need to know about manicures, pedicures, massaging, and different types of wax treatments.
After completing a manicurist training program, you will be eligible to take the New Jersey manicurist licensing exams.
Examination Requirements for a Manicurist License
You will be able to get your New Jersey manicurist license once you pass the two state licensing examinations: the theory and the practical exam. The manicurist theory exam is administered by Prometric, as well. Those exam questions will cover manicurist theory subjects such as chemical product knowledge and the anatomy of hands and feet. The New Jersey Board gives the practical exam. In that exam, you will be tested on your ability to perform manicuring services, such as nail wraps, nail tips, and sculptured nails.
Job Opportunities for Manicurists in New Jersey
Salons and spas are always looking for new, fresh, and creative talent, so experience and further education will help you land a job in this field. Most manicurists look to rent a booth from a salon, spa, or nail salon, or are paid off commission. Sometimes, nail salons will offer hourly pay, and you will receive commission off of the products you sell in the store – not to mention tips.
As a manicurist, you’ll want to focus on personal marketing. Most salons prefer to hire applicants who already have an established clientele or “following.” If you do not have an established clientele already, you can apply to work at a hair salon that offers manicures. In that setting, you may get new clients from people who are already visiting the salon for other services.
Some manicurists choose to open a beauty shop in their home. You may do this after attaining 3 years of experience as a licensed manicurist. With that experience, you could apply for a New Jersey shop permit under the approval of your city’s zoning official.
Perfect 10 Nail and Hair Boutique in Newton is not the only nail salon with organic products and services. Salon Terranova in Sicklerville offers cutting-edge services, such as OPI Axxium Soak-Off Gel Lacquer, which is a revolutionary UV-cured, soak off gel formula, which is easier on the nails than other hard substances like acrylic. Along with this, Salon Terranova offers termasoft soyaffin therapy, therma shell heat therapy, texture scrubs, and essential oil massages to really raise the bar in nail services.
Qualifications for Skin Care Specialists in New Jersey
As a skin care specialist, your job will be focused and specialized. You get to focus on performing skin-related services exclusively, which include the following:
- Applying cosmetics to scalp, face, or neck
- Massaging, cleansing, and stimulating the face, neck, or upper body
- Removing superfluous hair from the face, neck, arms, legs, or abdomen
Education Requirements for a Skincare Specialist License
Once you are 17 years old and have completed high school (or equivalent), you may enroll in a skin care training program. In New Jersey, you will find skin care programs within larger cosmetology schools or general beauty colleges.
To qualify for a skin care specialist license, skin care programs will give you at least 600 hours of cutting-edge training on how to perform facials, waxing, body treatment techniques, and how to apply makeup at a professional level.
Examination Requirements for a Skincare Specialist License
After completing a skin care training program, you will be able to take the New Jersey skin care specialist licensing examinations. Similar to the other license requirements, you will obtain a skin care specialist license after you pass two exams: the theory and the practical exam. The theory exam, administered by Prometric, will cover basic skin care theory, such as skin treatments, hair removal, and makeup purpose, supplies, and application. Your practical exam, administered by the Board, will cover your ability to perform facials, hair removal, and apply makeup.
Job Opportunities for a Skincare Specialists in New Jersey
Rather than working in a traditional salon, skin care specialists usually find jobs in day spas, waxing centers, or even sometimes in dermatology offices. You will also be in luck if you enjoy sales; skin care specialists spend much time and energy promoting and selling their skin care products. You may even enjoy sales so much that you may choose to become a beauty product representative. Skin care specialists may find that they are busiest during nights and weekends, when clients can take time off work to be pampered.
Along with specializing in nail care, Salon Terranova in Sicklerville also specializes in organic skin care services. Here you will find makeup infused with plant enzymes and the organic rain water facial, which is the world’s first 100% USDA organic facial treatment. This exciting facial services features one of the most advanced super fruit, the Kakadu plum. Lastly, although 5 Salon and Spa offers all types of salon services, their skin care is hard to beat. 5 Salon and Spa offers a range of services, such as deep pore cleansing massages, LED facials, vitamin C facials, super fruit facials, and stem cell lifting facials, just to name a few.
How to Become a Barber in New Jersey
Barbers perform tasks that are slightly more general, rather than specialized. In this way, they are similar to cosmetology-hairstylists. However, barbers generally specialize in the cutting, trimming, and designing of men’s hair, specifically.
As a barber in New Jersey, you get to learn how to perform the following services:
- Shampoo, cut, arrange, and style hair
- Shave, trim, and design beards and moustaches
- Singe and dye hair
- Massage, cleanse, and stimulate the face, neck, and scalp
- Cut, fit, and color hairpieces or wigs
Education Requirements for Barber Licensure
Your career as a barber starts by completing a barber training program of at least 900 hours in order to meet state licensing requirements. Though you will learn how to cut and style all types of hair, your education will be specialized toward men’s hair specifically, including courses focused on tasks such as honing and stropping, shaving, and beard/mustache trimming.
Examination Requirements for Barber Licensure
After completing 900 hours of barber training, you will take two licensing exams to obtain your New Jersey barber license. The theory exam, again, is administered by Prometric. This exam tests your knowledge on the theoretical barbering concepts, such as shop safety, infection control, and New Jersey barber laws.
The practical exam, which is administered by the New Jersey Board, will test your ability to cut hair, shave and trim facial hair, massage and cleanse the face, and cut, fit, and style hairpieces.
New Jersey Barber Job Opportunities
Similar to cosmetologists, barbers will likely rent a chair from a barbershop. They will pay a chair rental fee as well as give some commission to the barbershop. Barbershops and salons that hire barbers will be looking for applicants with expertise in all areas of barbering—including straight razor shaves and chemical services.
Consistent with New Jersey’s historically-situated culture, Virile Barber & Shop in Waldwick was voted one of the “Manliest Barbershops in America” by Men’s Health Magazine for bringing back the classic, American barber experience. This barbershop offers a full-spa grooming atmosphere for men, offering vintage barber chairs, hot towel shaves, fresh beer and a cigar.