Aesthetician to barber
An aesthetician already meets 41% of what the barber role asks for. The move turns on 10 required skills not yet in the profile.
59.7/ 100
1 How much of what a barber is expected to do is already part of an aesthetician’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the barber role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A barber role treats 6 of its required skills as things an aesthetician already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- communicate with customers
- maintain customer service
- maintain equipment
- process payments
- treat facial hair
- work ergonomically
What stands in the way is 10 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 15 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A barber role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an aesthetician background worth leading with.
- already held treat facial hair assisting and caring
- already held give massages assisting and caring
- already held recommend cosmetics to customers communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held manage a small-to-medium business management skills
- already held maintain professional administration management skills
- already held administer appointments management skills
All 15 carried skills, including the 6 the barber role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 19 missing skills fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn use equipment for hair care required
- still to learn work safely with chemicals required
- still to learn style hair required
- optional, not held apply hair cutting techniques optional
- optional, not held help customers with hair problems optional
- optional, not held wash hair optional
- optional, not held dye hair optional
- still to learn hair required
- still to learn barbering techniques required
- still to learn hair products required
- still to learn advise on hair style required
- still to learn listen actively required
- optional, not held sell hair products optional
- still to learn manage personal professional development required
- optional, not held manage schedule of tasks optional
- optional, not held supervise staff optional
- still to learn stay up-to-date with hair style trends required
- optional, not held keep stock records optional
- optional, not held maintain work area cleanliness optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a barber role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 advise on hair style practise this
- 02 hair study this
- 03 stay up-to-date with hair style trends practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 15 skills that carry over
- already held communicate with customers skill
- already held maintain customer service skill
- already held maintain equipment skill
- already held process payments skill
- already held treat facial hair skill
- already held work ergonomically skill
- already held administer appointments skill
- already held give massages skill
- already held issue sales invoices skill
- already held maintain professional administration skill
- already held maintain relationship with suppliers skill
- already held manage a small-to-medium business skill
- already held order supplies skill
- already held recommend cosmetics to customers skill
- already held train employees skill
9 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held apply hair cutting techniques optional
- optional, not held help customers with hair problems optional
- optional, not held keep stock records optional
- optional, not held sell hair products optional
- optional, not held wash hair optional
- optional, not held dye hair optional
- optional, not held maintain work area cleanliness optional
- optional, not held manage schedule of tasks optional
- optional, not held supervise staff optional
26 held skills the barber role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role advise customers on usage of cosmetics skill
- not needed by the target role apply permanent make-up skill
- not needed by the target role comply with legislation related to health care skill
- not needed by the target role cosmetic manicure knowledge
- not needed by the target role cosmetic skin treatment knowledge
- not needed by the target role cosmetics knowledge
- not needed by the target role cosmetics industry knowledge
- not needed by the target role cosmetics ingredients knowledge
- not needed by the target role determine skin type skill
- not needed by the target role hydrotherapy knowledge
- not needed by the target role identify customer's needs skill
- not needed by the target role keep personal administration skill
- not needed by the target role keep up to date with spa products skill
- not needed by the target role make-up techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role manage indoor tanning sessions skill
- not needed by the target role manufacture cosmetics skill
- not needed by the target role monitor stock level skill
- not needed by the target role offer cosmetic beauty advice skill
- not needed by the target role offer free samples of cosmetics skill
- not needed by the target role perform body wrapping skill
- not needed by the target role perform facial treatment skill
- not needed by the target role sell cosmetics skill
- not needed by the target role support individuals on nutrition changes skill
- not needed by the target role test make-up skill
- not needed by the target role use hair removal techniques skill
- not needed by the target role use laser therapy for skin conditions skill
3 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn hair required
- still to learn barbering techniques required
- still to learn hair products required
Common questions about this move
Can an aesthetician become a barber?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. An aesthetician already covers 41% of what a barber is expected to do: 15 skills carry over, 6 of which the barber role treats as required.
What skills does an aesthetician need to become a barber?
10 required skills are missing, plus 9 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by assisting and caring. The single most important is advise on hair style.
How hard is the move from aesthetician to barber?
Its learning distance is 59.7 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.