Barber to hairdresser
A barber already meets 75% of what the hairdresser role asks for. The move turns on 4 required skills not yet in the profile.
30.4/ 100
1 How much of what a hairdresser is expected to do is already part of a barber’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 hairdresser role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A hairdresser role treats 13 of its required skills as things a barber already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- advise on hair style
- communicate with customers
- dye hair
- hair
- hair products
- maintain customer service
What stands in the way is 4 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 28 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A hairdresser role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a barber background worth leading with.
- already held use equipment for hair care assisting and caring
- already held wash hair assisting and caring
- already held help customers with hair problems assisting and caring
- already held sell hair products communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held hair products services
- already held treat facial hair assisting and caring
All 28 carried skills, including the 13 the hairdresser role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 10 missing skills fall into 5 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 identify customer's needs required
- still to learn satisfy customers required
- optional, not held offer cosmetic beauty advice optional
- optional, not held organise product display optional
- still to learn curl hair required
- optional, not held treat scalp conditions optional
- optional, not held design hair style optional
- still to learn hair colouring required
- optional, not held maintain wigs optional
- optional, not held monitor stock level optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a hairdresser role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 28 skills that carry over
- already held advise on hair style skill
- already held communicate with customers skill
- already held dye hair skill
- already held hair knowledge
- already held hair products knowledge
- already held maintain customer service skill
- already held maintain equipment skill
- already held process payments skill
- already held stay up-to-date with hair style trends skill
- already held style hair skill
- already held use equipment for hair care skill
- already held wash hair skill
- already held work ergonomically skill
- already held administer appointments skill
- already held apply hair cutting techniques skill
- already held help customers with hair problems skill
- already held issue sales invoices skill
- already held maintain professional administration skill
- already held maintain relationship with suppliers skill
- already held maintain work area cleanliness skill
- already held manage a small-to-medium business skill
- already held manage schedule of tasks skill
- already held order supplies skill
- already held recommend cosmetics to customers skill
- already held sell hair products skill
- already held supervise staff skill
- already held train employees skill
- already held treat facial hair skill
6 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held maintain wigs optional
- optional, not held monitor stock level optional
- optional, not held offer cosmetic beauty advice optional
- optional, not held organise product display optional
- optional, not held treat scalp conditions optional
- optional, not held design hair style optional
6 held skills the hairdresser role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role barbering techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role give massages skill
- not needed by the target role keep stock records skill
- not needed by the target role listen actively skill
- not needed by the target role manage personal professional development skill
- not needed by the target role work safely with chemicals skill
1 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 colouring required
Common questions about this move
Can a barber become a hairdresser?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A barber already covers 75% of what a hairdresser is expected to do: 28 skills carry over, 13 of which the hairdresser role treats as required.
What skills does a barber need to become a hairdresser?
4 required skills are missing, plus 6 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is curl hair.
How hard is the move from barber to hairdresser?
Its learning distance is 30.4 out of 100, which is the moderate 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.