Hairdresser assistant to hair removal technician
A hairdresser assistant already meets 38% of what the hair removal technician role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.
60.5/ 100
1 How much of what a hair removal technician is expected to do is already part of a hairdresser assistant’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 hair removal technician role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A hair removal technician role treats 5 of its required skills as things a hairdresser assistant already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- hair
- identify customer's needs
- maintain customer service
- maintain equipment
- work ergonomically
What stands in the way is 7 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 11 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A hair removal technician role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a hairdresser assistant background worth leading with.
- already held hair services
- already held recommend cosmetics to customers communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held maintain professional administration management skills
- already held administer appointments management skills
- already held process payments management skills
- already held maintain equipment working with machinery and specialised equipment
All 11 carried skills, including the 5 the hair removal technician role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 20 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 cosmetics required
- still to learn cosmetics industry required
- still to learn hair removal techniques required
- still to learn skin types required
- still to learn use laser therapy for skin conditions required
- still to learn conform to cosmetics regulatory requirements required
- optional, not held perform electrolysis optional
- optional, not held use intense pulsed light technology optional
- optional, not held use threading techniques optional
- optional, not held wax body parts optional
- optional, not held pluck hair optional
- optional, not held treat facial hair optional
- optional, not held use hair removal lasers optional
- optional, not held style hair optional
- still to learn advise customers on usage of cosmetics required
- optional, not held offer cosmetic beauty advice optional
- optional, not held sell cosmetics optional
- optional, not held train employees optional
- optional, not held keep personal administration optional
- optional, not held manage a small-to-medium business optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a hair removal technician role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 cosmetics study this
- 02 cosmetics industry study this
- 03 use laser therapy for skin conditions 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 11 skills that carry over
- already held hair knowledge
- already held identify customer's needs skill
- already held maintain customer service skill
- already held maintain equipment skill
- already held work ergonomically skill
- already held administer appointments skill
- already held maintain professional administration skill
- already held monitor stock level skill
- already held order supplies skill
- already held process payments skill
- already held recommend cosmetics to customers skill
13 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held perform electrolysis optional
- optional, not held use intense pulsed light technology optional
- optional, not held use threading techniques optional
- optional, not held wax body parts optional
- optional, not held manage a small-to-medium business optional
- optional, not held offer cosmetic beauty advice optional
- optional, not held pluck hair optional
- optional, not held treat facial hair optional
- optional, not held use hair removal lasers optional
- optional, not held keep personal administration optional
- optional, not held sell cosmetics optional
- optional, not held style hair optional
- optional, not held train employees optional
17 held skills the hair removal technician role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role advise on hair style skill
- not needed by the target role communicate with customers skill
- not needed by the target role dye hair skill
- not needed by the target role give massages skill
- not needed by the target role greet guests skill
- not needed by the target role hair colouring knowledge
- not needed by the target role hair products knowledge
- not needed by the target role help customers with hair problems skill
- not needed by the target role listen actively skill
- not needed by the target role maintain work area cleanliness skill
- not needed by the target role provide directions to guests skill
- not needed by the target role sell hair products skill
- not needed by the target role stay up-to-date with hair style trends skill
- not needed by the target role treat scalp conditions skill
- not needed by the target role use equipment for hair care skill
- not needed by the target role wash hair skill
- not needed by the target role work safely with chemicals skill
4 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 cosmetics required
- still to learn cosmetics industry required
- still to learn hair removal techniques required
- still to learn skin types required
Other moves recorded from hairdresser assistant
Common questions about this move
Can a hairdresser assistant become a hair removal technician?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A hairdresser assistant already covers 38% of what a hair removal technician is expected to do: 11 skills carry over, 5 of which the hair removal technician role treats as required.
What skills does a hairdresser assistant need to become a hair removal technician?
7 required skills are missing, plus 13 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by services. The single most important is cosmetics.
How hard is the move from hairdresser assistant to hair removal technician?
Its learning distance is 60.5 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.