Resumes (or curriculum vitae if you do not live in the US) are one of those things that the average beauty industry person has no idea about, even though having a good resume is a critical element in the job seelking process. When I applied for my first nail job, I went to apply thinking I would just fill out an application and that would be that. When they asked for my resume, I gave them a blank look - this was not something that was even mentioned in nail school!A resume/curriculum vitae is defined as "a brief account of a person's education, qualifications, and previous experience, typically sent with a job application." It is a summary of your relevant work/educational experience. This means, you do not need to list every single job you have ever had, nor every subject you studied in school.
You will want to tailor your resume to the position you are applying for - and yes this means that you should look at and refine your resume for every job you apply for! You may not need to make any adjustments if the positions are all very similar, but you may need to tweak a word or two or even a whole section.
For instance, if you are looking to apply at a spa that only does natural nail manicures, you will not want your objective to read "A highly talented nail technician with experience in providing professional, high quality acrylic nails." The fact that you do acrylic nails means nothing to a natural nails-only spa. It is neither relevant nor tailored to the application.
Being relevent doesnt just mean salon work. When you are first starting out, you most likely will not have worked in a salon. Under the Experience section of your resume you can put previous jobs that focus on your relevant transferable skills. A salon owner isn’t just looking for someone who can do great nails. They also want someone who is reliable, is professional with the clients and who is a team player. Showing that you worked as a sales associate for three years, doesn’t speak to your nails skills, but it shows you are a loyal and dependable employee – which is equally as important.
Students should include statistics from their work at the school salon including includes how many clients they serviced in a week, the average service ticket, the number of referrals, the percent of re-books, the average retail ticket, and weekly service and retail goals. The resume should also include experiences outside the classroom, from volunteering at school fundraisers to doing a beauty photo shoot after hours.
Parts of a Resume
Resumes have four basic parts - your contact information, the objective, your education and your experience. In addition you can add sections highlighting relevent skills or other relevant information.
- Contact Information: This is self explanatory - name, address and phone number plus email address. If you have an online resume, include that website address as well.
- Objective. This is an optional piece - more and more people are saying to leave it off but if you choose to keep it in, this is where you tell the employer exactly what you are looking for in a place of employment. Mention the kind of environment and position you are seeking. State your objective simply and concisely; it is never necessary to have a long-winded statement.
- Education. List it all: where and when you went to school and any continuing education classes or seminars you have attended.
- Experience. List prior work experience beginning with your present position and working backwards. List all products you have worked with. This will give you an advantage over the other applicants who have no experience with certain products. Your experience does not have to be paid to be relevant. This allows you to include any experience in which you learned or demonstrated skills, knowledge or abilities that are related to the type of job you are seeking.
- Activities/ Awards: To help make yourself stand out, be sure to add anything that shows your passion for the industry - such as memberships to industry associations and awards or competitions participated in.
- Other Experience/Volunteer Work: If you have a lot of experience you can choose to separate your experience into difference sections and list related volunteer work
- Skills: Most resumes can benefit from having a skills section. The heading might simply read "Skills," and include a list of various skills. Since skills are a large part of the beauty insutry and are more related to your objective than some other sections, place this section higher on your resume page than other less-related sections.
- Certifications/Licensure: You can include you licensure in your education if it was obtained due to training, but you may also wish to highlight it as a separate section, especially if you have certifications from manufacturers - such as being a CND Master Tech.
On a resume, it is unnecessary to state "references available upon request." Most employers assume this. Do, however, prepare a reference list, on a separate page from your resume.
On curriculum vitae, references ARE typically listed.
In selecting people to ask to serve as references for you, think about what those individuals know about you and if they can discuss your work-related qualities. Don't list references who only know you in a social capacity. While family friends may have nice things to say about you, employers don't place value on these kinds of references. Also, don't ever give someone's name as a reference without that person's permission.
Dos and Don’ts of a Successful Resume
• Don’t use overly cute or ornate fonts. Make it as easy as possible for the interviewer to get the information she needs without having to try to decipher what the words are.
• Don’t use a lot of icons or design elements that will be distracting to the interviewer. You want her to see the information in your resume, not the art.
• Don’t go for bright neon paper. Although you want your resume to stand out in a stack, the interviewer may have difficulty reading that beautiful yellow color that you so love.
• Do be creative — but opt for a classic style over glitz and glamour.
• Do use spell-check. And have someone proofread it for you as well. I can not stress this enough! Proofread, have your mom proofread, have your teacher proofread, have a friend proofread and then proofread it again! Check not only for spelling mistakes, but mistakes in the "voice" of the resume. It should all sound cohesive.
Seeing how others structure their resume may bring you some ideas - go ahead and Google "Nail Techncician Resume Examples" and you will get many ideas on how to structure a resume. You can also look for cosmetologist, hair stylist, esthitician, manicurist, and beauty industry resume examples to get additional ideas on structuring a resume, even if you don't do hair or skin care for a living.
References/Resources
http://www.career.vt.edu/resumeguide/ContentSections.html
http://www.career.vt.edu/JobSearchGuide/ReferenceGuide.html
http://www.nailpro.com/sample-resume/
http://files.nailsmag.com/Handouts/naCH11resume.pdf
http://www.beautyschoolsdirectory.com/blog/beauty-careers/how-to-write-a-cosmetology-resume/
http://www.nailsmag.com/article/96938/help-students-create-impressive-resumes-fresh-out-of-school
http://www.nsinails.com/nail-labs/tricks-of-the-trade/prepping-for-an-interview.html#.VnAsgXJglaQ
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