Where to Learn Permanent Makeup

Permanent makeup has become a desirable career for many people for many reasons; there aren’t a lot of other jobs that offer the potential flexibility to make your own schedule, be your own boss, and make a good income. With regulations and requirements to learn and practice applying permanent makeup varying greatly, many have asked:

Where can you learn permanent makeup? You can learn the art of permanent makeup at training programs specifically for permanent makeup, at cosmetology and esthetician schools, at some vocational colleges, and through apprenticeships with a trainer.

To expand on this, we’ll walk you through an overview of where you can learn permanent makeup, and then a breakdown of the lengths and costs of these methods.

Overview: Where You Can Learn Permanent Makeup

Deciding where to learn permanent makeup may depend on what specific procedures you want to learn. If you want to learn every aspect and procedure of permanent makeup, a full permanent makeup training course may be the best option.

If you only want to learn one type of procedure, like microblading, you may be able to learn with a shorter route of training. Below we’ll discuss the types of places you can learn permanent makeup.

Permanent Makeup Programs

Perhaps one of the most popular and recommended routes for learning permanent makeup is to attend a permanent makeup program or course. These programs are typically longer than other routes of learning the trade and usually involve both in-class lectures and hands-on clinical training.

Most instructors and professionals in the industry recommend attending longer, specialized permanent makeup courses for learning how to do permanent makeup. These programs offer in-depth training on usually the full spectrum of permanent makeup services, like permanent makeup for eyebrows, eyeliner, lips, cheeks, areolas, and more.

As an example, one of the top Permanent Makeup Artists in Texas is Vicki Hansen. Aside from having a successful studio providing permanent makeup, she also is very well known for teaching Permanent Cosmetic Professionals. She has been successfully training Permanent Cosmetic professionals for over a decade.

With Vicki’s 25+ years of experience, she specialized in advanced procedures and helping PMU artists fine-tune their skills to take their career to the next level. After watching students receive certificates from sub-standard training, leaving them feeling ill-prepared for what lies ahead, Vicki developed a vision of what permanent make up education should become. Her training clinic is designed to mentor students along the way to achieve success. Check out her training courses here: https://vickismakingfaces.com/educational-opportunity/

Cosmetology or Esthetician Schools

Sometimes, permanent makeup training and courses will be offered at cosmetology or esthetician schools. The training for permanent makeup may be offered as part of a larger cosmetology program, or it may be its own separate entity offered through the school.

Permanent makeup programs offered at cosmetology or esthetician schools may be longer and specialized, but they can also be shorter and just for one type of procedure.

Vocational Colleges

Permanent makeup may also be a major or program offered at vocational and technical colleges. Although the number of vocational and technical colleges that offer permanent makeup is still a little low, the option seems to be growing along with the industry.

Vocational and technical colleges typically offer certificates in permanent makeup upon completion of the program.

Apprenticeship

Anyone seeking to learn permanent makeup may also be able to do so through an apprenticeship with an experienced permanent makeup practitioner. The permanent makeup practitioner can train others in the art of applying makeup. Apprenticeships may take place after one has already completed an initial permanent makeup program, or they may be how everything in its entirety is learned.

Since regulations for learning and being certified in permanent makeup services vary from state to state and may actually be nonexistent in some states, it’s still possible to learn permanent makeup through an apprenticeship and then begin to work.

Short Courses

Shorter courses are also offered as a means for learning how to do permanent makeup. Shorter courses can be anywhere from 2 days to a week in length, and typically only cover one type of procedure at a time, or are offered as a “refresher” course for those who already have experience applying permanent makeup.

Courses that are short (typically a week or two in length) that teach the full range of permanent makeup procedures are usually not recommended for those who plan to practice permanent makeup full time and become certified. However, they’re great for learning one skill at a time, learning more skills in depth, and brushing up on skills.

An In-Depth Look at Where to Learn Permanent Makeup

Now that you now have a general idea of where you can learn permanent makeup, we can expand on those places in more detail. There are certain details that are important to know for anyone who is considering learning permanent makeup, like the requirements to begin learning and the lengths and costs of different courses.

The Requirements to Begin Learning Permanent Makeup

Like discussed before, in some states regulations and requirements to begin learning permanent makeup vary. However, there are some general requirements that seem to be standard across the board. They are:

Being at least 16 years old (in some states you may need to be at least 18 years old)
Have a high school diploma, GED or equivalent
Have the required documentation (may just be your personal identification or something more like a CPR certification in some cases)

You’ll of course also want to have a desire to learn permanent makeup! There may be some additional requirements depending on where you choose to learn permanent makeup, so it’s important to do your research. Permanent makeup specialized training courses, cosmetology schools and vocational colleges typically have the most requirements.

How Long it Takes to Learn Permanent Makeup

You’ve probably noticed by now that the time it takes to learn permanent makeup varies depending on the route you choose. So, about how long does it take to learn permanent makeup throughout the various routes of learning and training?

Specialized Permanent Makeup Training Program Lengths

Specialized permanent makeup training programs vary, but basic training courses run anywhere from three to six months in length. There are also some in-depth training programs that may be six months or longer in length, and these programs are recommended for those who want to pursue permanent makeup as a profession.

Cosmetology or Esthetician School Permanent Makeup Program Lengths

While attending cosmetology or esthetician school to pursue cosmetics or esthetics can take anywhere from six months to two years, permanent makeup programs and courses offered there are typically shorter.

For someone who wants to pursue cosmetology or esthetics and learn permanent makeup as a component of that, the length to complete the program will follow the standard of six months to two years. For someone who wants to only pursue permanent makeup, the permanent makeup courses offered at cosmetology and esthetician schools can vary. They may be short seminars that are a few days long or specialized courses that are three to six months long.

Vocational College Permanent Makeup Program Lengths

Learning permanent makeup at a vocational or technical college will usually result in earning a one year or two year certificate. So, depending on the college and program, it will take either one year or two years to learn permanent makeup at a vocational or technical college.

Permanent Makeup Apprenticeship Lengths

The length of learning permanent makeup through an apprenticeship is perhaps the most variable of all the methods. The amount of time it takes to complete an apprenticeship depends on the apprenticeship and who it is offered by.

For example, students in one apprenticeship program are required to complete 12 hours of study in a month for at least 12 months, and students in another apprenticeship program are required to complete 15 supervised procedures with no ridgid time frame.

How Much it Costs to Learn Permanent Makeup

Since just about everything varies when it comes to learning permanent makeup, cost is no exception. Each method of learning permanent makeup will have its own costs, as will each different program and potentially each service. Let’s break down how much it may cost to learn permanent makeup in each different method of learning.

The Cost of Specialized Permanent Makeup Programs

Specialized permanent makeup programs have a variety of costs just like they have a variety of lengths. Quite often, the cost of a program will correlate with its length. Specialized permanent makeup programs cost anywhere from $3,500 to $7,500 to attend, but course prices may fall outside this range and there may be additional costs.

The Cost of Learning Permanent Makeup at a Cosmetology or Esthetician School

If you learn permanent makeup on the side of also studying to go into cosmetology or esthetics, you’ll generally have to pay for the entire program. Costs of cosmetology or esthetician school range from $5,000 to $15,000, but top notch schools have been said to range anywhere from $10,000 to $20,000.

Learning permanent makeup at a cosmetology or esthetician school but not studying cosmetology or esthetics will generally cost less, but costs vary depending on what program the school offers, how extensive they are and how long they are. This may range anywhere from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars.

The Cost of Learning Permanent Makeup at Vocational Colleges

In order to learn permanent makeup at a vocational or technical college, the tuition at the college will need to be paid. Costs have been recorded at anywhere from $1,000 to $4,500 for one to two year programs.

The Cost of Learning Permanent Makeup Through an Apprenticeship

The cost of apprenticeships will of course vary depending on who the apprenticeship is offered by. For a one year, 200 hour apprenticeship program, the costs have been cited at $5,000. For an apprenticeship program where students are required to complete 15 supervised procedures, the cost is about $400 per supervised procedure, totaling out at $6,000.