With self-care rising to prominence since the pandemic, the skincare game has boomed in popularity – meaning there’s never been a better time to become a qualified skin therapist!
With diverse skin treatments and professional facials becoming more mainstream, the demand for skincare therapists is also on the rise. People across New Zealand are now seeking help with issues such as ageing skin, laughter lines, pigmentation, redness, adult acne or changes to skin texture and elasticity, as well as the best course of treatments and products to boost the health and appearance of their complexion. And guess what – you could be that very solution!
Have you considered training to become a skin therapist by attending beauty facial courses? Are you interested in taking skincare courses to learn more about dermal science – or do you need some guidance on where to begin? If so read on – we’re going to break down exactly what an aspiring skin therapist needs to know to become a qualified esthetician!
What is a skin therapist?
Put simply, skin therapists deliver facial treatments at home, in spas or salons and are usually trained in spa standard facialist techniques.
When skin is tired, has lost its tone or perhaps needs a pick-me-up, but a client isn’t sure where to start, they’ll turn to a skin therapist for targeted, personalised treatment. After examining the skin and deciding on the best treatment, skin therapists help the client by cleansing the skin, performing extractions and facial massage, and using products to help bring back radiance. They also advise their clients on the best way to look after their skin in future; after all, prevention is the best treatment when it comes to maintaining skin health!
Day-to-day, a skin therapist has a number of responsibilities, and chief among them is supplying tailored treatments to clients. This will involve applying creams and providing advice about aftercare, products, and any medical treatments that may be required. The skin therapist will complete a number of smaller organisational tasks too, such as completing admin, taking bookings, cleaning and sterilising equipment, ordering products, and making sure to keep up-to-date with industry updates/news.
Key skills needed as a skin therapist
It goes without saying – a passion for skincare will take you far in your career as a skin therapist!
But taking a closer look, there are a number of skills that will help you advance a career in this sector. Working as a skin therapist requires focus, concentration and having a vested interest in helping people look and feel their best!
Product Knowledge: Skin therapists help clients with product selection for their specific concerns. By sharing your knowledge about products that optimise skincare results, you will need to be able to generate product sales/repeat custom.
Problem Solving: When the client arrives at their appointment with a skin therapist, they may have a range of skincare issues. As a therapist, you will need to work with them to problem-solve these issues, diagnosing and treating their skin needs.
Customer Service: Providing top-class customer service is essential for skin therapists to ensure clients are happy and that feedback for your services is positive. Face-to-face conversation and a high level of contact with clients mean outstanding customer service skills are non-negotiable for this role.
Organisation & Time Management: Managing appointments, staying on top of orders for products and keeping the workstation and tools clean and sterile, as well as performing treatments, requires someone who has stellar organisation skills. You will need to be able to manage your time effectively too, to keep operational costs down.
Esthetician school
There are many beauty therapist courses out there, and studying a certified facial skincare course or skin therapist course online is the first step to becoming a qualified skin therapist.
Estheticians-in-training learn a broad set of skills, including but not limited to:
- Preparation and setup
- Customer service
- Client consultation and legalities
- Monitoring contraindications
- Skin anatomy
- Skin nutrition and products
- Skin types
- Skin conditions
- Skin analysis
- Cleansing the face
- Exfoliation
- Steam and facial extraction training
- Facial massage
- Mask and head massage
- Toning, eye cream, serum and moisturiser application
- After care
- Recommending products
If you are interested in becoming a qualified skin therapist, you will need to have mastered all these skills before providing this service to the public.
Course of study – how to qualify
A skin therapist is an educated skin health expert. In other words, qualifying begins with taking a professional skin therapist course online.
For those who’d like to further advance their studies in this area, it’s possible to study dermal science or a dermal therapy course at a third level institution. These courses have a clinical focus – moving from a cosmetic, esthetician role into a clinical, aesthetician role. They will cover areas of advanced skincare, such as wound healing, scarring, pre or post-operative skincare, inflammatory conditions, the removal of excess hair, tattoos, skin tags and leg veins.
Each academic institution will have their own requirements for admission. If you’d like to work up to this, make sure to study the course institution’s website to learn what you need for admission.
However, if you’re still unsure whether this route is right for you or not, online facial courses are a great introduction to this industry.
Codes of Practice with Advanced Skin Care Treatments:
In the case of pulsed light and laser treatments, you will need to adhere to codes of practice to protect yourself when undertaking specialised skincare treatments. If you’re interested in learning more about these procedures, it’s good to get up to speed on what qualifications are required. When it comes to these advanced techniques, it’s always best to complete specialised training with regulated institutions.
Likewise, for beauty services in New Zealand, there are some that require a Government Accredited qualification and somewhere a Privately Accredited qualification will suffice. So make sure to read up on requirements for your area.
Here at New Zealand Beauty School, we pride ourselves on being an industry-leading Private Training online school. All of our courses are based upon non-regulated services and our video tutorials, tutor support systems and quality of course content are second to none in the online beauty arena. As one of the most dynamic beauty therapy education providers in New Zealand, we’ve partnered with the best of the best in New Zealand’s beauty scene.
Have you checked out our Certificate in Facials? Leading industry experts have helped curate the course content to ensure you get the most up to date information and the highest calibre of coaching available on the market.
Get in touch with one of our dedicated course consultants today to learn if it’s the right course for you! You can learn online at a pace that suits your lifestyle, whenever and wherever you want.
Take the first step to becoming a qualified skin therapist today!