How to Transfer Cosmetology Licenses

Some states require work experience to obtain a cosmetology license

After beauty training, cosmetologists are required to take a state board examination to obtain a license before they can begin practicing. Beauty licensing laws vary from state to state. These laws state the number of required training hours and apprenticeship hours that are needed to qualify for a license. Also, the reciprocity and license transfer rules are different for each state, and some states don't allow reciprocity. Reciprocity occurs when beauty training hours and work experience are allowed to be transferred from one state to another.

Instructions

1. Get records of all your beauty training hours. Each state has minimum requirements for the number of training hours you must have completed to qualify for a license. Be wary that the number of hours required varies from state to state, but if you do fall short on the number of hours it is possible to get more through extra training.

2. Get records of any apprenticeship hours you have completed, as some states, such as Delaware, Georgia and Hawaii, require this on top of beauty training hours. Maryland will even accept 24 months as a registered apprentice in a licensed beauty salon instead of beauty school training.

3. Look at the licensing requirements of each state. The requirements for a particular state can be found by typing the state's name followed by "cosmetology license" for the search terms in your web browser. Also, if you want to do a quick glance at several states, a list of all the requirements for each state is located at beautyschoolsdirectory.com. Some states, such as Arizona, Florida, New York and Texas allow reciprocity, while others, such as California, Hawaii and Maryland require that you take their examinations. Colorado offers endorsements of licenses from other states.

References

• beautyschoolsdirectory: Cosmetology Licenses
• eautyschoolsdirectory: List of Requirements for Each State