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I have been doing hair for over 11 years now, and I just don't make the kind of money I need to support myself. I still have some passion for it, but money has been the key motivating factor in my decision to exit the salon industry. I started to take charge over my unhappiness by going to college part-time when I was 24. And now, 7 pain-staking years later, I'm almost finished. In December 2017 I'll have a bachelor's degree in economics. The problem is that I'm having an extremely hard time with my resume. I've spent months trying to transition my skills as a hairstylist into those that would meet the requirements of a business analyst or some type of related position. I was involved in a few academic projects and was even the project manager of a cut-a-thon that raised over $16,000, but other than that I have no experience doing anything but hair. I really need some guidance, but can't seem to find one thing online about anyone having gone through a similar situation. I am completely stuck. Please, if anyone out there can offer any help, I'd really appreciate it!!!
Your college should have a career placement department. Within this department should be people that can help you with your career search plans. The college should have job listings and also they usually have a list of local companies that hire graduates.
This is how many college graduates get their first jobs. They usually start working on the job search in their senior year. So it's a great time for you to get busy with this too.
Lastly, if you can target some companies that have business that is related to salon products or services. Such as try to get a job at major corporations that sell hair products. You might have to move to an area where these jobs exists. For example, companies that manufacture or sell or even create IT systems for shampoo, hair color, makeup, beauty salon office supplies (chairs, dryers, brushes, clips, salon furniture, software specific to salons, uniforms, companies that provide loans to salons, etc.).
Also try companies that sell these things - even if an online company. You can deal with purchasing or sales or accounting or website design or product marketing plans.
Put together a list of all companies that have such products and services. Then get all their web sites and find out what kind of jobs the have. Customize your resume and apply.
It's often easier to get a temp/contract job versus a full time (aka permament) job. The temp jobs aren't as picky because they'll eventually get rid of you. But you need experince, so a contract job might be a good option for you to 'get your foot in the door' into an office environment where you can focus on growing your career outside of hairdressing.
Also apply at any/all other possible positions that meet your career goals and any/all that your college career dept lets you know about.
I've done a fair amount of hiring, and I really question how significant resumes are anymore. Presumably you're going to be landing an entry-level job in your new field, so I wouldn't see a need to try to make your salon experience more relevant than it is. Surely 11 years in hairstyling shows an ability to get along with all types of people and handle a variety of challenging situations. (Is there a more difficult customer on earth than someone who thinks she just got a bad haircut?) Hanging in there for 11 years also shows admirable stick-to-itiveness. I would simply emphasize your people skills and flexibility, which are relevant to any position. Then I would emphasize why you decided to move on to a more challenging field and the sacrifices you had to make to accomplish this. That should favorably impress any employer.
I spent 7 years in journalism and advertising before I went to law school. Coming out of law school, I can't say that those 7 years added much to my resume or that I had much to say about them other than "At least I know how to write."
as others have said; the resume won't matter too much- just make sure you put your degree at the top.. do you have any internships, projects or other skills you could list at the top? Make sure you put a good objective in your resume which can explain the entry level type job you're searching for.. Just be prepared to go through a lot of applications. You'll be competing with people in their early 20's who likely have some good networking or internships from college. Be open to relocating (to a reasonable COLA area) - best of luck!!
I have been doing hair for over 11 years now, and I just don't make the kind of money I need to support myself. I still have some passion for it, but money has been the key motivating factor in my decision to exit the salon industry. I started to take charge over my unhappiness by going to college part-time when I was 24. And now, 7 pain-staking years later, I'm almost finished. In December 2017 I'll have a bachelor's degree in economics. The problem is that I'm having an extremely hard time with my resume. I've spent months trying to transition my skills as a hairstylist into those that would meet the requirements of a business analyst or some type of related position. I was involved in a few academic projects and was even the project manager of a cut-a-thon that raised over $16,000, but other than that I have no experience doing anything but hair. I really need some guidance, but can't seem to find one thing online about anyone having gone through a similar situation. I am completely stuck. Please, if anyone out there can offer any help, I'd really appreciate it!!!
Like others said, your experience might not count for much.
Companies reward you for experience because it will help them make $. For instance, doing manicures is highly related to being a hair stylist, but if you are not trained to do hair, it won't help you much to make $ for the salon until you are trained to do it.
At least that's my experience with work.
See if you can snag an internship before you are done with school. That's what companies really want. Cheap labor that doesn't cost them $ to train. That's reality.
I've done a fair amount of hiring, and I really question how significant resumes are anymore. Presumably you're going to be landing an entry-level job in your new field, so I wouldn't see a need to try to make your salon experience more relevant than it is. Surely 11 years in hairstyling shows an ability to get along with all types of people and handle a variety of challenging situations. (Is there a more difficult customer on earth than someone who thinks she just got a bad haircut?) Hanging in there for 11 years also shows admirable stick-to-itiveness. I would simply emphasize your people skills and flexibility, which are relevant to any position. Then I would emphasize why you decided to move on to a more challenging field and the sacrifices you had to make to accomplish this. That should favorably impress any employer.
I spent 7 years in journalism and advertising before I went to law school. Coming out of law school, I can't say that those 7 years added much to my resume or that I had much to say about them other than "At least I know how to write."
I see things differently. My first question would be why you spent 11 years as a hair stylist. I would question your ambition. It wouldn't tell me about your ability to handle challlenging situations because it seems pretty laid back to be honest. I also feel like hair stylist is one of the easier jobs on the customer service side of jobs. I do think those are great interview answers though because even though I think those are BS, I'm more concerned with how you answer questions and sell yourself. Really when I think hair stylist the thing that stands out of a good ability to converse with people. That's not important to me though unless you are deficient in that.
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