Esthetician, Skin Care Specialist

Types of Degrees Esthetician, Skin Care Specialist Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many aesthetician/esthetician and skin care specialist graduations there were in 2018-2019 for each degree level.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Basic Certificate	21,362
Undergraduate Certificate	2,275
Associate’s Degree	20

What Esthetician, Skin Care Specialist Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to aesthetician/esthetician and asked them what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. The responses were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most important.

Knowledge Areas for Aesthetician/Esthetician Majors

Aesthetician/Esthetician majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
• Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
• Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

Skills for Aesthetician/Esthetician Majors

A major in aesthetician/esthetician prepares you for careers in which the following skill-sets are crucial:

• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.

Abilities for Aesthetician/Esthetician Majors

As a aesthetician/esthetician major, you will find yourself needing the following abilities:

• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
• Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.

What Can You Do With a Esthetician, Skin Care Specialist Major?

People with a aesthetician/esthetician degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Skincare Specialists	13.7%	$31,290

Who Is Getting an Associate’s Degree in Esthetician, Skin Care Specialist?

The major attracts more women than men. About 95% of the recent graduates in this field are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of aesthetician/esthetician majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	0
Black or African American	6
Hispanic or Latino	0
White	10
International Students	0
Other Races/Ethnicities	4

How Much Do Esthetician, Skin Care Specialist Majors Make?

Salaries According to BLS

Aesthetician/Esthetician majors often go into careers with median salaries of $36,350. This median refers to all degree levels, so you may expect those with a more advanced degree to make more while those with less advanced degrees will typically make less.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Esthetician, Skin Care Specialist

Some careers associated with aesthetician/esthetician require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to aesthetician/esthetician have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	0.7%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	87.3%
Some College Courses	10.2%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	1.8%

Online Esthetician, Skin Care Specialist Programs

In 2018-2019, 695 schools offered a aesthetician/esthetician program of some type. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	635	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	76	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	1	0
Associate’s Degree	3	0
Bachelor’s Degree	0	0
Post-Baccalaureate	635	0
Master’s Degree	0	0
Post-Master’s	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Esthetician, Skin Care Specialist Worth It?

The median salary for a aesthetician/esthetician grad is $36,350 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

Trades Related to Esthetician, Skin Care Specialist

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to aesthetician/esthetician.

Major	Number of Grads
General Cosmetology/Cosmetologist	52,002
Nail Technician/Specialist & Manicurist	10,042
Barbering/Barber	8,937
Cosmetology, Barber/Styling, & Nail Instructor	1,881
Facial Treatment Specialist/Facialist	1,732
Other Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Arts	1,563
Make-Up Artist/Specialist	1,409
Master Aesthetician/Esthetician	1,142
Hair Styling/Stylist & Hair Design	773
Salon/Beauty Salon Management/Manager	247
Electrolysis/Electrology & Electrolysis Technician	239
Permanent Cosmetics/Makeup & Tattooing	50

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020
• Image Credit: By Tiffany Bumgardner under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.