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Most Popular Cosmetology Trade Schools in North Carolina

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2023 Most Popular Cosmetology Trade Schools in North Carolina

73 Colleges
$16,579 Avg Salary
$10,100 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Cosmetology School for You

Out of the majors we analyze each year, cosmetology was ranked 4th in North Carolina. In fact, 2,549 were awarded in the state in 2021-2022.

With all the trade school programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Trade College Search has developed this Most Popular Cosmetology Trade Schools in North Carolina ranking. Our analysis looked at 73 schools in North Carolina to see which programs were the most popular for trade school students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Cosmetology program at each school on the list.

The following schools top our list of the Most Popular Cosmetology Colleges.

#1

Health and Style Institute

Greensboro, NC

Our 2023 rankings named Health and Style Institute the most popular school in North Carolina for cosmetology students. Health and Style Institute is a small private for-profit school located in the city of Greensboro.

Read More…

#2

Aveda Institute - Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, NC

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Aveda Institute - Chapel Hill is a great place for cosmetology students. Aveda Institute - Chapel Hill is a small private for-profit school located in the small city of Chapel Hill.

Full Cosmetology at Aveda Institute - Chapel Hill Report

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Paul Mitchell the School Gastonia. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Most Popular Cosmetology Trade Schools in North Carolina list. Located in the small city of Gastonia, Paul Mitchell the School Gastonia is a private for-profit college with a fairly small student population.

Read full report on Cosmetology at Paul Mitchell the School Gastonia

#4

Leons Beauty School Inc

Greensboro, NC

A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Leons Beauty School Inc is a great place for cosmetology students. Leons Beauty School Inc is a small private for-profit school located in the large city of Greensboro.

Read full report on Cosmetology at Leons Beauty School Inc

#5

Cape Fear Community College

Wilmington, NC

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Cape Fear Community College. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Most Popular Cosmetology Trade Schools in North Carolina list. Located in the midsize city of Wilmington, CFCC is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Cosmetology at Cape Fear Community College

With a ranking of #6, Paul Mitchell the School Raleigh did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for cosmetology students. Located in the city of Raleigh, Paul Mitchell the School Raleigh is a private for-profit school with a small student population.

Read full report on Cosmetology at Paul Mitchell the School Raleigh

Elevate Salon Institute - Durham did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for cosmetology students. It came in at #7 on the list. Elevate Salon Institute - Durham is a small private for-profit school located in the large city of Durham.

Read More…

Cleveland Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for cosmetology students. It came in at #8 on the list. Cleveland Community College is a small public school located in the town of Shelby.

Read full report on Cosmetology at Cleveland Community College

With a ranking of #9, Paul Mitchell the School Fayetteville did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for cosmetology students. Paul Mitchell the School Fayetteville is a fairly small private for-profit school located in the city of Fayetteville.

Read full report on Cosmetology at Paul Mitchell the School Fayetteville

Wake Technical Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for cosmetology students. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the suburb of Raleigh, Wake Technical Community College is a public school with a very large student population.

Read full report on Cosmetology at Wake Technical Community College

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional popular schools for Cosmetology students in the state of North Carolina that almost earned our Most Popular Cosmetology Trade Schools in North Carolina award.

Rank College Location
11 Rowan-Cabarrus Community College Salisbury, NC
12 Central Carolina Community College Sanford, NC
13 Winston Salem Barber School Winston-Salem, NC
14 Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College Asheville, NC

Best Cosmetology Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Most Popular Cosmetology Colleges in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Georgia 4,283
South Carolina 1,516
Arkansas 1,191
Florida 10,801
West Virginia 377
Louisiana 3,726
Virginia 1,085
Alabama 821
Kentucky 1,003
Tennessee 2,270
Mississippi 872

Cosmetology is one of 4 different types of trade school programs to choose from.

Cosmetology Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
General Cosmetology/Cosmetologist 50,210
Aesthetician/Esthetician & Skin Care Specialist 40,040
Nail Technician/Specialist & Manicurist 13,960
Barbering/Barber 9,893
Facial Treatment Specialist/Facialist 2,907
Other Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Arts 2,184
Master Aesthetician/Esthetician 1,729
Hair Styling/Stylist & Hair Design 1,238
Cosmetology, Barber/Styling, & Nail Instructor 1,230
Make-Up Artist/Specialist 440
Electrolysis/Electrology & Electrolysis Technician 354
Salon/Beauty Salon Management/Manager 336
Permanent Cosmetics/Makeup & Tattooing 90

Majors Similar to Cosmetology

Related Major Annual Graduates
Culinary Arts 22,075
Funeral & Mortuary Science 2,186
Casino Operations and Services 385
Other Personal & Culinary Services 95

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Tiffany Bumgardner.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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