Feature Articles
Careers: Esthetician
The skin care and spa industry is rapidly expanding with a growing need for highly trained, knowledgeable professionals. Professional estheticians are needed in a wide range of businesses, from day spas and salons to cruise ships and destination resorts.
Medical professionals such as plastic surgeons and dermatologist have also found the skills and abilities of highly-trained professional estheticians valuable for services such as microdermabrasion, skin peels and oxygen facials.
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What can I expect to earn as an Esthetician?
Estheticians' wages can vary greatly depending on several factors such as employer, experience, education and whether you are being paid by commission or by salary. Newly-licensed esthetician, make less than experienced professionals. However, with the right education you can improve your chances for higher wages.
What Exactly Does an Esthetician Do?
- Advise clients about colors, types of makeup and instruct them in makeup application techniques
- Chemical peels
- Cleanse clients' skin
- Collaborate with plastic surgeons and dermatologists in order to provide patients with preoperative and postoperative skin care.
Careers: Massage Therapist
Massage therapists are professionals who perform massage and bodywork. A massage therapist's goal is usually to relax his or her client while promoting general health and well being. Some branches of massage therapy are focused on treating specific health conditions and on addressing congenital muscular problems.
People have been performing massage and bodywork for thousands of years. Human touch is believed to be important to psychological as well as physical health. Several cultures have developed their own distinctive branches of bodywork, such as lomi lomi in Hawaii and Shiatsu in Japan. Bodywork is often integrated into a greater holistic healing practice, like traditional Chinese medicine. Many people around the world consider massage an important part of their personal health and beauty regimen.
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Massage therapist work with a wide range of clients. Many people seek massage therapy purely for relaxation and comfort, while some people get massages for deep tissue work.
Massage therapists can work as independent contractors in spas or medical clinics; they can also work from home or provide at-home services. Some therapists offer additional services like facials and body treatments to supplement their massage services. Training requirements to become a massage therapist vary; some regions regulate massage closely, while in others licensing is more lax. Many massage schools offer basic certification programs, which can be built upon by learning additional techniques like deep tissue or Thai massage and even acupressure. Training also includes learning anatomy and physiology of the human body. A good massage therapy school also offers workshops in ethics and business practices.