License to Work: A National Study of Burdens from Occupational Licensing
Highlights
License required in 50 states
38th most burdensome licensing requirements
8th most heavily regulated occupation
(Last updated April 24, 2012)
Definition
Skin care specialists, also known as estheticians, aestheticians, spa technicians and facialists, among other titles, provide skin care treatments to face and body to enhance an individual's appearance.
Summary
Except for Connecticut, every state and the District of Columbia require a license to work as a skin care specialist. On average, these laws cost those wishing to enter the occupation 149 days of education and training and $120 in fees and require two exams, the 38th most burdensome requirements of those studied. Both because of the relatively high average burdens and because skin care specialists are licensed so widely, it is in the most widely and onerously licensed tier of occupations, ranking eighth overall.
Most states have minimum age and grade requirements for skin care specialists, as well as one or two exams. Education and experience requirements, however, show more variation. In Alabama and Florida, aspiring skin care specialists lose 280 days -- more than nine months -- to education and training, while those in Pennsylvania, Delaware and Massachusetts lose 70 days.