Cosmetologist Resume Samples (Cosmetology Skills Included)

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Tom Gerencer, CPRW

Career Expert

Updated: December 17, 2024

Reviewed by:

Dominika Kowalska, CPRW

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As a cosmetologist, you can decipher all the strange things listed on the labels. You need to know what’s inside the packaging before you try putting it on your skin. It’s the same with recruiters:

They see you, but they don’t know what’s hidden beneath your confident smile. And they know that a bad batch can cause more harm than good. That’s why you need a cosmetology resume—to show exactly what you’re made of.

This guide will show you:

A cosmetology resume example better than 9 out of 10 other resumes.
How to write a cosmetology resume that will land you more interviews.
Tips and examples of how to put skills and achievements on a cosmetology resume.
How to describe your experience on a resume for a cosmetologist to get any job you want.

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Looking for other beauty industry guides? Check:

Cosmetology Resume Sample & Template

Cynthia Lintz, Cosmetologist (COSMO 1, Florida DBPR)

cynthia.q.lintz@gmail.com

904-521-7691

Professional Summary

Licensed cosmetologist with 7+ years of experience, skilled in makeup application, cutting, and styling. Seeking to be part of providing continued cosmetology excellence at Bangs ‘n’ Booms. At Face Forward, maintained 98% positive customer comments. Upsold $3,000 per week in products.

Work Experience

Cosmetologist

Face Forward

March 2014–April 2019

Sold $3,000 a week in hair and makeup products.
Maintained 98% positive customer comments average for 5 years.
Built relationships with steady stable of 50+ loyal clients.
Received favorable writeup in the Beauty on the Beach blog.

Cosmetologist

Eyes Hair Mouth Wow

Jan 2012–Feb 2014

Worked as staff cosmetologist in close-knit team of four.
Became a favorite makeup artist for Orange Aardvark Agency.
Cosmetologist of the month 5X.

Education

2011–2015 Boca Beauty Academy

Cosmetology Program With Florida State License

Pursued a passion for laser hair removal, makeup, and skin.
Chosen as #1 Vidal Sassoon Connection student.

Certification

Florida State Cosmetology License COSMO 1 (DBPR)

Skills

Soft skills: Interpersonal skills, listening, creativity, attention to detail
Hard skills: Makeup application, cutting, styling, customer service, skin care

Activities

Weekly CrossFit for fun and fitness.

Volunteer 2x per month at St. Augustine Soup Kitchen.

Here’s how to write a cosmetology resume that gets jobs:

1. Beautifully Format Your Cosmetology Resume

You’d never let a client walk away with makeup in her teeth.

You shouldn’t send in a hastily-formatted cosmetology resume either.

To look your best:

Choose the best of the three resume formats for the job. That’s the reverse chronological resume layout. Use it to show off your newest cuts first.
Personal information on a resume goes in resume headers. Those are top sections with names, business titles (Cosmetologist), and license info.
Use the most on-fleek resume font size—12 point—but keep it presentable with blank space as the setting for your words.
Separate the sections of your resume with big headings for readability.
You may wonder if the best CV format is PDF or Word. It’s PDF, but if the cosmetologist job description says, “no PDFs,” use Word.

Pro Tip: What’s the right resume length for a cosmetologist resume? One page. The trick is to fit all the most gorgeous moments from your career onto that single sheet, then snip the rest.

2. Make a Cosmetologist Resume Objective or Resume Summary

Want more interviews?

Prove your cosmetology resume is one of the good ones.

Put your best face forward with a professional resume profile.

That’s where you show the best features of your career so far.

If you’ve been in this field for 2 years or more, it’s a resume summary statement. That’s an elevator pitch for your work life.

Writing an entry-level resume for cosmetology,? Use a cosmetologist resume objective and focus on your beauty skills.

They key to either is to add a couple key work accomplishments.

Pro Tip: Writing an entry-level resume for cosmetology jobs? Show job-related skills like people skills, creativity, or customer service by mentioning your work achievements.

3. Write a Cosmetologist Job Description for Your Resume

Which cosmetologist would they rather hire?

One who’s been “responsible” for doing the job?

Or one who’s done it well?

Show you’re the second kind of cosmetologist.

Here’s how to write work experience in a resume:

For every job, list the business name, “Cosmetologist,” and dates you started & stopped.
List bullet points to show what you did in the salon or business.
Clip in some achievements that show your cosmetology skills.
Tailoring your resume means matching your achievements to the job posting. So if the job ad wants upselling, “Upsold $3,000 a week in products” would work.
Add numbers like “$3,000” or “98%” to show your accomplishments are mall-hair-sized.
Use resume action words to hold their attention.

Pro Tip: Need to show cosmetology experience on a resume? Spot the skills the new job needs, then show how you used them in your cosmetology job to help the company.

4. Primp Your Cosmetology Resume Education Section

A cosmetology resume needs to show your schooling in a special way.

Here’s how to show your cosmetology education on a resume:

Show the name of your school, plus your degree and dates.
Add your cosmetology certificate.
Include other bullets that show you went above and beyond, like, “Excelled in laser hair removal classes.”

Pro Tip: Your cosmetology resume education section is a way to prove more skills in your resume. That’s where those education bullet points come in.

5. Prove Cosmetology Skills in Your Resume

Use this cosmetology resume skills list:

Cosmetology Resume Skills

Hard Skills:

Makeup application
Cutting/Styling
Waxing
Customer service
Skin care
Perming/straightening
Retail
Coloring
Facial treatments
Assessments
Sales
Up-selling
Training
Product knowledge
Booking appointments

Soft Skills:

Interpersonal skills
Listening
Verbal and written communication
Creativity
Attention to detail
Collaboration
Presentable
Learning
Time management
Patience
Work ethic
Stamina

But—

Don’t show all those hard and soft skills.

List (and prove) the ones this cosmetologist job wants. (Find them in the job ad.)

Pro Tip: Every section in your cosmetologist resume is another chance to prove the skills you list. Each achievement is another brick of evidence that you can do the job.

Creating a resume with our builder is incredibly simple. Follow our step-by-step guide and use content from Certified Professional Resume Writers to have a resume ready in minutes.

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When you’re done, Zety’s resume builder will score your resume and our ATS resume checker will tell you exactly how to make it better.

6. Add Other Sections to Your Cosmetology Resume

How can you stand above all the other applicants?

With “other” sections in your cosmetology resume.

That’s where you show passion and energy.

You can use:

Activities
Lists of interests
Volunteer experience
Associations
Freelance work
Groups you belong to
Kudos from employers
Language skills
Fitness

Add your cosmetologist certification in a section right under your education.

Pro Tip: If you’ve got lots of cosmetology experience with great accomplishments, you don’t need as many “other sections.” But you should still add a few to show your passion.

7. Send a Cover Letter With Your Cosmetology Resume

Do I need a cover letter for my cosmetology resume?

Yes!

Most employers like them.

But you can’t just send a generic one. You have to show your cosmetology passion in it.

Use these cover letter formatting tips:

Write a cover letter opening that makes the salon manager wake up and notice you.
Talk about your passion and tie it to this cosmetology job.
Show how you’ll fill their needs by mentioning your best styling or makeup accomplishments.
When ending a cover letter, give them a reason to call you. That can be a promise to tell them more about how you’ll help.
How long is a cover letter? Half a page is plenty.

Pro Tip: A follow-up email after job application can be the thing that gets you the interview. Hiring managers are busy and will appreciate your persistence.

Plus, a great cover letter that matches your resume will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:

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See more cover letter templates and start writing.

That’s it!

That’s how to write a resume for cosmetology positions.

Need more help with how to write a cosmetology resume? Got a few key tips for cosmetologist resume writers? Give us a shout in the comments. We’d love to talk!

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Cosmetologist Resume Samples (Cosmetology Skills Included)