Schoolin' required?

[mae13]

I'm thinking of eventually applying to work at MAC, maybe in a few months. I have five years of retail experience, so I'm not too worried from that end. I don't have any sort of formal training in makeup artistry, however. I was thinking of taking a few classes (there is a 'bootcamp' week offered by an artist in Toronto that I could do), but I can't really afford to take the the time for a full course, since I need to be working full-time.

If I have the retail experience, good personal application and a non-professional portfolio (basically pics of family and friends I have applied makeup to) - is that enough to get my foot in the door?

 

[gte082r]

School is NOT required, though lately I see a lot of "workshops" (one of the big offenders is Dawn 2 Dusk) implying it is required.

It is extremely important to have stellar sales skills, so emphasize ANY sales experience, even if it is not makeup related.

MAC is more competitive than many other companies (have no clue why, since they treat their employees terribly...see this thread:

http://p082.ezboard.com/fmakeupandre... D=7896.topic
)

If you can't get in with MAC, try Clinique or another brand... After a year, you can then make the switch if you have strong sales skills. Remember, working at MAC, like any other cosmetic company, is about sales, not makeup ability.

 

[mae13]

Wow, that thread is...harsh, to say the least. I really don't know what to say in response.

But thank you for the suggestion of trying out at a different counter first.

 

[shabdebaz]

Are you located in Toronto? Sheridan College in Oakville has good classes you can take in the evening, and their tuition is pretty reasonable compared to some of the other classes and "bootcamps" out there. It is kind of a hike if you're not in the west end, but it was worth it for me.

 

[lara]

Depends on which country you're in. In Australia, to be a basic MAC sales assistant at a counter, you must have at least a cosmetic retail certificate. You can hand the make-up to people to try, but you can't apply make-up or touch the client. To work at a pro store or be a counter MA who applies make-up, you need a certificate IV or diploma in make-up art.

 

[mae13]

Quote:

Originally Posted by shabdebaz Are you located in Toronto? Sheridan College in Oakville has good classes you can take in the evening, and their tuition is pretty reasonable compared to some of the other classes and "bootcamps" out there. It is kind of a hike if you're not in the west end, but it was worth it for me.

I'm located in Montreal (darn, I should edit my profile). I was looking at College Inter-Dec (http://www.interdec.qc.ca/en/index_B...c_makeup.html), since I would be able to take their program part-time in the evening, but I'm not sure how crazy I am about the class size. (18 students?)

Then I found this program: http://www.paramita.ca/indexp.php. It looks really nice, with a broad base of knowledge in the curriculum. It's a little pricy for the hours you're getting (say compared with http://www.promakeupart.com/). On the other hand, the class size is tiny, and it's a short program, only 2 months. I could temporarily relocate for that amount of time, but only if the program is really worth it. The thing is, I'm not sure if it's a well-recognized program - it's not on the MAC Pro list of recognized schools, for example.