New Image Cosmetology Technical Center, O’Fallon | Fees, Rankings, Address, Admission, Vacancies, Reviews & More

Please if you are thinking of attending this school, just don’t. Let me explain.
I’ve been going to this school for almost a year and all of us students are verbally abused, forced to provide services against state regulations, and publicly humiliated on a daily basis. We are treated as if we’re supposed to know what we’re doing but when we ask to be taught, the answer is always “no” or “go ask (another student)”. Almost everything I know I was taught by the class before me. Myself and another classmate are now teaching the new students. One 19 year old student got yelled at last week until she cried for not understanding something and was told to her face that she’s “a waste of time”.

Most of the equipment that are “provided” by the school are only provided until it breaks from years of use and then we are scolded for “breaking it” when everything here is 30 years old. Example: the hot towel warmer in one of the esthetician rooms started leaking water so it got thrown out. The school has 1 extra so it got replaced the same day but the third room doesn’t have one now. When asked if I could put the extra there, Instructor Denise said “Nope because that’s mine. Whoever uses that room will have to provide their own.” This has happened a couple times this year.

There have been several times this year when I needed to take off for family emergencies and I have been punished for it every time. After one of the phone calls I was nearly in tears and went to tell my instructor that I was leaving and she (in front of a customer) rolled her eyes and in the most disgusting tone said, “well isn’t that convenient for me”. I’ve been told that my schooling should be a priority over my family and that if I don’t make up some of the time that I missed for being with my family that I would be removed from the program January 1st.

This is only the latest of incidents. Us students appreciate and are grateful for every customer but this is what’s going on behind the scenes. I have tried talking to the instructors about all of this many times but things don’t get better, they get worse.

I am very disappointed. I was told by a former student that I should get my nails done here because they don’t charge as much as professional nail salons and I would get to help the students. Little did I know, after getting my nails done, I was charged the exact same price that professional licensed nail technicians charge. I would someone ever go to a cosmetology school to get their nails done if its the same price as professional licensed salons! Anyway, I got gel nails that are supposed to last 2 weeks. A few hours after I left the shop, I noticed that the gel on 2 of my nails chipped. Later on that same evening, I lost all the gel off another finger. Very disappointing (they charge the exact same price as professionals)!!! So, I go up there today to see what they can do because I should not be losing gel nails that fast, student or not, and the manager blows me off. She said that because this is a school, there was nothing she could do and services aren’t guaranteed. She even said, “what do you want me to do.” How about better customer service. How about being a little empathetic. How about not brushing me off like I was bothering her. The student who did my nails said that if they chip or anything, come back no problem. Well, I guess that was a lie. I have had nails chip from professionals and they gladly fixed it with no problem because they know that it should not chip that fast and they appreciate my business. With 2 chipped nails and 1 whole gel coming off the same day, I got “oh well, this is a school.” Will never ever go back.

I am writing this as a warning! I want anyone thinking of going here to really think it through. I just graduated from here for esthetics, so hear me out.
First of all, the family that owns this school can be extremely unprofessional in many ways. They stir up drama and can be mean for no reason.
Second, I learned very little. When I did learn, I was mostly taught by other students or told to “follow the book” with no real direction. At one point, I was given an appointment for a wax, but I had never even touched wax up to this point. When I asked the teacher about it, I was told that what I need to know is in the book. I had to beg for her to show me, and when she begrudgingly agreed, she was rude the entire time that she actually had to teach. This was not an isolated event.
There are also no actual “classes”. You sit in a room and do book work, or take appointments you usually aren’t ready for because you weren’t shown how to do it.
After graduation, it is almost guaranteed that you will need to take/pay for extra classes to substitute for the things you do not learn here.
As students, we were very grateful for the clients that would come in to help us learn, but behind the scenes, it was awful.