Degree-level hairdressing course 'is not a joke'

A woman who has completed a degree-level qualification in hairdressing says people "underestimate" stylists in the hair industry.

Marie Hall has been a hairdresser for more than 25 years and has recently finished a Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) Level 9 qualification in hair colour and styling, which is equivalent to a degree in England.

The course is the first of its kind, with the mother-of-one from Arnold in Nottinghamshire one of 24 people to finish it.

The 47-year-old said the course was "definitely not a joke" and the hardest part of it was the exams, but overall it has given her a confidence boost.

"I do think clients underestimate hairdressers and they don't realise what is actually required of us to do our job, which is sad," she said.

Marie trained to become a hairdresser when she left school and said she still enjoyed learning about the industry.

She said: "I've always been an individual that wants to look at what's the next journey for me as a hairdresser.

"So education is very important to me because if we don't continually learn, we're not going to develop our skills.

"This industry is continuously changing."

The Wella Colour Higher Level Diploma was created between Glasgow Clyde College and the education team at Wella, a hair and cosmetics company.

Students enrolled on the course in September 2023 and completed it in March 2025. A graduation ceremony was held at the University of Glasgow.

Julie Wales is head of sector for the Faculty of Health, Wellbeing and Management at Glasgow Clyde College and described the course as a "technical qualification".

She said: "The students study academic research. They work on the business and leadership skills and they study client psychology.

"There's also a range of biology, chemistry, and and a little physics in there too."

Julie says she also believes hairdressers do not get the credit they deserve.

"From my own point of view I had a really strong feeling about the fact that hairdressers are quite underrated and actually the thinking and the work they do is very technical," she said.

"They have to literally spin on an axis to deal with clients in order to produce amazing results and I just thought they deserved that recognition."

Marie added that there was "so much more than people realise" to the industry than "just applying a colour".

She said: "We've got so many things we need to take into consideration from the texture of the hair, to medication the client might be taking, to being pregnant, the damage they might be doing at home themselves and educating the client on what they should be doing.

"I think it is quite a historical moment for the industry to prove that there is more than just picking a pair of scissors up."

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