KNOW THIS: we have over a decade of experience understanding the training required to get students licensed. You won't find an informative nail school website like this because we are EXPERTS at providing the education needed to get a nail license from decades of putting licensed Nail Technicians into Virginia.

Click here to Text enrollment questions right now 24/7!

I WANT TO TALK TO SOMEONE
Please contact us by email or text to request an appointment for a phone, video chat or visit.  We do not take walk in visits. Please make an appointment first. Visits may even be available during posted closed hours. TEXTING is available 24/7 so click the red link above to ask anything!

WHEN DO CLASSES START?

There is no start date. Students can start their online study in the same day after paying in full or making a down payment.  After they finish 50 hours of online study they can book their first class day to test at the school. Students book their class online or with the instructor by text/email. This continues until all online study is done (and tests are passed here) to finish the course  and take the state exams to get their license. Attendance is VERY flexible to attend when they want Mon-Sun and they will pick the hours that they want to attend between 10am-9pm (students do not attend more than 3 hours per day).

DO YOU HAVE FINANCIAL AID?

No. Virginia does not offer financial aid for nail education. Some states can offer financial aid for nail school like in Tennesee with longer course hours but not MD, ND, SC or VA. There is aid for hair (cosmetology) school and cosmetologists can sell nail services but we don't teach cometology here. Schools that offer financial aid have a cosmetology or esthetics program for the aid but can't offer it for nail education. CLICK HERE to fill out an application for a $250-500 scholarship for those in financial need. Our costs each month is based on the enrollment quantity in the previous month and the changes in the exam info during the year with updates our course. Feb-July is our highest cost months and the lowest cost months are Nov-Dec.   

CAN I DO THE COURSE ALL ONLINE?

No. Virginia does NOT accept a 100% online course for licensure. Anyone that offers a 100% online course is only offering training that can't get you licensed in Virginia. You must come in to prove your identity and take tests under security cameras to prove your online study work. Specific hands on skill hours must be learned inside a licensed school under the supervision of a licensed instructor for hours that lead to licensure. Practice of skill at home is important to build confidence. One day classes also DO NOT allow you to sell nail services until you have a state Nail Technician license.  CLICK HERE to see a sample study BEFORE paying to start.

HOW FAST CAN I FINISH A NAIL COURE HERE?

This is our #1 question but we don't know what kind of student you are to answer that. Our course is extremely flexible to finish and attend when you want. Students should study at least 30 hours a month online to finish 150 hours of study to finish in about 5 months. Studying more online each month will help students finish faster.  The students that make excuses, study less (or don't make their study a priority) usually take 5-6 months to finish. We have serious students that are focused and dedicated to be able to finish in 2-3 months. It is TOTALLY up to the student but the students must be ready to PASS 3 tests here to be able to take/pass the exams for licensure. 

Students use their study to prepare for tests here that they must pass to finish the course. After passing the tests here then they will be ready/released to take the state exams to get their license. State exams are updated regularly so those that take more than six months will struggle to take an updated state exam to get their license. This school specializes in teaching students that struggle with group learning, negative high school like learning environments, those with social anxiety, ADD/ADHD speed learning etc.

WHEN ARE CLASSES?

Classes are available to book Weekdays between 10am-9pm or Weekends at 10:30, 2:30 or 5:30. Students will book classes themselves online or with the instructor by text or email. Students MUST complete about 50 hours of study before they can attend the first day. Students usually attend 1-2 classes each month. Students can not attend more than 2 days per month or more than 1 day per week to offer available openings for everyone to attend. We are closed on most major holidays.

HOW DO I ATTEND CLASSES?

Our ONLY location is in Central Virginia. Students book their class times. Almost ALL of our students drive 1-2 hours to attend. Some students even drive from other states to become dual licensed. Students can book their class days online through a booking system and by text or email to the instructor. Classes are be private to each student or at a max group of 2-4 signed together (if on the same level day) to ensure focus on a successful preparation for licensure. 

CAN I MAKE A SMALLER DOWN PAYMENT?
No. The down payment covers the credit card transaction fee and the rest of the down payment goes to a company that manages the online course access for a limited time. Students need to pay for their course to be ready for the current exam to get their license. Using old study will cause issues when they take the exams so students need to finish their study within six months to get their Nail License. 

CAN YOU MAIL ME INFORMATION?

No. We regularly maintain information at this website for reference and questions. We are available to answer texts 24/7. By avoiding extra cost for things like fancy brochures and mailing fees, we can keep our course cost the lowest in the state to get their nail license.
We are VERY good at getting our graduates licensed with almost 20 years of experience. In 2022, about 1 in 4 Licensed Virginia Nail Technicians came from this school. That is with schools across the state from vocational, high schools and beauty schools so our success to licensing is extremely high. Almost half of our students come from scams, quitting poorly run schools that focused more on profits, closed schools or schools that did not fully guide to licensing after graduation. 

WHY DO I NEED TO GET A LICENSE?

It is a class 1 misdemeanor to sell nail services in Virginia without a nail license posted issued from DPOR. Getting caught can cause a lot of serious issues especially when an injury occured for a lawsuit. A licensed Tech can provide safe services from their training to avoid causing allergies, infections and injury. Techs with a license will become a master at their skill and with a license they can move on to other careers in the nail industry that pay more with less physical work as they get older. Licensed Nail Techs can open salons to become self employed, work with nail companies, become teachers and work at top quality resort spas that offer amazing pay with benefits. 

HOW DO I GET APPROVED FOR THE PAYMENT PLAN?

There is no approval to start a payment plan. After making the down payment they can start their online study. After their first monthly payment is made then they can attend their first class day.

HOW DO I MAKE PAYMENTS IN A PAYMENT PLAN?

There is no credit check. Students will make their minimum monthly payment amount anytime (in single or multiple amounts) by 11:59pm on the first of each month due. There is a payment page on the website to make payments using a card with a Visa, MC, Discover or AMEX logo. Payments can also be made at the school.  There is no penalty to pay early or more at any time. Late fees ($35 on the 2nd and $35 on the 16th) will be applied each month when the minimum is not paid by the first of the month.

WHAT IF I LIVE IN ANOTHER STATE?

If you want a license for your state we first suggest that you find a beauty school in your state instead of coming here. If you live in another state and plan to live in virginia within the next few months you can start a course now to attend your first class day when you move into the state and continue your study to get your Virginia Nail License. There are three online study sections to finish and test here within 6 months. It usually takes students 1-3 months to finish the first online study section. Online study is not timed and self paced to study when you want. After the first section is done you will come to take a test here and learn safe hands on skill to start the next online section to repeat. After passing three tests here you can take the state exam for licensing offered in several locations throughout Virginia. 

To transfer a Virginia Nail License into your state call your licensing department (before enrolling here) to see if it will accept a Virginia nail license into their state and how. Some states will require work hours, additional school clinical hours and human trafficking, health certificate, state regulation exam or HIV training hours. There are fees for the paperwork to assist with a transfer. Official transcrips after finishing our course will cost $25 each sent to the licensing agency only, affidavit is $50 each, notary requirements will cost $25 per document notorized. After one year of the certificate date the fees listed could be double the cost.

I LIVE IN MD, NC or WV or another US State.

Students can be multi-state licensed especially if they live near state borders and want to work on both sides. Check your cosmetogy board to see their requirements to transfer through reciprocity or endorsement. Call to confirm requirements to transfer to your state BEFORE ENROLLING HERE in case there are updates in testing/work requirements or increased fees for your state.

MARYLAND: proof of nail work for 6 months (or 100 hours of paystubs) on the VA side after getting licensed in VA to transfer to MD with a fee and certificate of licensure from VA 410-230-6320

NORTH CAROLINA-EASY: online form and pay the $35 fee to instantly transfer your VA license into NC 919-733-6123

WEST VA-EASY: reciprocity form and $100 fee to instantly transfer your VA license into WV 855-965-2800

Wasington DC-EASY: reciprocity form and $99 fee to instantly transfer your VA license with a VA certificate of licensure. There will be 6 CEUs required at renewal every 2 years. 202-442-4400 

If you are from any other state, consider attending a school in your state to avoid frustrations or complications. For those planning to move into Virginia in the next few months- starting our course now online is a great option to attend later. 

DO YOU HAVE ANOTHER LOCATION?

NO. This is the only location.
We are in a safe rural area that allows us to keep a low overhead to care more about our students than bills and payroll goals each month. By staying small we can offer more attention per student. This lets the Instructor (not paid to teach) offer incredible flexiblity to attend with personalized instruction that can change to each student's own learning style. Since all classes are private we can also keep a learning environment that is more comforting to those with social anxieties. We like our small space to offer this caring attention to focus more on getting every student licensed and not just handing them a certificate to focus on the next group of students to maintain their high overhead costs. We have the ability to pay attention to each student by keeping our enrollment numbers low each year. 

HOW HARD IS THE COURSE TO FINISH?

Students must study at least 30 hours online per month for six months. Studying more will help students finish faster. Not studying regularly could cause students to fail the state exams for licensure. Students are taking this course to prepare for regularly updated exams done at a very secure testing facility that specialize in catching people cheating. There is a practice for online study at the home page. Bottom line=no it is not easy, but the course is design to help you get there as long as you stay dedicated to study at least 30 hours month for six months. Our students ages range from 16 to 60 years old. 

WHAT IF I JUST WANT TO LEARN A NAIL SKILL?

Virginia requires a cosmetology or nail technician license to sell any nail service in the state. For those already license and want to learn a nail skill (or to learn nail skills for fun) the instructor offers one day workshops at https://www.virginianailschool.com/workshops/

WILL I BE AMAZING AT DOING ACRYLIC NAILS WHEN I GRADUATE?
Unless you have already been doing them then the answer is most likely no.  The school teaches about safe and effective application. Acrylic skill is an art form and can take about 1 year of constant practice to master before top notch quality results are provided to customers. Starting with Manicure and Pedicure services in a Spa or Salon while doing acrylics at home is a great way to start the first year if you are not established already. Many spas, resorts and salons are desperately looking for only mani/pedi service employees. On the side you can provide acrylic nails for a year or two then you could move on to working in your own business. The Instructor offers advance one day classes if interested in advance training later OR newly licensed students should attend product training classes/trade shows all over the United States to grow after getting their license.

It can be hard to venture out into the real world after any kind of education. Success comes later for those that step over that scary speed bump with a postitive attitude that welcomes criticism and mistakes as a tool to make them amazing in the future. Working on a dummy hand and a real person are two different things. It's those that stick with it that become amazing at any kind of training. Success depends on how long you stick with the trade skill to learn successful problem solving from experience.

Not all nail techs specialize in everything. If you hate acrylic odors then you don't need to do them. Not all nail techs have to deal with acrylics. Most spas only offer natural care services without odors to make a great income and some spas even offer benefits. Various gel services can offer low to no odor nail care.

Some students here have even taken a path beyond providing nail services after learning about the nail industry by venturing into careers like retail sales, salon/spa owners, creating nail furniture, mobile truck designers/owners, salon owners, inspiring social media techs,  beauty supplier rep with commission in sales/earning six figure salaries, product educators for nail manufacturer companies and so much more after a start in providing nail services. The nail industry is growing and the businesses that service nail techs is growing too. There is income past providing nail services as you learn the trade.

WHAT DO I DO WHEN I AM DONE WITH COURSE HERE?

This course is about preparing you to become a LICENSED nail tech with the basics of nail care to provide a safe and sanitary nail service to the public. After students have passed and paid for the course they are released/prepared to take their state exams. 

Students with a license should be attending beauty trade shows, advance nail classes and seminars just like hair dressers/cosmetologists do to stay up to date on new techniques and skill. Advance nail skills are not taught in this licensing course but questions about any advance skill is answered to those that have them during class. 

IS THE COURSE A TAX WRITE OFF?

No this is not a long course like cosmetology, barbering, esthetics, massage or college. Those schools have thousands of hours including college education to get a degree so those kinds of courses can get tax credits. Nail School and Waxing school is only 150 hours so it can't be written off. Also since you can not sell ANY nail care services until you have a license the education here was not to improve or maintain your operating business. Check into supply and textbook cost for deductions. 

WHAT HAPPENS IF I DON'T FINISH WITHIN SIX MONTHS?
A big chunk of your cost goes to pay for the online study access at the initial registration. The online access is a non-refundable pre-paid cost per per student to cover the credit card transaction fees and the six month online study access. Students will use the online study to prepare them for Tests here. Students will instantly fail the course if they DO NOT pass both test (at the school on online study) within 180 days of paying in full or making a down payment with the minimum days of attendance (see details in the online course).  

WHAT HAPPENS IF I QUIT?

Sadly we have had some students fail the course from cheating, going past their expiration time without completing the work in time or by just giving up. Those on a payment plan can quit at anytime and they do not have to make any more future payments but there are absolutely no refunds on any paid costs made to this school. Attend class hours will be reported to the state for transfer. Re-enrollment is discounted based on how long ago they quit or dropped out.

CAN I GET TAX EDUCATION CREDIT PAYING FOR NAIL SCHOOL?

No. Virginia is not a state that offers financial aid for nail eduction so there is no tax education credit for nail school.  You will not get a 1098 form from this school for a course payment. Keep your reciepts for equipment, supply, travel, uniform and books when you attend as they could tax deductable if you are a business. Talk to your accountant about this. 

I JUST WANT TO LEARN NAILS. WHY DO I NEED A LICENSE?

Those without a license can make that quick money at home for now but when their skills grow they can't move on to the next level. As your skills grow you should be paid more with less work for your growing advanced skills or you have to start over with a new skill. Owning a slaon or working an an hourly pay job with benefits can be rewarding but you need the license. Schooling can be hard to complete when your books are full of clients. Getting a nail license is planning for your future. Having a license can also let you become a MNT to get an hourly pay of $40-60 per hour in a podiatrist office with full benefits. With a license you could work in a spa or salon that can pay $20-50 per hour with benefits (without you having to pay for supplies or overhead).

WHAT IF I HAVE A CRIMINAL CONVICTION?

• Conviction or found guilty in the United States of any felony within the last 20 years
• Convicted or found guilty in the United States of any misdemeanor involving moral turpitude, sexual offense, drug distribution or physical injury within the last 2 years. 
• A plea of nolo contendere shall be considered a conviction

You need to get your official Criminal History Record from each State that you have a conviction, or a national criminal history, or a certified copy of the final order, decree or case decision by a court.  to report it to licensing department for review. They will research your background to check for them so you must disclose it. If you do not report those convicted you can get denied to get licensed even after you finish this course. You may be required to attend a Informal Fact-Finding conference after finishing the course and passing the state exams for licensure. The time to conduct the review (after passing both state exams) could take several months complete. 

CLICK HERE for an informational flyer about criminal convictions with licensing. The state does not review anyone for approval of licensure until they have finished a state licensed course and passed the state exams.

"A prior conviction does not necessarily prevent you from obtaining a license; there are no "barrier crimes" that are an absolute prohibition to licensure". Each applicant will be evaluated to determine whether their criminal  history is related to the profession. At a board review meeting they will consider the following:

• The nature and seriousness of the crime
• The relationship of the crime to the purpose for requiring a license to engage in the occupation
• The extent to which the occupation or profession might offer an opportunity to engage in further criminal activity of the same type as that in which the person had been involved
• The relationship of the crime to the ability, capacity or fitness required to perform the duties and discharge the responsibilities of the occupation or profession
• The extent and nature of the person's past criminal activity
• The age of the person at the time of the commision of the crime
• The amount of time that has elapsed since the person's last involement in the commission of a crime
• The conduct and work activity of the person prior to and following the criminal activity; and
• Evidence of the person's rehabilitation or rehabilitative effort while incarcerated or following release.

SALON OR TECH VIOLATION REPORTING LINK

Nail service violations/lawsuits have doubled every year since COVID

If you have had damage done to you during a nail service please contact a lawyer. This can include cuticle cutting damage (nail techs can not cut living tissue so they are liable), other nail infections including burns from primers/chemicals. Numbness from swelling with redness followed by peeling around the fingers can be issues of allergic reaction from things like acrylic liquid that should never touch the skin or improper use of gel products (also use of non FDA approved products). Contraction of HPV, Hepatitis or other blood borne diseases from unclean tools used in a nail service can also be a lawsuit. Speak to a lawyer if you had any of these issues from a paid nail service.

HOW to BE SAFE as a Client: get a receipt/pay with a card, look for DPOR licenses, take a photo or record anything you see that is questiontionable or seem unsafe, leave or request clean tools if you see dirty tools attempted to be used on you and know that you have the right ask questions. 

Clients have the right to see a license posted! If you can't find it then the nail salon is in violation and can be reported. One working tech should have two licenses (one for the salon/one for the person selling nail services). 

Think about it: when you go to a dentist, plastic surgeon or doctor what do you think their posted license tells you? They they know how to keep you safe, can be held liable if damages occur and should have insurance coverage for damages.

DO NOT LET NAIL TECHS: brush your skin with acrylic liquid anywhere from the brush. It should never EVER touch skin. Make sure they effectively remove the sticky layer of gels products from the skin (that can cause long term allergies). These improper service applicaiton procedures plus cuticle cutting are the main court cases she works with lawyers for lawsuits. Every client is required to get a new or sanitized sanding band/bit, buffer, file and woodstick per service per state regulation.