Be an Internationally Recognized Esthetician with CIDESCO Beauty School Training

Have you fantasized about working in a cruise ship salon, or a prestigious spa or resort in another country? Your choice of beauty school training typically depends on your long-term career goals. If your goals do include working internationally, you'll want to find esthetician training that is recognized internationally. That training is called CIDESCO.

What is CIDESCO?

In 1946, Georges Dumont, of Belgium, and Jacques Poirsons, of France, founded an organization of esthetic and cosmetology professionals. They had three goals:

Bring esthetics professionals together to share knowledge and exchange ideas.
Make contact with dermatologists, cosmetic chemists, surgeons, doctors, and others doing important and influential work, and persuade these professionals that esthetics and cosmetology was of great value to the field of skin care.
Establish standards for esthetic training and create specialized beauty schools for such training.

This organization was named Comite International d'Esthetique et De Cosmetologie, now known internationally as CIDESCO. Since 1957, CIDESCO has set educational standards for esthetician training on five continents. Some call CIDESCO the esthetics industry's most prestigious qualification.

CIDESCO Esthetician Training

There are more than 200 CIDESCO schools around the world. Student estheticians diligently train to earn the coveted CIDESCO diploma. In the United States, only seven cosmetology schools teach to CISESCO standards. Earning the CIDESCO diploma requires more than just putting in a certain number of hours.

Training program.The standard CIDESCO training program is 1,200 hours, which is more than double the standard esthetics training program hours.
Written examination. A multiple choice test is based on the CIDESCO syllabus and includes the following subjects:
- The skin
- Anatomy & physiology
- Natural science
- Cosmetic science
- Esthetic treatments
- Business principles
Three practical examinations. Practical exams test your professional techniques, the way you interact with clients, and hygiene and sanitation procedures. The exams include facial and body treatments, and an additional assessment based on one other area of the curriculum, which may cover:
- Aromatherapy
- Anti-stress treatments
- Cellulite treatments
- Electric epilation
- Fantasy makeup
- Foot treatments
- Lymph drainage
Thesis project. You can creatively discuss your knowledge on any topic relating to beauty therapy when you write your 4,000-word thesis.
Professional work. Before earning your diploma, you must log 600 hours of professional work as an esthetician.

Note that the CIDESCO diploma and exam are in addition to your state's licensing requirements (which may include a written and/or practical exam). If you are unsure about your state's licensing requirements, contact your state board of cosmetology.

CIDESCO: Setting Standards for Esthetics Training

CIDESCO offers you the opportunity to learn esthetics and beauty therapy principles from a collective of professional knowledge and skin care traditions all over the world. The comprehensive education you receive from a CIDESCO school could mean a global advantage for your career.