Piercing apprenticeship– Much like any craft, to become a fully-fledged piercer you need to learn first! That is what will make you stand out among many. You will need to do research before anything. There is a huge difference between pro and amateur. Training is important in order to grow!
What is a Piercing apprenticeship?
piercing apprenticeship is training to become a professional body piercer. During this training, you learn the art of body piercing through videos, magazines seminars or by attending professional piercing classes.
Unlike when applying for tattoo apprenticeship, for piercing you don’t need to build a portfolio. Still, there are some things you need to work on. So, before applying to consider how much you are familiar with human anatomy.
Research and show your possible mentor the knowledge! Enthusiasm and responsibility will take you far. Piercings are fun and creative, yes, but many mentors prefer to be taken seriously.
Study up, you don’t need to be an expert of course. Browsing the web can help.
Sterilized nose and ear piercing needles
Piercing kit for an apprentice
Do you get paid as a piercing apprentice?
Yes, you may get paid for working as an apprentice.
In most cases, the payment highly depends on the studio where you work at. Some studios will give you the minimum, others won’t. There were also cases where you pay the piercer to train you.
You got to keep in mind, the piercing shop is a private business. On average they don’t make so much money monthly. You might end up not even getting paid.
Also, you might have to buy your own ‘Ginnie pig’ along with gloves, jewelry, wipes, needles. At the end of the day, you feel the power in you if you learn new things.
SO, I suggest you not run after money. Earn knowledge and become a good professional piercer. The money will follow you, your talent speaks louder than you.
Focus on your work, learn and practice regularly and you will start earning money soon.
Do you need qualifications to be a piercing apprentice?
There no such requirements of qualification degree or anything. Much like with any job where being apprentice is a part of the training. There are a few things you need to do:
- Be of legal age-this is not a job for minors and should be taken as a responsible job
- Learn about the tools of the trade– do research on all the tools you might encounter.
- Check the requirements- Every country has slightly regulations when it comes to becoming a piercer.
- Go through blood-borne pathogen class-in this class you will learn how to protect yourself and your customers from the diseases.
- Join the first aid class – Since you will be working with needles anything can happen.
- Schedule to get injections against transferable diseases – this is also a huge must!
How do I get an apprenticeship as a piercer?
You should get proper knowledge and training from a reputed piercer.
The most important thing is to find a reputable studio. You don’t want to be trained by just anyone right? Observe, check reviews and then figure if that studio is the right one for you.
The quickest route you can take is to become a regular customer to piercer you chose. Show that you have interest and knowledge in their work.
Most importantly, go through proper training from the previous question I pointed out at. Those will be valuable skills in the future.
Do I have to spend money on Piercing apprenticeship?
Yes, you have to. This is mostly case by case, there are some that still do offer free apprenticeship. The number of them is becoming less and less. That is mostly due to the mainstream popularity of the job.
You could teach yourself of course, but the best option is to go through the right kind of training. Knowing that, be ready to spend your time and money. Usually, the shops would charge their apprentices between 3-10 thousand dollars.
Hopefully, the money will be worth it.
How old do you have to be to be a piercing apprentice?
You must be above 18 years, below 18 cannot start this training.
Working in any sort of licensed industry has a certain air of responsibility. That included legal responsibility.
As you can guess to become an apprentice you have to be of age 18 or above. You will also have to register yourself and the store in the local council. That is the only way to get the license. You might have to get vaccinated against hepatitis B, for this.
Piercing people’s bodies is not legal for minors in most of the countries.
Do Piercing Apprentices get paid?
Once again I have to emphasize this, in most cases not really. The experience you get is in a way the usual payment you might get. However, there might be studios willing to pay at least a minimum.
Since this is an educational experience you will give more than you earn. Be prepared to work a part-time job if you are ready for it.
Piercing supplies are not cheap. You will need any penny you can get.
How much can I earn as a piercing apprentice?
You can earn very little on no money as an apprentice.
As I have said before there is no exact number. You either don’t get paid at all or in some unique situations a small portion.
On the other hand, if you got a good relationship with your mentor then there is a chance. For example, you can arrange to get a percentage of the overall cost of the piercing.
This sort of agreement depends on each studio.No studio would have the exact same pricing as the other one.
Where to get a Piercing apprenticeship?
Check out any reputed piercer shop nearby and get apprenticeship there.
With the widespread of internet and easier communication, this is not a challenging thing to do. The simplest route is to check local shops around your city. There are a few more options too!
Seminars are pretty popular places to visit. Usually, they last for about 4 days to 6 weeks covering the basics of the piercing. This is usually good for beginning, piercing takes far more time to learn.
Videos are also ways to get familiar with piercing. Watching them is only there to assist nothing more.
Is Piercing an apprenticeship legal?
Most of the countries in the world and states in the US do not have strict prohibitions on this. Especially in modern days where piercings are a small part of pop culture.
There are requirements and regulations. For the most part, they are similar all over the world.
Yet before diving into water of piercing and tattoos, do check local regulations. Mostly for your own sake and the sake of your mentor. Once everything is checked you can continue on the right path.
Pros and Cons of Piercing apprenticeship?
Both pros and cons are many and some of them you could already guess already. They are something you can put on paper and think before taking any action.
Pros:
One of the most positive aspects is hands-on experience. Most importantly you will be guided by a professional of your choice.
This can give you a bright future if you will learn with dedication.
Cons:
On the flip side, the lack of proper payment might be difficult for the most. Also, you would need another job to support your ambitions.
It can be stressful to manage your life while doing an apprenticeship. But take it as a test, you have to sit in a test to qualify any exam in your life.
Best apprenticeships near me
The first thing you can do is to check local shops around your area. I myself come from the second biggest city in my country. It’s not that hard to find good schools but I decided to mention these.
Inked Planet, Novi Sad is one of the many shops with a solid reputation. With a licensed certificate they have been in this business since 2000.
Next, I want to mention is the studio American way, located in the same city. Who has been in this business for over 20 years?
As you can see I tried to cover the most important things you might need. Of course there several more details to consider. Which you can read about further bellow especially when it comes to new school or pricing.
Is there any piercing school with piercing apprenticeships in the US?
Yes, Us has a reputation where you can find many great piercers and tattoo artists. In many cases, a lot of people from different nations go to study there. The schools I’m going to list are some of the good ratings.
If you are curious more about them, best is to check their page directly.
- Tattoo & Piercing School of Canada– located right at Toronto McPherson airport as a traveler this is ideal! They will provide you with models and class schedule Isn’t fixed. Most importantly they give you a lot of practical knowledge rather than sitting in a stuffy room!
- World’s only Tattoo studio-this one is located in Shreveport LA. Besides having good classes they also offer advice for young entrepreneurs. On their site, you can check the virtual tour and the ways to pay tuition.
- Godspeed Tattoo and Body Piercing-right in Pittsburg They have been in piercing business for over 15 years. Meaning you will be trained and mentored by quite a few professionals!
This is merely a small portion of many more schools for piercing. You don’t have to take my word for it. Considering plenty of positive reviews these schools do have they could be one of your top choices.
So don’t be afraid to give them a shot or just a call!
Related Questions
How long do you have to apprentice to be a piercer?
On average it takes about a year. Mostly for the reason is that there are many skills you need to get and classes to visit.
When you find the right studio, the next step is to go to health and safety classes. Most important among them First Aid and CPR.
After that, you will need to spend three months as a trainee. During this time you will learn about sterilization and disinfection. Along with other health and safety issues surrounding the piercing studio.
With that out of the way, you have to spend six months to a year as an apprentice. Within that period your mentor will supervise and observe your work. Most importantly they will teach you the proper techniques required of your work.
As I mentioned already, you will need to get a license to continue your work. Your mentor should know the right procedure. If not you check with the board of health in your country or state.
Keep in mind this is still a booming business. It might take some time to find the right studio and get accepted. Don’t give up but also stay resilient during the whole trial.
The experience you will gain during your training will be worth all the ups and downs. Who knows maybe someday you become your own employer after you gain enough skills!
How much do piercings cost?
There are lots of different types of body piercing which can cost you from 25 $ – 200 $.
This will be important if you manage to get a percentage of the work in your studio. As I mentioned apprentices don’t always get paid, but if they do negotiations are a must.
The cost itself varies, it mostly depends on the location of the piercings. Earlobes piercings can cost from 20$ to 55$. While piercings on other parts of the body from 40$ to 85$.
Along with the cost of piercing,artist will disinfect the area and provide a hollow needle. Most importantly piercer has to provide ideal aftercare for the chosen piercing.
For a first piercing basic jewelry is provided, any modifications are charged extra. Discounts do happen sometimes, but that is usually saved for returning customers.
Most piercers will avoid using the piercing gun and opt for the needle. For the reason, that gun is far more difficult to sterilize and clean.
Now, this is mostly on average. Piercing and tattoo business is very popular but also extremely competitive surroundings. It is not surprising that often times studios would offer some sort of a discount.
As an apprentice its important to be familiar with ongoing trends and costs.Especially if you can earn a bit while you are in training.
Overall, becoming a piercing apprentice is a rewarding experience. There are many pros and cons just like in any sort of similar work. Having a practical experience is something of huge value and will definitively build you up for the future!
