The fourth day of the study visit comprised of a visit to a hairdresser , Marco Filipic, followed by a meeting at CPI headquarters with representatives from the Chambers of Commerce.

Part 1:

Mr. Filipic, who is also taking part in the employer informed part of the project, was very passionate about his profession and discussed the changes in hairdressing since he began the career. Mr. Filipic spoke about how hard he worked to get to an esteemed position within the hairdressing profession and how having adopted the profession from his own father he feels strongly about the parental role; Parents should support the career path chosen by the student and stand with them when approaching employers for traineeships.

Mr. Filipic learned many of his skills from the family business and displayed a desire to see young people show similar passion and dedication as he had as an adolescent. For him it is best if a person wishing to become a hairdresser approaches him at 15 or 16 with the support of their parents and is willing to learn on the job and see all aspects of the job from cleaning to cutting and styling.  For him, more of the student’s time should be spent with him, the employer,  rather than at the college.

He also pointed out there is no longer a compact list of hairstyles which women or men look for, such as a perm. Nowadays, there is an expectation that hairdressers can reproduce a style the customer saw the night before on the red carpet. From the conversation it seemed everything has gotten more complex over the last decade and perhaps that young people are not necessarily showing motivation and dedication to become competent in their career to meet modern day demands.

The students drive, enthusiasm and ambition are essential motivating factors for students to give their all during a work placement. Ambitious students will want to please the placement provider and this will be evident in how they present themselves and apply themselves during the placement. They also need to grow personally and find their voice. They must be resilient and understand they need to work their way up in an organisation earning respect and trust of colleagues and managers along the way.

• How do colleges create more ambitious students?
• How do employers see colleges doing this?
• Can parents be engaged more by colleges to be active in driving the student engagement?
• Have employers realistic expectations and an understanding of adolescents?
• How does an employer’s attitude and expectation impact the student?
• For an employer who has learned their profession through their family can they understand and empathise with a person learning the profession without such a background?
• Does the college provide a better environment for personal and social growth?
• For a student who has a negative experience on a work placement, what measures can a college take such that this doesn’t also negatively impact the student’s attitude and impression of the career?
• How can students learn to foster good team building and relationship building skills in a college or on placement?