Barber Styling Program is a Diploma program offered by Hawaii Institute of Hair Design in Honolulu, HI. The program takes 10 to 12 months (1,500 clock hours) to complete, with a total tuition of $15,932.
Program Overview
The Barber Styling Program at Hawaii Institute of Hair Design is 1,500 clock hours of training that prepares students for employment as entry-level professional hairstylists and for the Hawaii State Board Barber Examination. Each student completes 334 hours of theory, classroom study and practical lab work and 1,166 hours of on-site practical training in the school’s clinic, with required operations in every major service.
Students become skillful in haircutting with shears, clipper and razor, styling and blow drying, shaving and beard and mustache design, perming, coloring and bleaching, relaxing, shampooing, facials, braids, up-dos and non-medical hair and scalp treatments. The program also builds basic shop management: reception, appointment booking, record-keeping, bookkeeping, retailing and the laws, rules and regulations governing barbering in Hawaii, with a review course for the state exam.
The school began as Hawaii Barber School in the early 1940s, and barber styling has been its core program for more than 70 years. It trains men’s and women’s hair design alike, describes its greatest strength as highly advanced stylized haircutting, and awards a diploma on completion of all hours, operations and exams.
What sets this Program apart
- Barbering since the 1940s. Hawaii Institute of Hair Design grew out of Hawaii Barber School and has trained, graduated and placed barbers for more than 70 years.
- 1,166 clinic hours. Required operations include 200 style cuts, 80 tapered cuts, 200 hairstyles, 20 shaves, 20 beard trims, 50 perms and 25 color services.
- Men’s and women’s styling. Braids, up-dos, color, perms and relaxers sit alongside fades, flat tops and straight-razor shaving.
- Published results. The catalog reports an 81 percent graduation rate and 87 percent employment rate for its most recent measured cohort.
Admission Requirements and Process
Entrance is open to career-minded people who meet the Admission Requirements, and in the opinion of the school staff, would be able to obtain and utilize the skills taught for employment. Candidates are screened to determine their capabilities, career potential and desire to complete the course and work in the field.
General Requirements
- High School Diploma or EquivalentHigh school diploma, General Education Development Certificate GED®, HiSET®, Associates or Bachelors degree or official high school graduation transcripts designating the date of…
- Minimum Age 17Students must be 17 years of age or older.
- Valid Photo IDCopy of a valid State ID, Driver License or Passport.
- TB Health ClearanceTuberculosis (TB) health clearance.
- Immunization RecordsImmunization documents or titers as required by the state for Measles, Mumps, Rubella, Varicella, and Tetanus (TDap) Shots Records.
- Personal InterviewA personal interview is required of all new students. Please call (808) 533-6596 to make an appointment.
- $25 Registration FeeThe $25.00 registration fee is the applicant's responsibility, and is due at the time of enrollment. It is refundable up to and within 3 days after touring the school in the event…
Application Process
- 1Contact Admissions and Tour the SchoolContact the school for answers from our registrar or financial aid department, to book an appointment, or a tour of the school. Due to limited enrollment, plan to visit the School and apply far in advance of the time you wish to start.
- 2Complete Your Personal InterviewA personal interview is required of all new students. Bring your records; you must apply in person if you are on Oahu. Applicants from off the Island of Oahu should let the school know in writing at least 30 days in advance by completing the School application.
- 3Submit Your DocumentsProvide a copy of your diploma, TB test, complete immunization records, and a valid ID, along with the $25.00 registration fee. Applications are processed as soon as received and students are advised of tentative acceptance of enrollment.
- 4Apply for Financial Aid (FAFSA)Application for financial aid is free online. After touring the school, selecting a class start date, and once the Financial Aid Department receives a valid ISIR, an estimated financial aid offer will be issued.FAFSA Code for Honolulu: 014268Fill Out the FAFSA
- 5Sign Your Enrollment AgreementSign your enrollment agreement; the $25.00 registration fee is due when signing.
- 6Start ClassesFormal start dates of classes commence on the second Wednesday of January, March, May, July, September, and November, and the third Monday of June.
Program Schedule
1,500 clock hours, 10 to 12 months of full-time training at 35 hours a week; on average students complete the course within 49 weeks. The maximum time allowed is 65 weeks, including holidays, absences and leaves, with no more than 108 absent days, and attending at 80 percent extends graduation by up to three months. Written test averages are checked at 200, 500, 800 and 1,100 hours, with all 30 tests passed at 75 percent by graduation. Each clock hour is 60 minutes, and no credit-hour conversion is used.
Attendance. Full-time students are assigned 7 hours a day, 5 days a week, or 35 hours a week. The school is open 8:15 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Saturday; every student attends on Saturdays and is off on Sunday and one other weekday. Level 1 students are off on Mondays during their first two months, and the day off changes as they progress. Students arrive by 8:15 a.m. to set up before 8:30 classes, and absent hours are made up by attending beyond the schedule. Theory classes rotate every two months, so a missed class can be attended when it comes round again. Satisfactory progress means 80 percent attendance and a 75 percent average in theory and practical work.
Every student may take a leave of absence of up to 60 days for any good reason, with further leaves for medical, family, jury or military reasons; all leaves together may not exceed 100 days or push the program past its maximum time frame, and a leave adds no charges. The school operates year-round with no scheduled vacation, closing for New Year’s Eve and Day, Martin Luther King Day, Presidents’ Day, Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, Labor Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
Start dates. Classes start on the second Wednesday of January, March, May, July, September and November, and on the third Monday of June. Enrollment is limited, so the school suggests applying well ahead.
The catalog’s class schedule is headed “100% | 43 weeks”, yet its 2026 and 2027 end dates fall 52 weeks after each start (for example, January 14, 2026 to January 13, 2027), while its 2028 dates run about 43 weeks. The program length section gives 10 to 12 months and an average of 49 weeks; the enrollment agreement sets each student’s dates.
Campus Location
Why Accreditation Is Important
When you attend an accredited institution, you attend a school that has been independently evaluated for educational quality.
Hawaii Institute of Hair Design is accredited by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC). The Cosmetologist Program is licensed by the Hawaii Board of Barbering and Cosmetology and the Barber Styling Program by the Hawaii Department of Education; both are approved for GI Bill training.
- A reliable indicator of quality
- Approved program of study
- Qualified instructors
- Recognition by employers nationwide
Accreditations
Student Demographics
These are demographics for all students at the Honolulu Campus (IPEDS, 2024).
Cost of Attendance and Financial Aid Information
| Charge | Amount |
|---|---|
| Registration fee | $25.00 |
| Tuition | $15,931.61 |
| Kit | $1,664.45 |
| Total | $17,621.06 |
Where the prices come from. These charges are from the Barber Styling Program catalog effective January 5, 2026. Students who pay without financial aid may use an installment plan with no finance charge: the $25 registration fee, $1,996.06 on the first day of school and 8 monthly payments of $1,950, for the same $17,621.06 total. The kit includes the textbook, shears, clipper, edger, razor, irons, dryer, mannequins, a lockable tool trolley, smocks and a laptop, and belongs to the student. Graduates pay the state (DCCA) directly for a temporary work permit and license application ($57) and the exam ($90). Prices are subject to change. A Barber Styling Program net price calculator is published.
Paying for school. Hawaii Institute of Hair Design is an eligible institution for Federal Pell Grants, the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) and William D. Ford Federal Direct Loans, available to students who qualify. The FAFSA is free at studentaid.gov, and the school warns against websites that charge for help. The school works with FAME, a financial aid management firm, which can help complete the application; once the school receives a valid Institutional Student Information Record after a tour and a chosen start date, it issues an estimated aid offer. Applicants facing job loss, domestic violence, homelessness or similar circumstances may ask for professional judgment, with supporting documents. Aid depends on satisfactory progress: a student who has not reached 80 percent attendance and 75 percent academic progress by the final disbursement loses eligibility and must pay the resulting balance before graduating. The school offers no private loans. Veterans’ benefits under the GI Bill are approved for both programs.
FAFSA school code. Both catalogs tell applicants to list school code 014268 on the FAFSA. That code does not match the Office of Postsecondary Education ID the U.S. Department of Education lists for the school (021395), so this page does not record a code; confirm the FAFSA school code with the school’s financial aid office before filing.
Cancellation and refunds. The registration fee and all money paid are refunded if requested within three days of signing the enrollment agreement (for veterans, $15 of the registration fee is prorated). After that, a student who withdraws is charged tuition and registration on an exact prorate of the hours completed to the program’s total hours, and refunds are paid within 45 days. The tool kit is not refundable once issued. Written notice of withdrawal is not required for a refund.
Curriculum
The catalog divides the 1,500 hours into 334 hours of classroom studies and 1,166 hours of clinic activities. Classroom studies cover orientation, history of barbering, professional ethics, hygiene, bacteriology, sterilization and sanitation, implements, honing and stropping, shampooing, scalp manipulations, histology, trichology, hair, skin and scalp disorders and treatments, linen uses, haircutting (62 hours), hairstyling (28), shaving, beard design, facials, hair relaxing, hair coloring and bleaching (62.5), perms (40), shop management, laws and reviews for the state exam (39.5) and testing (16). Clinic activities are haircutting (450 hours), hairstyling (196), hair and scalp treatments (85), reactive processes such as perms, colors and relaxers (205), shaving (25), facials (30), sanitation and implement care (75), shop management (50), and study, retests and records (50).
The required courses below are from Hawaii Institute of Hair Design's published catalog.
Required Courses
| Name | Total |
|---|---|
Required Courses
| Name |
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Career Outcomes
The program prepares graduates for the Hawaii State Board Barber Examination and for entry-level work as professional hairstylists in barbershops, hair shops and salons, with basic shop management skills; many graduates go on to operate their own shops. The school keeps a current list of shops with openings, available to all graduates, and says it receives many calls from shops asking for graduates; job placement is not guaranteed.
The catalog reports that of the 70 students who started the Barber Styling Program between December 1, 2022 and November 30, 2023, 57 graduated. Of those 57 graduates, 3 continued their education, 1 was unavailable for employment, and 46 were employed in the field by June 30, 2025, giving a graduation rate of 81 percent and an employment rate of 87 percent for that cohort. Advanced seminars and occasional evening classes for licensed barbers help graduates keep up with trends.
What to expect as a Hawaii Institute of Hair Design student
Hawaii Institute of Hair Design sits in downtown Honolulu at 1128 Nuuanu Avenue, placed there to bring as many live patrons as possible to its student clinic. The school began as Hawaii Barber School in the early 1940s, was incorporated as Honolulu Barber School, Ltd. in 1956 and has done business as Hawaii Institute of Hair Design since 1976; it describes itself as the only school of its kind in Hawaii, family run, with more than 70 years of training, graduating and placing students.
Training begins with two months of intensive introductory theory and practical classes in the Level 1 classrooms upstairs, then moves to short review and advancement classes and supervised practice on paying guests in the ground-floor practical clinic, which has styling stations, hydraulic chairs, shampoo bowls, dryers and a dispensary. Classrooms have audio-visual and projection equipment, a text library and self-test computers, and a ground-floor lounge has a refrigerator, microwave and magazine library. The building is licensed for 70 students in the Level 1 classrooms and 85 in the clinic; an average starting class is about 12 students, with no more than 20 students to each teacher.
Students receive a progress report every two months. Excursions introduce shop and salon management and distributorships, guest artists lead seminars, and inter-school competitions and fashion shows build confidence. Graduates may use the school’s list of shops with openings, though placement is not guaranteed. The school provides no housing; the catalog notes rooms in homes and the local YMCAs on the bus line. Reasonable accommodations are available for students with disabilities on request.