THERE IS A chronic shortage of hairdressing apprentices at the moment. While this is bad news for salons, it is, of course, good news for anyone considering a career in hairdressing.

Indeed, demand is so high that Maura Clarke, head of the department of hairdressing at Crumlin College of Business and Technical Studies, Dublin, says that she has difficulty holding on to her students.

That said, the minimum rates of pay for apprentices, as set down by the Joint Labour Commission, are very low however, Clarke stresses the going rate may be somewhat higher. Equally, the minimum rates for qualified hairdressers are low, but top stylists can command far bigger salaries.

Most hairdressers are paid commission and get tips. There are also g9od opportunities for hairdressers with an entrepreneurial bent to set up their own salons.

In the past, many students left school after junior cycle to become hairdressing apprentices. A spokeswoman for the Irish Hairdressing Federation says employers are increasingly looking for 17- and 18-year-olds as opposed to 14- and 15-year-olds. By default, most of these would have done their Leaving Certificate - many employers are now specifying Leaving Cert standard.

These "traditional apprentices" serve a four-year apprenticeship. which may include some additional off-the-job training, such as day or night classes in a VEC college. If an apprentice attends such a course he or she usually sits the Department of Education's Junior and Senior Certificate trade examinations. Alternatively, hairdressing salons may offer their own training.

Although it was announced in 1994 that hairdressing would become the first services-sector job to join the new FAS standards-based apprenticeship scheme, this is still at the discussion stage. It would appear that the length of off-the-job training and funding are the two main stumbling blocks. The new apprenticeship would require apprentices to attain certain standards, as opposed to the traditional "time served route.

An increasingly popular route into hairdressing is offered by the expanding Post Leaving Certificate sector. Many of these courses combine hairdressing with cosmetic studies. Maura Clarke of Crumlin College, which has one of the biggest hairdressing schools in Ireland, explains that the advantage of doing a PLC as opposed to going directly into a salon is that students are taught basic hairdressing skills as well as interpersonal skills - if they went straight into a salon they might not have an opportunity to do any hairdressing in the first year. Students are also much more confident after they have completed a year.

Crumlin usually receives 80 to 100 applications for its 40 places. Over the year, students learn shampooing, conditioning and conditioning treatments, setting techniques, perming and colour basics as well as basic cutting and styling. They also do verbal communication, fashion consciousness, personal grooming and workplace essentials such as computers, reception and health and safety.

On the cosmetic side they do facial treatments, eyebrow shaping and tinting, manicure and pedicure. One day a week is spent on work experience. At the end of first year, students sit NCVA exams and about 95 per cent opt to do junior trade certificates. They do the ITEC beauty qualification.

Almost all students are offered work in the salon where they did their placement, Clarke says. They usually continue to attend night classes for three years and sit the senior trade certificate.