Texas does not issue a separate medical esthetician license. That one fact shapes the whole path, because it means the route into advanced clinical skin care in this state runs through the standard esthetician license first, with advanced training layered on top of it afterward.
This page covers what a medical esthetician does, what Texas actually licenses, the training hours the state requires, the spelling question people keep running into, and how the Esthetics program at Avenue Five Institute in Austin is structured.
What Is a Medical Esthetician?
A medical esthetician is a state licensed skin care specialist who focuses on advanced skin care treatments, often in a medical or clinical environment. The work centers on skin health.
What Does a Medical Esthetician Do?
Day to day responsibilities vary by setting, and they can include the following.
- Performing skin analysis and client consultation to understand a client’s concerns and history.
- Administering chemical peels.
- Performing microdermabrasion.
- Providing facial treatments.
- Performing hair removal.
- Holding sanitation and infection control standards on every service.
What Does the Texas Esthetician License Cover?
Texas issues one esthetician license, and it is the credential the state requires for skin care practice. The license is the foundation, and the advanced training built on top of it is what points the work toward clinical skin care. Laser procedures sit outside it and require a separate Texas certification.
Is There a Medical Esthetician License in Texas?
No. In Texas, medical esthetician is not a separate license and not a formal title. It describes a licensed esthetician who has chosen to specialize in advanced skin care in medical settings.
Licensing runs through the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, known as TDLR, and the state issues one esthetician license. Every esthetician in Texas is required to complete at least 750 hours of esthetics training at a state approved school in order to qualify for it. There is no second license and no medical endorsement stacked on top of the first one.
One limit is worth knowing early. Laser procedures require a separate Texas certification beyond the esthetician license, so laser work is not covered by the esthetician license on its own.
How to Become a Medical Esthetician in Texas, Step by Step
Four steps, in order, from school to clinical practice.
Step 1: Complete a State Approved Esthetics Program
Texas requires a minimum of 750 hours of esthetics training from a state approved school. This is where the technical foundation is built, covering skin analysis, facial treatments, chemical peels, microdermabrasion, hair removal techniques, sanitation and infection control, and client consultation.
The published enrollment process at Avenue Five Institute runs in four steps. Discover covers choosing a program and completing a virtual tour. Apply covers planning funding and submitting the application. Register covers submitting required documents and attending a registration appointment. The fourth step is preparing for class.
Step 2: Pass the TDLR Exams and Apply for the License
After an approved program of at least 750 hours, candidates sit for two exams administered by TDLR, one written and one practical. Once both are passed, the license application goes to TDLR with the applicable fees. The hours and the exams are separate stages, and the exams come after the program is finished.
Step 3: Add Advanced Training
This is the step that moves a licensed esthetician toward clinical work, and it happens after licensure rather than inside the 750 hours. Laser procedures are the clearest example, because Texas requires a separate certification for them. Advanced skin care techniques are part of the Esthetics curriculum at Avenue Five Institute, and further specialization can be added once the state license is in hand.
Step 4: Build Advanced Skin Care Experience
Experience in advanced skin care is built after licensure, inside the boundaries the esthetician license defines. Laser procedures stay outside those boundaries until the separate Texas certification is added.
How Many Hours Does Esthetician School Take in Texas?
The state minimum is 750 hours of esthetics training at a state approved school. That is the requirement to qualify for the TDLR exams, and the same 750 hour minimum applies at every state approved esthetics program in Texas.
At Avenue Five Institute the 750 hour Esthetics program runs 25 weeks at 30 hours a week. The hours are the program itself, and the licensing exams follow after the hours are complete.
Cosmetology is a different route with a different hour requirement and a separate Texas license. The Cosmetology program at Avenue Five Institute runs 1,000 hours over 34 weeks, so it is worth deciding early which credential the intended work calls for. For skin care specifically, Esthetics is the 750 hour path.
What Is the Difference Between an Esthetician and an Aesthetician?
The two spellings describe closely related work, and people search for both. The difference is one of usage rather than of credential.
Both spellings point to the same licensed skin care work in this state, and both call for the same training and the same license.
Texas licenses the role as an esthetician, spelled with no A, and that is the spelling used on the license. The A spelling does not describe a different Texas credential.
The Esthetics Program at Avenue Five Institute
The Esthetics program at Avenue Five Institute is a 750 hour program that runs 25 weeks at 30 hours a week. It is designed to prepare students for the TDLR written and practical exams.
What Does the Curriculum Cover?
Coursework and practical training include facial treatments, skin analysis, chemical peels, microdermabrasion, hair removal techniques, sanitation and infection control, makeup application, client consultation, spa management, product knowledge, advanced skin care techniques, retailing and business, and State Board preparation.
Students gain hands on experience with chemical peels and microdermabrasion, and the curriculum includes a six week chemical peel project. Students practice on mannequins and on each other in class before moving on to clients as technique develops, and all practical instruction is delivered by licensed professional instructors.
Business and brand training is part of the program as well. Beauty as a Business, also called BaaB, covers social media and business training, and Dermalogica and CIMA are partners of Avenue Five Institute.
How Is the Program Scheduled?
The 750 hour Esthetics program is hybrid. Online distance learning covers the textbook and theory work, paired with the required on campus training, and students attend 4 hours on campus a day, Monday through Friday. Fully virtual esthetics programs are not permitted in Texas, so campus attendance is part of every schedule.
Esthetics runs all three YourTime blocks, Monday to Friday. YourMorning runs 8:30 to 12:30, YourAfternoon runs 1:00 to 5:00, and YourEvening runs 5:30 to 9:30, and each block is paired with approximately 10 hours a week of distance learning. Not every start date is offered at both campuses, and the start date list carries current availability.
Where Are the Campuses?
Avenue Five Institute has two Austin campuses, North Austin and South Austin, and both offer the same Esthetics curriculum. The South Austin campus is at 500 E Ben White Blvd, Bldg E, Ste 100, Austin, TX 78704.
Talking with an advisor can be the clearest way to judge fit. You can schedule a virtual tour before applying.
What About Paying for School?
Avenue Five Institute is accredited by NACCAS, the institutional accreditor. Title IV federal financial aid is available to those who qualify, and payment plans are available. Which options apply can be confirmed before enrollment.
What Is CIDESCO, and Why Does It Matter in Advanced Skin Care?
IDESCO is an international standard in esthetics, and Avenue Five Institute is a CIDESCO training school.
Students who complete the Esthetics or Nail Technology program are eligible to apply to sit for the CIDESCO examination. The CIDESCO Skin Care Diploma requires 730 training hours. The examination is offered once a year and includes a written portion, a practical portion and a project. The diploma does not expire.
For anyone drawn to advanced skin care, the diploma can be a meaningful addition to a Texas license, particularly for anyone who values a credential recognized beyond Texas. Sitting for the exam is optional and runs as a separate application. The CIDESCO certification process is laid out step by step.
Is Advanced Skin Care a Good Fit for You?
Advanced skin care can suit people who are detail oriented, comfortable with science and skin anatomy, and genuinely interested in working with a client through a treatment plan that unfolds over months rather than in a single appointment. An esthetician license also defines the boundaries of what may be performed, and advanced skin care work stays inside them.
It can also suit people who want a defined path. The requirements are published, the hours are fixed at 750, and the exams are the same for everyone, which makes the first step easy to plan around.
Start at Avenue Five Institute
The Esthetics program at Avenue Five Institute in Austin is designed to give students the licensed foundation that advanced and medical skin care builds on.
Request information about the Esthetics program for program details and schedule options. The full class start date list shows current start dates.
