If you’ve recently qualified as an injectables practitioner or are about to finish a training course, you’re probably wondering how you will find your first job in medical aesthetics. Setting up your own practice is not an option for everyone and you might prefer to work part-time for a clinic to fit in with family life or other commitments that you have.

New entrants to the medical aesthetics profession often get frustrated by the need to have experience beyond the training course they have completed and feel that they are caught in a vicious circle of not being hired due to a lack of experience and no employers willing to give them with the opportunity they need to gain vital experience to take their career to the next level.

There are things you can do, however, to find employment as a Botox or dermal filler practitioner. When you are ready to start seeking employment in your new profession, the first thing you should do is ensure that your CV is up to date and includes any relevant experience that you have, as well as particular skills you have that may give you the edge over your competitors, such calming nervous patients or managing patient expectations.

If you have a Level 7 Diploma in Botox and Dermal Fillers mention it, as it is very sought-after by employers and will improve your chances of being hired.

Once you have completed your CV, you will need to write a cover letter that you can send out with your CV. If writing is not one of your strong points, look online for tips on how to maximise your cover letter and ensure that it is relevant and appealing to employers.

Be sure to use a grammar or spellcheck app, such as MS Word or Grammarly, to ensure that there are no grammar or spelling mistakes that could create a bad impression. Once you have done this, ask a friend or colleague to read it and provide constructive feedback.

If you plan to target specific aesthetic clinics in your area and intend to call them directly, it is a good idea to prepare a script first and practise it with a friend or family member who can respond as an employer might to help you prepare answers to the type of questions you may be asked.

At this point, it is a good idea to create professional social media accounts to advertise your services and build an audience of followers and loyal customers.

Before you do this, it is a good idea to research other medical aesthetic practitioners and clinics and see how they appear on social media. What tone of voice do they use? Who are they targeting? What do they talk about? Do they use photos or videos or a combination of both to advertise their services?

Once you’ve done your research, create your account and feed it new content regularly and remember to respond to any likes/comments that you get to your posts. Video is extremely popular these days, so you may want to create a video that introduces you and your services.

If you haven’t already joined COMMA (the Community for Medical Aesthetics), do so as soon as possible. If you’re not familiar with what it is, it is a global social media platform that shares news and articles about the medical aesthetics industry and connects people across the globe.

Make sure your COMMA profile includes the following information:

• Your professional experience
• Your aesthetics and other relevant qualifications
• Your location
• Your availability (full or part-time)
• Your areas of interest in aesthetics
• Your unique personal skills (social media, patient management, etc.)
• The treatments you offer
• Your skill level for each treatment

As a newcomer to the medical aesthetics and injectables industry, it is essential to start building a network of fellow professionals with whom you can have career-long relationships. Look online for relevant groups to join or ask other medical aesthetic practitioners which groups they are part of. If you don’t yet know anyone you can ask, send a direct message on social media, you will find that people in the industry are willing to help and offer guidance to new entrants.

If you haven’t done professional networking before, avoid being too pushy and asking people to hire you. The aim is to find out about what is going on in your industry, learn from other’s experience and build long-term relationships based on the principle of know, like and trust. The best approach is just to be yourself; the rest will fall into place naturally.

A great way to keep abreast of the latest industry developments and meet fellow practitioners is by attending conferences and events/webinars, either in person or online.

You can find out about such events by subscribing to newsletters published by event organisers or by joining their mailing lists. Professional aesthetics society websites are packed with information on such events. The same value can be gained from visiting clinic openings in your area or product launches.

Following these seven steps does not guarantee employment, but if you follow them all and have the right mindset, it will pay off over time. You will be able to build the career you have already invested time and money in, and your investment will start to pay off.

We hope you have found this blog useful to find your first job in medical aesthetics and that it helps you find launch your career as an injectables practitioner. Contact us today to find out more about our dermal filler and Botox training courses.

Derma Institute is an award-winning training academy with training centres worldwide. We offer doctor-led training courses on various aesthetic procedures to healthcare professionals. Our centres currently have excellent training on live models and follow the safest and most advanced techniques in aesthetic medicine.