Students sit at tables and study in the bright Taconic High School library, which has floor-to-ceiling windows, white columns, and red chairs.

Pittsfield, Massachusetts

Taconic High School

96 Valentine Road, Pittsfield, MA 01201
Visit website 413-448-9600
Program price
Price unavailable
Schedule
Schedule unavailable
Program length
1,000 hoursThree-year grades 10–12 program, following grade 9 exploration
Next start
Not available

About the program

Taconic’s three-year cosmetology program follows grade 9 career exploration and includes 1,000 instructional hours. Students develop skills in hair styling and cutting, color and chemical services, skin care, makeup and nails, alongside infection control, client communication and salon business.

Training progresses from foundational work to more advanced services. Upper-level students who meet the required training-hour threshold can practice with clients in the Salon at THS. Grade 10 also includes OSHA-10 safety training.

What you get

The course includes 1,000 instructional hours and prepares students for the Massachusetts cosmetology licensing examination. Completing the training and obtaining a professional license are separate steps.

Eligible seniors in good academic and vocational standing who have passed the state board exam may participate in cooperative education. A paid placement is a possible opportunity, not a guaranteed part of the program.

Schedules & start dates

Cosmetology fits into the high-school timetable:

  • Grade 9: career exploration for two class periods a day.
  • Grade 10: cosmetology and related theory for two to three periods a day.
  • Grades 11–12: academic weeks alternate with cosmetology lab and theory. Eligible seniors may take part in cooperative education instead.

Class periods are not the same as clock hours per week. Salon appointment times describe client access, not the full student schedule.

Class schedule not available

Cost & financial aid

Program price

Price unavailable

Federal financial aid

Eligibility not confirmed

How to enroll

Entry requirements

This is a high-school pathway. Students from every Pittsfield neighborhood may apply to CTE, and students wishing to enter cosmetology must do so by the beginning of sophomore year.

For grade 10 entry, acceptance depends on an open place in the requested program after current grade 9 students have been placed. A school application does not guarantee a cosmetology place. Nonresident applicants use a separate tuition-application process.

Application steps

  1. Apply through Pittsfield’s CTE application website. For the 2027–28 school year, applications open November 1, 2026 and are due March 1, 2027.
  2. Choose the correct entry route: incoming grade 9, or a possible grade 10 opening. Grade 10 places depend on available program capacity after current grade 9 placements.
  3. Complete the separate nonresident tuition process if applicable.

These are application dates, not the first day of cosmetology classes.

Read CTE application information

Program oversight & accreditation

Program oversight
Public high-school CTEHow Massachusetts oversees cosmetology programs
Accreditation
Not confirmed

Sources

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