Modern Salon
MenuMENU
SearchSEARCH

1500 Hours Completed!

HUGE news! Last night I completed my 1,500 hours at Pivot Point International Academy and am now a BEAUTY SCHOOL GRADUATE! WOOWOO!

Alison Alhamed
Alison AlhamedEditor in Chief, MODERN SALON
Read Alison's Posts
July 10, 2011
2 min to read


HUGE news! Last night I completed my 1,500 hours at Pivot Point International Academy and am now a BEAUTY SCHOOL GRADUATE! WOOWOO! That’s right!

I can’t even believe I made it through (it’s practically a two-year program, people!). Did I cry? You betcha. Like a little baby. I just couldn’t help it. It’s been a huge journey and I fell in love with my entire class. It’s so hard to believe that this journey is coming to an end. Yes, I know that when one door closes another opens, but this is just so sad/exciting/unbelievable!

When I got to school yesterday, I came inside to find my station all decorated with balloons, streamers, a huge sign from my classmates, cupcakes, flowers, a tiara and an adorable beach bag filled with goodies. Of course I immediately started to tear up. How sweet!!



Then, I got to clean out my locker—I loaded up a big Sally’s bag full of my mannequin heads, books, and extra hair for practice : )

alison-locker



Then, I got to hang out and eat my cupcakes with my friends. Dominique also graduated, but she was a few hours before me.

Ad Loading...

dominique-alison-cupcakes



I made sure to take a ton of pics with my class as we spent our last few hours as students together. Ugh, I’m going to miss them so much!

class-shot-alison

balloon-alison


alex-and-alison

alison-mena-last-day



Then my family came at 8:30, since my official clockout was 8:45—they brought me flowers and more balloons : )

alison-shipley-teachers



At about 8:40, we headed back to the timeclock—my class had decorated the hallway and the timeclock with more streamers—here’s where I got seriously, seriously overwhelmed… think: “I’m in a glass case of emotion!!!” I went to the end of the hallway, ducking under all the streamers and was hit with this HUGE realization that this is it! We made it! All the hard work, all the tests and practicals, all the cool clients we’ve had—it’s through we made it!

Then, the class started yelling the countdown: 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and I ran through the streamers and entered in my clockout code for the last time!



My class ran up to me and hugged me and I was bawling like a freakshow. Mr. Skip gave his motivational exit speech and I just LOST it! Ugh, it's been such an incredible journey and I feel so grateful that I got to meet such amazing people and so thankful to have been given the opportunity from Pivot Point, and THANK YOU to all of you amazing followers who have been so encouraging these past 19 months!

Start your career in beauty today at BeautySchoolAdvisor.com.

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

More Career

Ad Loading...
Ad Loading...
Michelle Bowden works on a hair piece on a mannequin
Career|Articles|Apr 15, 2026

How Michelle Bowden Had a Breakout Year (and How Other Stylists Can, Too)

From working backstage at multiple Paris Fashion Week shows to collaborating on four creative collections and expanding her international stage work, Michelle Bowden has had an incredible year of growth. Here, we break down her approach that drove her momentum, offering a framework for stylists looking to elevate their own careers.

Ad Loading...