The second, national Matrix Spread the Love program is now open. The company will accept the initial round of applications for 2012 through September 25, 2011.

Spread the Love is open to beauty school students who are graduating and will be licensed by January 1, 2012, or who have graduated on or after January 1, 2010 and are licensed and in good standing. Applicants may visit MyMatrixFamily.com/stl2012 for application details, which require, among other things, a personal link to at least one social networking site, a link to a personal blog and a YouTube video essay explaining their reasons for participating in the program.

Matrix's 2011 Spread the Love winners at America's Beauty Show in Chicago, Illinois

Following the initial application process, Matrix will choose a group of semi-finalists, which will be required to submit additional information and subject to review by a separate panel. Up to 25 finalists will be selected from this group, and will be flown to New York for the final review and judging portion of the process. Six individuals will ultimately be selected for the 2012 program which spans from January through August 2012.

"Matrix is once again combing the country for tech-savvy, socially engaged beauty school students and recent grads who will travel throughout the U.S. on another fun-filled six-month, all-expense-paid inspirational tour," says Matrix Marketing Director Yaniv Shapira. "In 2012, we will be sponsoring six new beauty school graduates in the ultimate internship and journey of a lifetime."

In August of 2011, the first group of Spread The Love graduates will complete their journeys, traveling from state to state, visiting salons and participating in industry events. Each recorded and relayed their experiences via blogs, photos and videos as they took part in this once-in-a-lifetime experience in professional beauty.