Customized Application Forms: get qualified applicants only

TL;DR: What you can control with a customized application form

With SalonJobs, you set the requirements for each job in the application form. Applications that don't meet your bar can't be submitted, so they never reach you.

With each job you post on SalonJobs, you can:

• Require a license in your state. If a license is required, applicants who don't meet that requirement, or aren't in your state, can't submit an application.
• Choose who qualifies. Accept Licensed applicants only, or include candidates who are awaiting boards, enrolled in a program, or apprenticing.
• Make fields required. Need a resume, Instagram handle, or other information before you review an application? Make it required.
• Hide what the role doesn't need. Your don't need to ask front desk candidates if they have a clientele. A manager may not need an Instagram. Keep the form focused on the job.
• Add a question of your own. Have a standard question that you'll always want to ask applicants? With SalonJobs applications, you can add a custom question that will tell you something a resume can't.

Every job gets its own form, so a stylist, an assistant, and a front desk coordinator can each have different requirements.

With SalonJobs, you don't have to keep reviewing applications from Baristas for your Master Esthetician opening. Say goodbye to follow-up texts asking for a resume. No more explaining requirements that were already in the job post.

Customized application forms let you build those requirements into the application itself, one job at a time.

Only Licensed Stylists Can Apply: A Smarter Job Application

You post a job, start going through the applications, and quickly realize that half the people who applied don't meet the requirements.

Maybe they aren't licensed in your state. Maybe they skipped the resume. Maybe they don't have the experience you're looking for.

Maybe they don't even work in the industry.

And now you're spending your morning sorting through applications you can't use.

SalonJobs posts have customizable application forms, so only applicants that meet your requirements can submit the their application. If a license is required for the job, applicants who don't meet that requirement can't submit the application. You get applications with the information you actually need to start deciding who's worth a closer look.

Only applicants licensed in your state can apply

When you require a license on a SalonJobs job post, only applicants who report a license in your job's state can submit. The state comes from your job's location automatically. A Boston job requires a Massachusetts license, so there's nothing extra to set.

This matters because beauty licenses are issued state by state. A cosmetology or esthetics license from one state doesn't automatically let someone work in another. Transferring it can mean paperwork, fees, and sometimes another exam. An applicant licensed in Alabama might be incredibly talented and still unable to legally work behind your chair next month.

General job boards handle this after the fact. A license question there usually sorts applicants once they've already applied, so out-of-state and unlicensed candidates still land in your dashboard for you to wade through.

On SalonJobs, the check happens at submission. A candidate who reports a New Jersey license and tries to apply to a New York job sees "You must be licensed in New York to apply," and the application never goes through.

It's kinder to candidates too. The lash artist licensed in New Hampshire finds out in seconds that a job isn't open to her yet, instead of waiting on a reply that was never coming.

Choose which credential statuses you'll accept

You decide what qualified means for each job. Require Licensed applicants only, or also accept candidates who are:

• Graduated and awaiting boards
• Enrolled in a program
• Apprenticing

A senior stylist opening might only accept Licensed applicants. An assistant role might welcome recent grads waiting on their state board exam, since that's exactly who you're hoping to train.

Every application arrives complete

Required fields on SalonJobs are enforced on submission. If you mark resume or Instagram handle as required, an applicant can't send the application without it. The check happens when they hit submit, not just an asterisk they can scroll past.

Name and email are always required. Every other field can be required, optional, or hidden for each job:

• Phone number
• Resume
• Instagram handle
• Experience level
• Clientele size
• Credential status
• About Me

The practical result is no more follow-up texts asking for the resume that was supposed to be attached.

A custom question that shows who actually read your post

You can swap our standard "Note to owner" field for a question of your own. The answer matters less than the effort behind it. A thoughtful response tells you someone read your post and pictured themselves at your business. A blank or copy-pasted one tells you they're applying to twenty places this afternoon.

Keep this separate from the license requirement in your head. The license gate covers who can legally do the work. The custom question tells you who actually wants to do it with you.

A few that work well:

• "Which service on our menu would you most want to build your book around?"
• "We do in-house education every month. What's one technique you want to get better at this year?"
• "Our guests come here to unplug. How do you keep a treatment room calm on a fully booked day?"

You only get one question, so skip anything a resume already answers. "How many years of experience do you have?" is wasted space.

How to set up your salon job application for each role

Every job post on SalonJobs gets its own application form. A stylist and a front desk coordinator shouldn't be answering the same questions.

1. Open Application Settings.
2. Use the dropdown at the top to pick the job you're setting up.
3. Go through the four sections: Basic Info, Resume & Social, Additional Questions, and About You. Use the Show and Required toggles on each field.
4. To require a license, turn on "Require specific credential" under Credential status and choose which statuses you'll accept.
5. To add your own question, switch on "Use custom question instead" in the About You section.

Licensed service provider vs. front desk coordinator

For a Master Stylist role, require a Licensed status, and make resume and Instagram handle required. Keep clientele size visible, since it tells you whether someone might bring guests with them.

For the front desk, turn the credential requirement off, and hide Instagram and clientele size. Use your custom question on something the job actually involves, like handling a double-booked Saturday or a guest who's unhappy with her experience.

Laser tech vs. spa receptionist

A med spa hiring for both roles uses the same logic. For the laser tech, require Licensed status and a resume, and ask which laser systems they've worked on. For the receptionist, skip the credential requirement, keep the form short, and ask about booking software or phone-heavy days.

Assistant or Apprentice

Hide Instagram and clientele size, since nobody expects an assistant to have a book yet. Accept "Graduated – awaiting boards" and "Apprenticing" alongside Licensed.

Shorter forms get finished more often. Every field you remove is one less reason for a nervous new grad to close the tab.

If you change nothing, the default form still works

You don't have to set anything up. If you post a job and never open Application Settings, candidates see the standard SalonJobs form and applications come in like they always have. Customize one job, every job, or none. The options are there when a role calls for them.

Customize your next job post

Posting on SalonJobs is free, and it stays free. Post a new job, or open Application Settings for one that's already live. Require the license your state asks for, and let the form handle the first round of screening.

FAQ

How do I stop unqualified applicants from applying to my job?
Build the requirements into the application form. On SalonJobs, you can require a license in your state, make fields like resume mandatory, and add one custom question, all set per job. Applications that don't meet the bar can't be submitted, so the screening happens before anything reaches your inbox.

Can I require a cosmetology, barber, esthetics, or massage license on a job application?
You can require that applicants are licensed in your job's state. Turn on "Require specific credential" in Application Settings, and anyone who doesn't report a license in that state can't submit. SalonJobs checks the state, not the license type. If your state issues separate barber and cosmetology licenses, or you're hiring a massage therapist, use your custom question to ask which license they hold.

What happens when someone licensed in another state applies?
They can't submit, and they see a message saying they must be licensed in your state. This matters because beauty and wellness licenses don't transfer automatically; most states require paperwork, fees, and sometimes another exam. Candidates licensed in more than one state select all of them when they apply, so a stylist licensed in Massachusetts and New Hampshire can apply to jobs in either.

Can I hire apprentices or recent grads who aren't licensed yet?
Yes. Accept "Graduated – awaiting boards," "Enrolled in a program," or "Apprenticing" alongside Licensed. This is the right setup for assistant roles, apprentice chairs, and spas that train new grads.

Do front desk, receptionist, or spa coordinator jobs need a license requirement?
No. Turn the credential requirement off for roles that don't involve hands-on services, and hide Instagram handle and clientele size while you're at it. Neither tells you much about someone answering phones or managing a schedule.

Can I require a resume?
Yes. Mark resume as Required and the applicant can't submit without attaching one. The same goes for phone number, Instagram handle, experience level, clientele size, and credential status. Each can be required, optional, or hidden per job.

Should I ask for an Instagram handle?
Only when the work is visual. It's useful for stylists, barbers, lash artists, and nail techs. Hide it for front desk, management, laser, and massage roles, where a feed doesn't tell you much about the job.

Can different jobs at the same business have different application forms?
Yes. Every job post on SalonJobs gets its own form. An injector, a stylist, and a receptionist at the same med spa can each have different requirements. Select the job from the dropdown in Application Settings and your changes apply only to that posting.

Is it free to post a salon, barbershop, day spa, or med spa job on SalonJobs?
Yes. Posting is free for all beauty and wellness employers, and customized application forms are included.