[DanBC]

The requirements reassure the public that the person cutting hair isn't an idiot who's just bought some cheap clippers. They've cut hair - hundreds of hours worth of hair cutting - and they know how to sterilize the equipment. And if you're going to have chemical hair treatments you're not going to be maimed by someone who doesn't know how to use the chemicals.

I agree that 1,500 hours does sound a bit long though.

[bendykstra]

You could probably get an idea of how inflated that requirement is by looking at what percentage of the 1,500 hours is spent on issues relating to safety and hair cutting. Browsing the syllabi of barber schools, I see subjects like career networking, public speaking and small business management.

You could also compare states. In New York, the requirement is set by the school and I found one school that requires 288 hours.