ShearQuery

Minnesota · PSI instructor practical

Minnesota Cosmetology Instructor Practical Exam Kit List

This one is unlike every other kit list on this site. Minnesota's instructor practical is a taught lesson, not a service — you hand in a lesson plan and a handout, then present for 20 to 60 minutes and are graded on teaching as well as technical skill. The packing list is short. The rules are what fail people.

A presentation under 20 minutes is an automatic fail — not a deduction. The proctor also stops you at 60 minutes, and nothing you present after that is rated. Your lesson plan must be typed and finished before you arrive; no time is allowed at the test site to write or change it.

Interactive kit checklist

Tick items as you pack — your progress is saved on this device. Print or save it as a PDF to check your bag the night before.

0 of 5 packed0%

What the test site provides

  • A table or workstation for setup — any table available in the examination area may be used

That is the entire list — a table. Everything your presentation needs, including a mannequin, comes from you, and the bulletin tells you plainly that building a lesson that works in that limited setting is your responsibility.

Ask about your own situation

Our AI is grounded in real licensing documents, school records and shop data — ask it something this page doesn't cover.

The rules that actually decide this exam

  • Your presentation must run at least 20 minutes. Under that is an automatic fail. The proctor stops you at 60 minutes and nothing presented after that is rated.
  • The lesson plan MUST BE TYPED, not handwritten, and prepared in advance — no time is allowed at the test site to write or modify it. You hand it in on arrival.
  • You may NOT use a live model. If your topic needs a head, bring a mannequin.
  • Only mock chemicals may be used, and no hairspray at all.
  • All supplies must be clean, sanitary, unstained and labelled in ENGLISH ONLY — manufacturer labels are acceptable.
  • Your presentation must cover each of the 20 rating criteria listed for your topic.
  • You get 10 minutes to set the room up before the presentation clock starts.
  • Scoring is out of 60 points and you need 45 — 75% — to pass.
  • Anything left behind is discarded, so collect your belongings at the end.

Sources

Read from the PSI Candidate Information Bulletin — MN Instructor Practical Examination on 2026-08-14, reached through PSI's candidate portal under client code MNCOS. Minnesota's other bulletin — Advanced Practice Esthetics — publishes no supply list, so it has no page here.

Tennessee barber technician kit listAlso PSI, and the other bulletin that publishes what the vendor supplies.Mississippi cosmetology kit listA service exam by contrast — six graded skills across two mannequins.Texas cosmetology kit listThe operator licence rather than the instructor one.