The rating is for the place itself and my experience. This is not in comparison to other salons.
When I was thinking about going to a school and letting a student cut my hair I made sure I read as many reviews as I could and even did some research online. This is what it comes down to:
1) Time &
2) Patience
Have both is abundance. And understand that these are STUDENTS cutting your hair, not seasoned professionals, so give them a break. My approach was, 'it's just hair, it'll grow back'! So, I got there at around 11am and was assigned a level 1 student who'd been in training just 2 months. I was nervous for a moment but then I just decided to go with the flow. Akira did a long consultation with me to find out exactly what I looking for. I was wanting to get rid of about 4inches of hair so she wanted to make sure she didn't mess up! After that was the most decadent shampoo session ever. Felt so good! The haircut itself was a slightly long process. But I had the time so I didn't care. The instructors would stop by every now and again to check on the progress. By the time Akira started to blow dry my hair it was almost 1 and time for her to go to her theory class (they have that every wednesday). A phase 2 student, Vanessa (graduating in 2 weeks) finished my blow dry. I was there about 3 hours for a haircut. Bought their tea tree shampoo and conditioner as well, felt really good. I'll be back this week for a scalp treatment. At $15 it's worth it!
Overall I'm happy with my experience. Most stylists usually give me a layered cut but Akira suggested a straight cut with graduated / choppy bangs and I just love it! Since my hair grows fast I'll probably go back every 4-6 weeks for maintenance.