The sudden closure of a hairstyling and esthetics school in Halifax has left students in the lurch just a few weeks before they were supposed to graduate.

On Friday students at the Concepts Career College were told abruptly the school was closing. There are 69 students who are set to finish this month.

The province says the owner made the decision and informed them last minute.

Chrissy Matheson, the communications advisor with the Department of Labour and Advanced Education, says there's a government training fund, paid into by colleges, which covers students’ needs in these situations.

“But some people have time invested, they’ve come from other provinces to train here and some people are three weeks away from graduating right. Once the owner decided to close the school suddenly we came in yesterday to have a meeting with the students and the staff to ensure they were fully aware of their options,” she said.

Matheson says the province will either refund the students’ tuition or help them finish their work at another school.

She says they will work with each student to figure out the best option.