Fashion Design - Fashion Education

Fashion Education

There are a number of well known specialized art schools and design schools worldwide that offer degrees in fashion design and fashion design technology. Some colleges also offer Masters of Fashion courses. Though it is not a requirement to have a Masters level degree, it is recommended by those already working in the industry to study at this level.

The most notable design schools in the world include:

• London
  • Istituto Marangoni
  • London College of Fashion
  • Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design
  • Ravensbourne (College)
  • University of Westminster
  • Kingston University

• England
  • University of Brighton
  • De Montfort University

• France
  • IFA Paris
  • Mod’Art
  • Esmod
  • the Fashion Federation PARIS
  • Parsons Paris

• Scotland
  • Edinburgh College of Art

• Ireland
  • Limerick School of Art and Design
  • National College of Art and Design

• Italy
  • Istituto Marangoni
  • Domus Academy
  • Politecnico of Milan
  • Polimoda
  • NABA - Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti Milano
  • Istituto Europeo di Design
  • University Iuav of Venice

• Romania
  • UNArte in Bucharest, Romania.

• Belgium
  • Royal Academy of Fine Arts (Antwerp)

• Bulgaria
  • New Bulgarian University

• U.S.
  • Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City, New York
  • Parsons The New School for Design in New York City, New York
  • Pratt Institute in New York City, New York
  • Academy of Art University in San Francisco, California
  • Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, Georgia
  • Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia
  • Woodbury University in Burbank, California
  • Otis College of Art & Design in Los Angeles, California
  • Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising in Los Angeles, California
  • School of the Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago, Illinois
  • Columbia College Chicago in Chicago, Illinois

Elsewhere in the world, the National Institute of Fashion Technology in India, Shih Chien University in Hong Kong, RMIT University in Melbourne, Fu Jen Catholic University in Taiwan and the Asian University chain, Raffles College of Design and Commerce, all have reputable fashion design courses.

There are many universities that offer fashion design throughout the United States, usually within the context of a general liberal arts degree. The major concentration incorporating fashion design may have alternative names like Apparel and Textiles or Apparel and Textile Design, and may be housed in departments such as Art and Art History, or Family and Consumer Studies. Some schools, such as Parsons, offer a major in Fashion Management, combining fashion education with business courses.

The only Ivy League University having a Fashion Design undergraduate program is Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, a program offered by the department of Fiber Science & Apparel Design. Cornell also offers a PhD program in apparel design.

An updated list of fashion design masters and PhD programs can be found at ITAA.org. The programs are intended to address the needs of academia, industry, and research by considering apparel design as an applied science that embraces design, technology, physical sciences, the humanities, and social sciences in order to meet the human needs for clothing.