Bachelor Degree Program in Fashion Overview
Majors Overview April 17, 2015Get information about bachelor’s degree programs in fashion and their education requirements, coursework, career choices, and continuing education choices.
Bachelor’s Degree Programs in Fashion
Students enrolled in a bachelor’s degree program in fashion design are taught about the business and creative aspects of the fashion industry. The coursework relates to the basic elements of garment-making, including colors, textiles, patterns, and sewing, among others. Students spend a great deal of time in studio settings, where they create garments and develop portfolios of completed designs.
The future development of trends and the history of fashion design are often explored in the coursework. Students are taught to sketch their designs and are imparted business education via lessons on marketing and selling new fashions.
Incoming students at many schools are expected to have prior hands-on experience before graduation via student-run fashion shows featuring original designs or work–study programs or internships. Students take four years of full-time study to complete these programs. General education courses such as English composition, social studies, and mathematics are also included in the curriculum.
Education Requirements
Four-year universities and art academies are among the schools that typically offer bachelor’s degree programs in fashion; admission criteria typically require incoming students to hold a GED certificate or a high school diploma. Foundational courses in mathematics, economics, art history, and communication are expected to be completed by prospective students before they are allowed to begin core coursework.
Coursework
Both practical courses related to garment creation and theoretical courses related to design principles are in a bachelor’s degree program in fashion. Core coursework may include topic areas such as the following:
•Pattern drafting
•Textiles
•Clothing construction
•Fashion design studio
•Fashion sketching
•Fashion merchandising
•Fashion marketing
•Trend forecasting
•Consumer behavior
•Apparel production
Career Choices
Armed with an undergraduate degree in fashion design, a graduate may seek entry-level positions in the fashion industry such as:
•Retail store manager
•Fashion merchandiser
•Fashion marketing associate
•Showroom supervisor
•Fashion stylist
•Textile designer
•Apparel designer
•Wardrobe consultant
•Fashion illustrator
•Visual merchandiser
Continuing Education Choices
Schools offer advanced degrees in fashion for the benefit of students that have completed a baccalaureate program in fashion design. They offer master’s degrees in the subjects of visual merchandising, fashion marketing, fashion merchandising, textiles, and apparel design.
Students often take one to two years to complete these programs devised to teach them about business strategies and advanced garment design techniques related to the fashion industry. Armed with a graduate degree in any of these subjects, individuals can seek positions of management or leadership in the field of fashion design.
