Fashion Design BA (Hons)

Overview

Develop your own fashion designs from Year 1, with a focus on either menswear or womenswear, on our full-time Fashion Design degree at Cambridge School of Art. Choose to study abroad for one semester in the Netherlands, and get support to find placements and work experience. Graduate with a portfolio and final collection ready to take into a career in the fashion industry.

Join a course that scored 100% overall satisfaction in the National Student Survey 2017
Explore all aspects of fashion design, from the latest processes to marketing your work
Launch your collection at Graduate Fashion Week and our annual Graduate Fashion Show, as well as our end-of-course Degree Show
Enjoy out-of-hours access to all our industry-standard art facilities, with full training provided
Study abroad for one semester in the Netherlands, and apply for funding to help cover the cost
Receive ongoing support to find placements and work experience

Our BA (Hons) Fashion Design will take you out of your comfort zone, and help you forge a fresh identity as a fashion designer.

You will be free to experiment with your own designs from the very start of the course, receiving regular support and feedback on your work from our teaching staff, who were rated joint 1st in the UK for ‘satisfied with teaching’ and 2nd for ‘satisfied with feedback’ in the Guardian University Guide 2017. Our commitment to feedback will help you reflect on your work and develop your own unique style, making you stand out from the crowd.

Our modules – taught by specialist tutors – take in all aspects of the design process, including the latest techniques in pattern cutting, draping, textiles and digital media, but will also allow you to explore business practices such as marketing and trend forecasting.

As well developing your own individual approach to design work and discovering new directions for self-expression, you will graduate with a broad knowledge of the fashion industry, benefit from networking and collaboration within Cambridge School of Art (with, for example, photography students) and have the chance to explore your entrepreneurial side.

With out-of-hours access to all of Cambridge School of Art’s industry-standard facilities – not just the fashion workshops – you can approach your work with flexibility. We’ll provide training on any process that you want to use, as and when you need it.

You will have the chance to find placements and internships with high-profile fashion houses including Alexander McQueen, French Connection and Vivienne Westwood; attend trade fairs, such as Pure in London (the UK’s leading fashion buying event) or the fabric and trend show Premiere Vision in Paris; and visit suppliers and other businesses connected with the fashion industry.

Many of our students go on to establish their own labels or work for fashion houses and other well-known brands:

Micaela Sapinho is now Creative Director of her own label, and has twice shown her collections at Lisbon Fashion Week
Thanh Cong Vu has gone on to establish his own brand since graduating. During the course his designs were shown at Pure and also featured in Urban Coco magazine
Priscilla Acquah Arhin (2015 graduate) is now a Textile Designer with Samsonitein Belgium
Agnieszka Zabek (2014) now works as Apparel Designer with Reebok
Tracie Sell (2011) is Head of Menswear at Bolongaro Trevor in London

By the end of the course, you too will have a new collection ready to show to the fashion industry at Graduate Fashion Week in London, and also to the public at our own Graduate Fashion Show and Degree Show.

Your studies will be supported by our close community of specialist lecturers, students and alumni, fostered through Facebook and Instagram.

Careers

Our BA (Hons) Fashion Design will help you develop your own individual style as a fashion designer, with a portfolio ready to present to fashion houses. Or, if you’re a budding entrepreneur, you can explore the prospect of starting your own business, with modules that allow you to create your own business plan.

You will also develop skills and knowledge useful for many other roles in the fashion industry, including styling, buying, pattern cutting and trend forecasting.

We work with employers to make sure you graduate with the knowledge, skills and abilities they need. They help us review what we teach and how we teach it – and they offer hands-on, practical opportunities to learn through work-based projects, internships or placements.

Companies including French Connection, Alexander McQueen, Vivienne Westwood and Laura Ashley have recently offered internships and work opportunities to our students.

Find out more about our placements and work experience, or the faculty’s employability support.

Modules & Assessment

Creative Research and Design Development
Cut Form and Construction
Introduction to Fashion Design 2
Digital Media 1

Contextual Studies
Introduction to Surface Textiles
English for Study 1 & 2

Design – Conceptual Fashion and Materiality
Fashion Sportswear
Development in Fashion Design 2
Pattern Cutting & Construction 2
Debates and Practices

Printmaking: Materials, Processes and Ideas
New Media Design – Graphic Design for Screen Based Applications
Surface Textiles
Business for the Creative Arts
Identities

Professional Portfolio and Pre-collection
Major Project

Research Project
Research Assignment
Working in the Creative Industries

Assessment

For a full breakdown of module options and credits, please view the module structure (pdf).

You will show your progress towards your final portfolio with a combination of written and practical work, depending on the module, with regular feedback from our lecturers.

Where you’ll study

Your faculty

In the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, we use our expertise and connections in Cambridge and beyond to nurture creativity through experimentation and risk-taking, and encourage critical thinking, in order to educate, entertain, inspire and understand, as well as to improve people’s lives.