BA (Hons)Fashion Design

Core modules

Tailoring

In this module, not only will you learn traditional tailoring techniques, the history of tailoring and its cultural significance, you will push your creativity by developing designs that are inspired by tailoring yet are anything but traditional. The focus is on furthering your creative design development skills. In short you will learn the rules and then break the rules to create something new.

Streetwear

Through this module you will gain knowledge of and apply garment construction skills in stretch and woven fabrics commonly used in streetwear, sportswear and casualwear garments.

Capsule Collection

Through this module you will use a variety of design processes, such as collage, digital photomontage, drawing and work on the stand to develop design ideas. You will learn how to design a cohesive collection including a range of garment types, source a range of relevant fabrics and trims, develop and realise ideas for surface design, silhouette and fashion details and visualise your target customer or muse.

Portfolio and Placement Preparation

This module helps prepares you well for what lays ahead – internships and beyond. You'll further your learning about the role of the designer in industry, what the industry expects from fashion interns and graduates, and how this relates to what you're learning on the course. You'll evaluate your own design identity, and with all these elements in mind, you'll learn how to best communicate and promote your skills, knowledge and individuality in your portfolio and in your CV. In industry, it is common practice for a potential employer to ask a job applicant to do a mini project specifically for their brand - in preparation for this, you’ll also practice a similar scenario.

The Fashion Context

This module is your opportunity to focus on a topic close to your heart. You'll be able to investigate a topic that you are passionate about and showcase your personality and originality. You'll learn how to express your opinion by building a convincing argument and to communicate your ideas verbally, visually, and through writing.

Core modules

Industry Placement

This is your opportunity to gain real world experience and an understanding of working in the creative economy. Engaging in a professional environment will boost your confidence while providing an insight into the various job roles available to you. As you transition from a student to a graduate working in the industry this will be an invaluable process and will help equip you for the exciting career paths ahead. During this period you are expected to complete a minimum 100 hours requirement in industry. The weeks can run consecutively or as a series of individual placements. If you are unable to complete or secure an industrial work placement an alternative industry-focused placement brief will be set.

Major Project: Research and Development

As soon-to-be fashion design graduates seeking work in a competitive job market, it is essential that in your final year you develop and communicate a personal design identity, further your creative design ability, and advance a wide range of professional skills and knowledge. To showcase this, you'll be required to develop a concept that is both personal to you and is in response to changes in the socio-political, economic and cultural landscape. In-depth exploration and communication of the concept and how it will inform all aspects of design, will be recorded and communicated through predominantly primary research, including the collation and presentation of inspirational imagery, collage/photomontage, working on the stand, extensive sampling, sketching/working drawings, colour palette development, fabric sourcing and manipulation and print/surface textile development.

Major Project: Production and Presentation

Using your design development work, toiles and illustrated line-up produced in the Major Project: Research and Development module as a starting point, you'll further develop, refine and produce and present your fashion collection. You'll be encouraged to push your creative design ability and technical skills to new levels; to problem solve and design innovatively, resulting in a 3D or 2D fashion collection that communicates a strong personal design identity and a wide range of professional skills and knowledge.

Optional modules

Please note: Not all optional modules are guaranteed to run each year.

Dissertation

A key focus of the module will be on the written structure and production of a critical paper and presentation methods of a viva voce presentation, that will allow you to utilise the knowledge and analytical skills that you have acquired throughout your study on your course.

Professional Presence

This module is designed to improve your employability upon graduation in this highly competitive industry. You’ll learn how to promote yourself online through the creation of a website showcasing an evolving portfolio of work. Doing this now means you can easily populate your website with your major project design work in semester two, and continue to update it in future. You will also learn how to make your online profile as professional as possible. Alongside this, you will do a mini design project. This can be a live project, for example, one you instigate with a fashion company you have done work experience for, or can just be for a fashion brand you would really like to work for. Alternatively, it can be a fashion design competition that suits your design identity.