“I don’t design clothes. I design dreams”, this quote by the famous American fashion designer Ralph Lauren will definitely impress the young aspirants who want to make a career in the world of fashion design.
Interestingly, the fashion industry has grown rapidly in the last decade. Indian students today are choosing careers in fashion design more than ever before, especially as the fashion market transitions from a limited elite group of customers to an international body of consumers.
In particular, the study of fashion is more than just designing clothes – it includes all aspects of the fashion industry – from technical skills to historical developments, current trends and modern issues related to today’s fashion.
If you are planning to go abroad to pursue an education in fashion studies, take a look at some of the renowned schools in New York and London, where you can consider studying next year, according to the QS Top Universities report.
Fashion Institute in New York
New York is one of the most widely known cities for fashion. The American city boasts of some popular institutions for fashion design. Two of them are mentioned below:
1. Parsons, The New School for Design
Ranked third in the QS World Rankings by Subject 2024 in the Art and Design category, Parsons, The New School for Design is located in New York. The institute offers courses in fashion design for undergraduate and graduate students as well as professionals. The institute’s alumni network includes names like Tom Ford and Marc Jacobs.
official website: newschool.edu
2. Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT)
Another institute for fashion studies in New York is the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT). It has been ranked 151-200 in the QS WUR Ranking by Subject 2024. The institution offers a wide range of programs in fashion design, business, marketing, illustration and styling, as revealed by the QS Top Universities report.
The report notes that FIT boasts alumni that include Carolina Herrera, Calvin Klein and Michael Kors.
official website: fitnessc.edu
Fashion Institute in London:
Apart from being home to some of the oldest but highly ranked institutions in fields such as history, engineering and medical sciences, London is also known for its fashion schools. They are as follows:
1. Central Saint Martins
Central Saint Martins is a part of the University of the Arts London (UAL) which offers courses on fashion, textile and jewelery design to fashion aspirants. Undergraduate students can opt for courses like BA Fashion Design in Knit, Communication, Print, Menswear, Womenswear and others. While postgraduate students can go for Graduate in Diploma Fashion course.
official website: arts.ac.uk
2. London College of Fashion
The London College of Fashion, also a part of UAL, offers a number of fashion design courses including programs in fashion marketing and merchandising as well as aesthetics, cosmetic science, fashion curation and criticism. The institute also offers courses in footwear and accessories. The alumni network includes the likes of Jimmy Choo and Rupert Sanderson.
official website: arts.ac.uk
3. Royal College of Art
The Royal College of Art offers a range of graduate level art and design courses across its six schools. According to the QS Top Universities report, graduate students can opt for courses like Fashion MA and can also earn placement opportunities at brands like Prada, Louis Vuitton, Givenchy and Burberry.
official website: rca.ac.uk
