Fashion Design with Foundation year

**Course summary**
- Learn through a variety of industry projects, seminars and placements.

- Develop creative thinking and practical design skills.

- Embed ethical and sustainable practices at every level.

If you don't meet the entry requirements for our BA (Hons) courses, or you’d like extra preparation before starting degree-level study, we recommend you join the foundation year – which has been designed to encourage exploration and experimentation.

This course is designed to build your confidence and help you take the creative risks needed to succeed in fashion design. You’ll work on projects that reinforce core industry skills such as illustration, CAD/CAM, garment manufacturing and more. You’ll reflect on your career direction as we challenge you to work ethically and to communicate your personal view of the world through your work.

**How you learn**
You’re supported to choose learning opportunities that reflect your personal interests and professional aspirations. We take an experimental approach, grounded in contemporary fashion theory and focusing on design processes that push both industry and personal boundaries. In the first ‘induction’ module you’ll learn to work confidently and creatively with a wide range of different materials. In the second ‘project’ module you’ll be taught by tutors from the BA (Hons) course supported by foundation tutors.

You’ll learn through:

- group and individual tutorials

- interactive lectures

- seminars

- practical activity-based sessions

- demonstrations

- applied industry (live) projects

- creative thinking workshops

- studio-based project work

- work review sessions

- study trips

- peer group activities

- Blackboard online learning portal

- self-directed study

**Applied learning**
**Work placements**

You’ll have the opportunity to arrange a single or multiple work placement/s in between your second and third years of the full course. Previous students have worked with Alexander McQueen, Burberry, Reiss and ASOS. You may also be able to work or study abroad with the possibility of funding (subject to the UK’s continued participation in the Erasmus+ programme following the Brexit transition period).

**Enterprise year**

If you have a business idea, you will have the opportunity to develop this between the second and third years of the full course. During this time, you can take advantage of the university's business support network, the Hallam i-Lab (a business incubator), an allocated start-up advisor, workshops and opportunities to apply for funding.

**Live projects**

Students have worked on commercial briefs with the design and marketing departments at Ted Baker, Amanda Wakeley, Adidas and Vivienne Westwood, with awards such as cash prizes or work placements within the industry.

Students can also take part in renowned graduate events such as the British Fashion Council and Graduate Fashion Week.

**Field trips**

We endeavour to go on study trips both in the UK and abroad – with free travel and accommodation for all mandatory field trips. These could include workshops, design conferences or visits to practitioners’ studios, museums and special collections. You can also further enhance your studies with optional field trips, though these will incur additional costs. Previous trips have involved a behind-the-scenes visit to Burberry's headquarters and flagship store, exclusive talks from world-leading companies such as Tommy Hilfiger, as well as visiting leading fashion, textile and design museums.

**Competitions**

Students are supported to enter national and international competitions such as British Fashion Council design competitions and the RSA Student Design Awards. Our students are frequent finalists and winners of international competitions, enabling them to showcase their work online and at prestigious events such as Graduate Fashion Week.