London is a capital of creativity and commerce, making it the perfect location for some of the world’s best-regarded fashion colleges.
Fashion school is not only about nurturing your creative talents – the most successful colleges also ensure their students are educated in running a business, marketing, styling and practical skills.
With some impressive alumni and faculty staff, any of the following colleges will give your fashion career the kick start it needs and help you on your way towards working in the fashion industry.
What Makes An Excellent Fashion School?
Fashion is a part of people’s daily lives. From casual streetwear to elegant couture, fashion exists in various forms, with some even left unexplored by its experts and enthusiasts. If you have a passion for fashion and would like it to blossom into a profitable career, it’s worth enrolling in a fashion school.
Since your knowledge and experience in the academy will play a vital role in your career and adult life, picking the right fashion school is essential to your success. London houses are few of the best fashion schools around the world, but how do you choose the best one for you? Consider these tips below:
- Pick your specialisation. Studying fashion involves various specialisations. Before finding a fashion school, narrow down and choose your specialisation. Will you focus on womenswear or accessories? Do you prefer shoe design, ready-to-wear, or couture fashion? Find a school that specialises in your preferred fashion niche.
- Search where fashion gurus and experts graduated. If you look up to many fashion personalities, particularly gurus and experts who have studied and achieved a fashion degree, research about their fashion school and consider them as your options.
- Choose a school that flows with emerging trends. Fashion evolves spontaneously, and it’s important to spend your academic time in a fashion school that can follow the present, yet still looks back to the past and forward to the future. Particularly, social media and fashion are significantly interconnected today, with the use of hashtags and keywords about fashion photography.
JCA | London Fashion Academy
JCA is an innovative academy founded by luxury shoe brand creator Jimmy Choo. Located in Mayfair, the school offers full-time foundation, BA, and MA-level courses in fashion and accessory design as well as branding and entrepreneurship.
For those who can’t commit to a full-time programme, JCA also offers short courses (both online and on-campus) and a Summer School for 13-17-year-olds.
Start-up fashion businesses can also benefit from the academy’s incubator programme, which provides office space mentorship, support and access to a network of industry experts and investors.
jca.ac.uk
Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design
A list of Saint Martins graduates reads like a who’s who of fashion industry heavyweights – alumnis include Stella McCartney, Riccardo Tisci, Alexander McQueen and his successor Sarah Burton, among many many others. With such an impressive track record, it’s little wonder that CSM is widely regarded as one of the world’s best fashion schools.
If you study at Saint Martins, you’ll benefit from the skills and experience of teaching staff who have helped launch the careers of some of the UK’s most successful designers. The site on Granary Square is just a short walk from King’s Cross St Pancras, making it easy to commute to no matter where you are in the city.
arts.ac.uk/colleges/central-saint-martins
London College of Fashion
The London College of Fashion is the only college in the UK that specialises in fashion education. As well as a wide selection of design courses, there are programmes focusing on beauty, fashion business and marketing, costume design, fashion journalism and photography. If sustainability is important to you, London College of Fashion also hosts the Centre for Sustainable Fashion – one of the research centres of the University of the Arts group – established and led by Dilys Williams. For a taste of the work the Centre undertakes, check out the short online course they created in partnership with Kering, hosted on Future Learn.
arts.ac.uk/colleges/london-college-of-fashion
Westminster University
Westminster University’s fashion school is highly regarded and boasts Vivienne Westwood and former Burberry Creative Director Christopher Bailey as alumni. The department teaches BAs in Fashion Design, Fashion Business Management and Fashion Marketing and Promotion, with the option of 3-year full-time study or 4 years on a sandwich course where you can get out into the working world with internships and placements. Thanks to great industry connections, previous sandwich students have spent their third years with Acne Studios, Celine and Christopher Kane, to name just a few.
westminster.ac.uk
Royal College of Art
London’s RCA offers a small fashion design and textiles post-graduate programme. Zandra Rhodes and Erdem were former students here. The RCA has an international reputation and high student success rate, with 93% of graduating students going on to work in fields directly related to their area of study.
rca.ac.uk
Condé Nast College of Fashion & Design
If you want to study in the heart of London and are looking for a college with excellent industry connections, then the Condé Nast College of Fashion & Design might just be the perfect choice for you. As well as a great portfolio of short courses including the Business of Beauty and Fashion Styling, there are bachelor and masters programmes in Fashion Journalism, Fashion Communication and Luxury Brand Management.
condenastcollege.ac.uk
University of East London
UEL offers a fashion programme that includes textile design, digital fashion and an MA in Fashion Management. Students also have the option of working in the fashion industry for a year. There is a strong emphasis on vocational courses at UEL, which aims to give its students the skills they need to survive in the working world as well as achieve academic success. The University of East London prides itself on removing barriers to education and has a high student acceptance rate.
uel.ac.uk
London College of Contemporary Arts
The London College of Contemporary Arts offers an undergraduate programme in Fashion Design with Buckinghamshire New University as the awarding body. If you can’t commit to a BA, there are Higher National Certificates and Diplomas available in Fashion and Textiles.