Welcome to Graduate Preview 2024
- Arts University Bournemouth
- Bath Spa University
- Coventry University
- Edinburgh College of Art
- Falmouth University
- Glasgow School of Art
- Gray's School of Art
- Kingston University
- Leeds Arts University
- London College of Fashion
- Manchester Fashion Institute
- Middlesex University
- Northumbria University
- Nottingham Trent University
- Ravensbourne University London
- Sheffield Hallam University
- University for the Creative Arts Epsom
- University of Brighton
- University of East London
- University of Leeds
- University of Salford
- University of South Wales
- University of the West of England Bristol
- University of Westminster
Here you can find portfolios from a selection of universities from the BFC Colleges Council showcasing some of the best emerging talent underpinning the creative future of the fashion industry.
Graduate Preview is an annual celebration within the academic year that champions graduating BA and MA Fashion Design students. This digital platform is a hub to connect an extensive network of experienced course leaders and students from across the UK with industry and wider creative communities.
Arts University Bournemouth Fashion is leading the way for Innovation. From concept to realisation we experiment, interrogate, and develop design practises appropriate to each individual design philosophy. AUB students creatively explore traditional and modern techniques, cutting edge digital fashion technology, craftmanship, product development and presentation as we discover connections between concepts of dress, fashion, and the body as a site for artistic expression.
We are award winners in innovation; with a portfolio of student successes which is internationally recognised through graduate destination, exciting industry collaboration and inspirational speakers integrated into the DNA of the course.
At AUB we celebrate individuality to realise a tailored path within the fashion industry and community at this critical time in history.
The Fashion Design course has now relocated to the Locksbrook campus for the start of the Academic year 2023. Sir Nicholas Grimshaw originally designed the Grade II listed building in Bath city centre in 1976. Grimshaw architects have worked closely with the university to transform this iconic building into an extraordinary facility for artists and designers to collaborate. The course philosophy remains, with small cohorts of students, a focus on ideas, design and 3D development where technical, digital and craft skills are viewed as one creative endeavour alongside sustainable/responsible design, inclusivity and diversity. The course has excellent industry-led teaching staff. Graduates have gone on to work for brands as diverse as Balmain, Alaïa, Old Navy, Alberta Ferretti, Cos, All Saints, Boden and Self-Portrait.
Visit the Bath Spa University, Bath School of Design website
The Fashion and International Fashion Business Courses at Coventry University are truly international and offer students opportunities for global experience through online projects, international study visits, admission to trade fairs, placements and study abroad schemes.
Both courses aim to nurture individual creativity and entrepreneurship and this is reflected in the breadth of Fashion careers our alumni are now working in. From High End to High Street around the world, Fashion Graduates from Coventry University are truly Global Natives.
At Edinburgh College of Art we encourage students to express their personal identities, supporting them in becoming originators and innovators in their field. We also uphold excellence in ‘fashion traditions’, including drawing, illustration, pattern cutting and making skills, whilst embracing digital and technical futures. This space, a link between past and futures, provides a rich, reflective, and dynamic learning environment. We ask our students to design with inclusive, respectful, and celebratory approaches to all humankind, and to be considerate to environmental impact by generating more sustainable design solutions. Our ambition is that the future of fashion lies with informed designer activists, who use empathy and care as core tools for research, design and fashion outcomes.
Falmouth Fashion Design has a strong focus on creating original and responsible clothing, informed by environmental, ethical and moral challenges of our time. It is a practical course teaching technical and creative design skills across womens- and menswear. Students gain a working knowledge of core industry skills such as research, analysis, translation, drawing, pattern cutting, and construction. In addition to more specialised directions, such as screen, digital and riso printing, machine knitting, help grow and use our natural dye garden, bookbinding, and performancewear construction techniques, such as ultrasonic welding. Students are taught digital pattern cutting skills using CLO3D, as well as the standard industry Adobe software for tech packs and flat drawings. As part of the Fashion and Textiles Institute, the students share modules across courses, and are actively encouraged to collaborate with their peers.
Graduate Preview 2021 Featured Students:
Flick Holden
Sophie Forster
Kira Foster
Georgia Featherstone
Chiara Corso
Charlotte Nich
Glasgow School of Art (GSA) is the only specialist and independent arts university in Scotland, where students enjoy a small, close-knit community in a creative atmosphere where anything is possible.
GSA Fashion Design combines hands-on experience, creative thinking and technology throughout the four-year degree. We encourage creative freedom, the pursuit of individual interests and original, innovative design ideas.
Students gain a working knowledge of core industry skills such as research, analysis, translation, drawing, pattern cutting, and construction. They reflect on their own beliefs and career aspirations through a variety of design briefs that will contextualise their practice and build the appropriate graduate skills required to succeed. Student International exchanges, live industrial projects and placements are an integral part of our programme.
Gray's School of Art is part of The Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen and is ranked number one in Scotland for Fashion and Textiles employment 6 months after graduation (Guardian University League Tables 2018). It has a prestigious Gold rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) for its consistent delivery of outstanding teaching, learning and outcomes for its students - placing it in the top 20% of UK universities.
Fashion at Gray's enables students to explore the concept, process and realisation of fashion together with textile design. We encourage students to discover their own individual pathway by providing the opportunity to explore the interactive relationship between the two disciplines. Student placements, European exchanges and live industrial projects are an integral part of our course.
With a remarkable heritage dating back to the late nineteenth century, Kingston University has established an exceptional reputation for itself, growing to become one of the UK’s leading art and design educational institutions. Today it is truly distinctive, offering impressive facilities and possessing a deep-felt belief in ‘thinking through making’.
The BA Fashion course within the faculty of at Kingston School of Art is ranked the best fashion course in England & Wales in the 2019 Guardian League tables and was awarded the highest number of badges of excellence by Business of Fashion and was one of 3 UK courses in Fashionista’s top 25 fashion courses globally.
The four-year option allows students to take a year studying abroad in Europe Asia and the US and gain valuable work experience fashion companies including JW Anderson, Roksanda, Erdem, Craig Green, Ann Demeulemeester, Acne and Iris van Herpen.
Kingston has a long history of collaborating directly with major international brands including Tommy Hilfiger and Zara who offer exclusive scholarships to our students on internships. Graduates gain jobs at Chanel, Givenchy and Kenzo in Paris and at Pringle, Victoria Beckham, Alexander McQueen and Burberry in the UK.
Alumni include designer John Richmond, Fashion editor Glenda Bailey, Accessories designer Sophie Hulme, Bespoke tailor Joshua Kane and Menswear Designer Bianca Saunders.
Leeds Arts University is the only specialist arts university in the North of England, where students enjoy a small, close-knit community in a creative atmosphere where anything feels possible. BA (Hons) Fashion Design is a long-standing course with a proudly fostered successful alumni network. The course is a three-year, full time, practice-based course that embraces the diversity of fashion in the 21st century and prepares individuals for a range of careers within the fashion industry. The course has opportunities for collaboration across other disciplines exploiting the possibility of creative practices not limited by subject.
London College of Fashion, UAL, leads the world in fashion business, media and design education. We’ve been nurturing creative talent for over a century, offering courses in all things fashion. With our philosophy of open and inclusive education, we encourage students to examine the past and question the present. To develop inventive, assertive ideas that challenge social and political agendas. And we give them the skills, opportunities – and above all, the freedom – to put those ideas into practice.
From our new home at East Bank, the UK’s newest cultural quarter at the heart of Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, we’re forging partnerships, opening up opportunities, and creating connections with east London’s schools, community and industry. Our new home has brought all of undergraduate and postgraduate courses, from all of our three schools, under one roof for the very first time. In doing so, we’ll continue to pioneer how we all consume and practice fashion. Use fashion business, media and design to shape culture, economics, and society. And through fashion, shape lives.
Photo Credit: Taskin Goec, MA Fashion Design Technology (Womenswear), 2024.
Manchester Fashion Institute at Manchester Metropolitan University is home to a community of over 1,500 fashion students, from designers to merchandisers, managers, promoters and art directors, creating a culture of collaboration, creativity and entrepreneurship. Its teaching, research and innovation cross disciplinary boundaries, stimulating new connections, fresh perspectives and original thinking. With over 400 industry partners, placements are central to its undergraduate courses, allowing students access to international work experience opportunities.
The University is proudly home to two highly respected undergraduate fashion design programmes;
BA Fashion Design & Technology combines design innovation with in-depth exploration of the technical aspects of fashion manufacturing. Working to contemporary industry standards students design and develop innovative fashion products and ranges using both manual and digital technologies, with opportunity to specialise in Menswear, Sportswear and Womenswear.
BA Fashion follows an arts-based, studio practice model working collaboratively with other art and design courses in the Manchester School of Art. The programme offers a culture of creative expression with a focus on conceptual thinking, experimental textile practices and contemporary craftmanship. Alumni include Matthew Miller, Nabil Nayal and Aitor Throup.
Middlesex University celebrates creative individuality, championing its diverse student body and their rainbow of approaches and outcomes across fashion and textiles.
Our innovative and exciting BA Fashion course offers students the chance to develop their own creative identity through exploration of textiles alongside fashion. With industry experienced teaching staff and state of the art facilities, students can specialise in knit, print or weave alongside advanced fashion development and a wealth of mixed media textiles. We support bespoke approaches to design and process encouraging focus on more sustainable, digital or handcraft, allowing for a diverse and inclusive breadth of outcomes.
Our teaching team of highly skilled industry practitioners encourage students to be free thinkers and innovators, supporting the development of personal projects that respond to the ever-changing fashion industry.
Fashion at Northumbria has an established reputation for producing designers with creative vision and the commercial realism to begin a career within the Fashion sector. Through the study of either Fashion BA, Fashion Design and Marketing BA or Fashion Communication BA, our students develop creative, intellectual and practical skills while exploring fashion not only from an aesthetic and technical viewpoint, but also through an understanding of future trends, culture and the environment that surrounds us. Students are able to develop their creative skills through industry based live projects, competitions and through national and international work placements.
Nottingham Trent University (NTU) is one of the world’s leading art and design schools; influencing, inspiring and innovating for over 175 years. The fashion and fashion knitwear design courses prepare students to take on the global fashion industry. Graduates are renowned within the industry for their creative, innovative, and directional design ideas and skills, ability to work collaboratively and with a strong underlying awareness of commerciality, sustainability, and technologies. We are delighted to be ranked as one of the top 20 universities in the UK for Fashion and Textiles (Guardian University Guide 2023).
The BA Fashion Design course has an established global reputation. Graduates are industry ready and renowned for their creativity combined with strong technical knowledge and skills in The BA Fashion knitwear course offers an optional placement year in industry. Graduates have comprehensive technical knowledge and skill and able to take full creative control of the design and creation of fabrics and garment within a contemporary fashion context.
Alumni are working globally for leading brands such as Calvin Klein, Hugo boss, G-star and leading suppliers to UK high street retailers and established fashion labels such as Vivienne Westwood, Marc Jacobs, Julian McDonald and Dries van Noton.
Ravensbourne's internationally-renowned, award-winning fashion programmes cover all aspects of the fashion industry and offer students an opportunity to gain a strong foundation in research, design and concept development with technical and practical skills. Through Ravensbourne’s focus on digital innovation, students are encouraged to experiment with digital manufacture in our prototyping labs, explore new wearable technologies, materials and sustainability alongside traditional techniques. With a strong record of placements and holding a steadfast reputation in the fashion world, the courses produce industry-ready graduates who have gone on to work at Stella McCartney, Tom Ford, Christopher Kane, Burberry, NIKE and COS, amongst others.
Ravensbourne alumni include LFW designers Paria Farzaneh, and Eden Loweth of Art School, Clare Waight-Keller, Fatima Minana, Cristiana Alagna and David Bowie.
Sheffield Hallam University are an award-winning university, recently receiving Gold in the Teaching Excellence Framework for outstanding support for student success and progression.
We provide people from all backgrounds with the opportunity to acquire the skills, knowledge and experience to succeed at whatever they choose to do.
As one of the UK’s largest and most progressive universities, our teaching, research and partnerships are characterised by a focus on real world impact - addressing the health, economic and social challenges facing society today.
We are ambitious for our university, our students, our colleagues, our partners, our city and our region. Our vision is to be the world's leading applied university; showing what a university genuinely focused on transforming lives can achieve.
Visit the Sheffield Hallam University website
At UCA, creativity makes global communities more vibrant, more innovative, and more human. For 160 years, UCA has been a passionate advocate for creativity, tailoring students’ education to help forge the path that’s right for them. The fashion courses have established UCA an enviable international reputation for producing highly-skilled and sought-after graduates, ready to launch their careers on the global fashion stage. With courses in Fashion Design, Atelier and Tailoring, Textiles, Fashion Image & Styling, Fashion Photography, Digital Fashion, and Makeup & Hair Design, UCA is a place to work at the highest levels of the industry.
University of Brighton, Fashion with Business Studies is an internationally acclaimed course, combining highly creative design with technical skill and craft expertise. The unique integration of Business Studies within the curriculum and opportunities for a year's industry experience prepares graduates with the necessary practical knowledge and creative skills for employment in the competitive global fashion industry.
Visit the University of Brighton website
Our story started in 1898. We've survived wars, celebrated momentous sporting events and fought against society's biggest sustainability issues. Now in the digital age, the world of work is rapidly changing, and we're adapting to ensure our graduates have the skills and resilience to succeed in their careers and make a positive impact on society and the planet.
School of Design at University of Leeds unites creativity technology, innovation and enterprise. Fashion-related BA and MA courses range from fashion design, marketing, technology, global management to enterprise and social impact. Their programmes develop creativity in a stimulating research environment offering insight into the fashion industry and specialist knowledge from marketing, technology, social issues to global business. University of Leeds is University of the Year 2017, awarded by The Times and Sunday Times’ Good University Guide which recognises the outstanding student experiences at Leeds.
Graduate Preview 2021 Featured Students:
Chloe Ashkboos
Liberty Ball
Lucy Barker
Amy Boulter
Joanne Boulter
Katharine Buckley
Phoebe Chinn
Beth Francis
Gabby Keeble
Rose Kelly
Zihan Mei
Angela Olsen
Lucie Rising
Niamh Vickers
Beth Walley
Evie Walters
Ziqi Wang
BA (Hons) Fashion Design at the University of Salford is a highly creative and successful programme, ranked by BoF in the top 20 fashion schools globally. Its located next to Manchester city centre in New Adelphi building and has extensive, state of the art studio space and resources. Students have interned at a wide range of aspirational global brands such as: Victor & Rolf, Karl Lagerfeld, Iris Van Herpen, Alexander McQueen, Adam Lippes, Peter Pilotto and Aitor Throup. Their graduates have gone onto develop successful and diverse careers in fashion at all levels of the fashion industry including working for: Burberry, Max Mara, Peter Pilotto, H&M, Adidas, Levi's, Zara.
Graduate Preview 2022 Featured Students:
Abbie Amy Burkinshaw
Aleks Kaleniecki
Beth Moorman
Celestine Etania Wang
Charlie Catlow
Daisy Webb
Emma Money
Erin Sloan
Eve Haddley
Grace Gudgeon
Jaymi Lyon
Kendal McDermott
Lorna Gibson
Lottie O'Byrne
Lucrezia Licheri
Lydia Highfield
Megan Holian
Millie Leicester
Natalia Higham
Samantha Chapman
Thalis Chrysostomou
Wingyee Chan
Yasmeen Wilson
BA(Hons) Fashion Design at the University of South Wales offers experience of the fashion industry beyond the university environment. Our students engage in a research and process-driven approach to solve complex design issues, nurturing innovation and creativity through digital and physical realisation. Our student-centred approach focuses on developing strenghts, skills and capabilities for life after graduation. We scored 100% student satisfaction NSS and rated top in the UK for teaching and assessment satisfaction across fashion and textile courses. (Guardian League tables).
We advocate an anti-elitist and inclusive approach to fashion, seeking to challenge the problematic elements of the industry whilst honouring fashion’s potential to be radical, thought-provoking, innovative and embracing of the full spectrum of humanity. We educate change-makers. Our graduates are using fashion as a vehicle to address disability politics, racial inequality, garment worker’s rights and environmental issues.
Fashion Textiles at UWE is a broad experimental programme that enables Students to explore the breadth of opportunities available within the Fashion Textile industries – from Textile Print, Knit and Fashion Design through to Futures thinking and alternative modes of Fashion production. Students develop work for different Outcomes that include – Fashion design, Textile design or Fashion Textile Futures and work towards progression routes into Industry, Enterprise or Pos-Graduate Study. The programme is 3yrs full-time, 4 yrs including a Placement Year in Industry.
The University of Westminster is renowned for producing exceptionally talented and innovative fashion designers. The BA Fashion Design and MA Menswear courses both show at London Fashion Week. Alumni of Westminster include London Fashion Week designers S.S. Daley, Robyn Lynch, Priya Ahluwalia, Paolo Carzana, and Ashley Williams, as well as Liam Hodges, Mikey Pearce, Christopher Bailey, Vivienne Westwood, and Stuart Vevers. Recent graduates work in the design studios of Givenchy, Louis Vuitton, Burberry, Lanvin, Alexander McQueen, Balmain, JW Anderson, Stone Island, C.P. Company, Calvin Klein, Ferragamo, Kenzo, Carven, and Loewe.
