BA (Hons) Fashion

• 96 UCAS points. We accept a full range of qualifications that carry UCAS points, including A-levels, BTECs and T levels. Please see our guide to the UCAS Tariff for examples of how to achieve these points. For most courses, we are also able to consider non-tariffable qualifications.
• Any subjects are acceptable at Level 3. Relevant creative and art and design-related subjects are preferred.
• You should also have five GCSEs at grade C or above or grade 4 to 9 (or equivalent), including English and Mathematics.
• You'll be required to attend an interview and provide a portfolio of appropriate work.
• If English isn’t your first language, you’ll also need IELTS 6.0 with no less than 5.5 in any band (or equivalent). We also accept a range of other English language qualifications – please visit our English Language Requirements web page for more details.

Where changes are made to material information contained in this course description or a decision is taken to suspend a course between the offer of admissions and enrolment, we will inform applicants at the earliest possible opportunity and will outline the various options available to the applicant.

If you're excited at the thought of a career in fashion, one which shows off your creative flair and drive for contemporary design, then this course could be the perfect start to your career journey. As a graduate of our BA (Hons) Fashion degree, you’ll possess a range of creative and practical skills including the ability to design and produce a collection, technical garment drawing skills, pattern cutting, garment construction techniques and the use of digital technology. You'll also possess a host of transferable and employability skills such as communication skills, self-promotion, creativity, commercial awareness and ability to work in a team.

During your studies, you’ll be expected to follow and observe fashion trends, consumer behaviour in regards to buying fashion online and in retail outlets, brand awareness and ethical issues facing the industry. You'll develop a portfolio that encapsulates your design process and design identity, and gain the skills to promote yourself through various digital platforms. These will help you apply for employment in your chosen career area in fashion after you graduate.

What can I do with this qualification?

There are many opportunities in the fashion industry in the UK and overseas. These range from top designers in well-established studios to high street retailers and manufacturing and supply companies. Employment opportunities vary and some of the typical roles you might consider include: fashion designer, CAD designer, pattern cutter, garment technologist, colourist and trend forecaster.

You could also study for a master’s qualification. Popular options at the University of Bolton include our MA (Specialist Title) via Creative Practice, MA Arts Management, MA Community and Applied Arts and MSc Entrepreneurship and Innovation.

Alternative career options

Graduates can also use the qualification as a stepping-stone into a range of other careers. For some of these roles, relevant experience and postgraduate study may be required. These careers include:

• Event management
• Sales
• Tailor
• Costume design
• Wardrobe management
• Personal shopping
• Fashion styling
• Photography
• Modelling
• Jewellery design
• Retail management
• Textile design
• Teaching and education
• Research and development
• Writing and illustration
• Public relations
• Self-employment

Home students starting this course in the first year will be required to pay a Home fee of £6,000 for the academic year 2024/25.

Important note regarding tuition fees for the 2020-2021 academic year: EU nationals who meet residency requirements (have settled or pre-settled status) may be eligible for 'Home' fee status. If you do not meet these residency requirements, overseas fees will apply. Irish citizens living in the UK or Ireland will be eligible for 'Home' fee status under the Common Travel Area arrangement. Please read the student finance for EU students web page on www.gov.uk for information.

The fees for a student's course of study will be set for the normal duration of that course subject only to inflationary increases – measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) recorded in March each year to take effect for subsequent start dates.

For 2020-2021 entry, the maximum government approved undergraduate tuition fee for UK students is £9,250 per year. The University is able to charge this fee subject to an approved Access and Participation Plan for 2020-2021 and its current rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework.

Bursaries

Click here for more information about the scholarships and bursaries available to University of Bolton students.

We use a blended approach to teaching and learning. You’ll have face-to-face sessions and workshops and take part in online learning. Studio and computer suite-based activities are important features of the course, alongside lectures, seminars and practical-based workshops. We'll encourage you to participate in visits to locations such as factories, galleries and museums, go on garment research trips and attend presentations by our visiting speakers. You’ll also be expected to engage in self-directed study, with support from a range of staff including technicians and library/learning resources staff.

Module briefs include a wide range of activities such as commercially-based design projects, live briefs, competitions and commissions, and self-initiated projects. In addition, there are opportunities for collaborative design briefs that involve working with students from other creative areas within the Bolton School of the Arts. The sharing of ideas and practices across disciplines helps you to gain a broader understanding of the position of fashion in the wider creative and global creative industries.

In terms of assessment, you’ll have formative assessment to help you learn and develop your knowledge and skills, and summative assessment on which you are graded. You’ll receive individual help and advice on your personal work in one-to-one tutorials. Peer reviews, where you present your work to a small group of your fellow students for their comment, also provide useful feedback.

Formal assessment is by coursework. This may involve you presenting your portfolio of drawings/design work, samples or practical outcomes, along with supporting design work of developmental ideas, technical note files, and a written research journal. It can also take the form of essays, reports, verbal presentations, assignments, projects and other written work.

Modules

The modules listed below may be a mixture of compulsory and optional. You may not have the opportunity to study all the modules shown as part of the course.

• Fashion Contexts - Critical Theory 1
• Fashion Concepts
• Fashion Practices 1
• Fashion Practices 2
• Fashion Contexts - Critical Theory 2
• The Fashion Industry - Preparation for Placement
• The Client Brief
• Design Identity
• Fashion Contexts - Research in Context
• Fashion Practices - Concept to Collection
• Major Project - Final Collection

Assessment methods

Learning activities

Disclaimer

The university will use all reasonable endeavours to deliver your course as described in its published material and the programme specification for the academic year in which you begin your course. The university considers changes to courses very carefully and the university will minimise any changes. Please be aware that our courses are subject to review on an ongoing basis and changes may be necessary due to legitimate staffing, financial, regulatory and academic reasons. The content of course modules and mode of associated assessments may be updated on an annual basis. This is to ensure that all modules are up-to-date and responsive to employment and sector needs. The published course material and the programme specification contain indicative ‘optional modules’ that may be subject to change due to circumstances outside of our control. For this reason, we cannot guarantee to run any specific optional module.