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Fashion Design at University of Portsmouth - UCAS

Course options

There are other course options available which may have a different vacancy status or entry requirements – view the full list of options

Course summary

This is a Connected Degree Portsmouth is the only University in the UK with the flexibility to choose when to do an optional paid placement or self-employed year. Either take a placement in your third year, or finish your studies first and complete a placement in your fourth year. You can decide if and when to take a placement after you've started your course. Overview Bring your creative and original ideas to life on our multi-award-winning Fashion Design degree course. You'll develop your innovation, self-awareness, and critical thinking via our teaching approach – which integrates sustainable and ethical design principles, focuses on your unique strengths, and shapes you into a confident and cultured professional. You'll also develop communication, leadership, and collaboration skills through exchange and enterprise projects, and you’ll build a deep knowledge of traditional and digital making skills using industry-level facilities. Using innovative research methods, you’ll be able to deliver authentic, imaginative work that pushes the boundaries of what fashion and textile design means now and in the future. Course highlights

  • Master traditional and modern fashion design methods including drawing techniques, pattern-cutting, fashion illustration, silkscreen and digital printing, embroidery and constructed textiles
  • Further your creativity, research, practice and environmental specialism by taking part in our sustainable fashion research project PO1
  • Bolster your entrepreneurship by setting up your own label or fashion company as part of your studies
  • Gain valuable industry experience by taking an optional placement – either with a company or as self-employed
  • Enhance your collaboration and team-working skills by working with other students on other courses in the Faculty of Creative and Cultural Industries
  • Get insight into the fashion industry by attending guest lectures by visiting international professionals – previous visitors include Julian Roberts, Niccolo Casas and Shingo Sato
  • Impress potential employers by exhibiting your work at the University’s annual graduate shows and Graduate Fashion Week showcases in London
Careers and opportunities Our collaborative and project-orientated course will give you the skills to become highly employable. Graduate areas Our graduates have worked across design, marketing, communications and commerce in areas such as:
  • fashion, textile or accessories design
  • trend prediction
  • buying
  • visual merchandising
  • teaching or lecturing
  • journalism or writing
Graduate destinations Our graduates have worked with some of the biggest names in fashion and major retailers, including:
  • Ralph Lauren
  • Hugo Boss
  • Matthew Williamson
  • River Island
  • Fat Face
  • Marks and Spencer
After you leave the University, you can get help, advice and support for up to 5 years from our Careers and Employability service as you advance in your career. Graduate startups Previous students on this course have also set up their own fashion and textile labels. For example:
  • Sunny Williams set up his label, House of Sunny, in 2011 and has developed minimal, androgynous aesthetic womenswear, which sells internationally and is stocked by ASOS
  • Nikki Strange created her own-name line for Marks and Spencer in 2015 and also works as a freelance textile designer and visiting lecturer.

Modules

Year 1

  • Core Skills Fashion and Textiles (40 credits)
  • Design Fundamentals (40 credits)
  • Digital Designing for Fashion and Textiles (20 credits)
  • Introduction to Global Fashion (20 credits)
Year 2 Core modules
  • Circular Fashion Practice (20 credits)
  • Designer Led Brief (20 credits)
  • Enterprise and Industry: Development (20 credits)
  • Enterprise and Industry: Research (20 credits)
  • Enterprise and Industry: Resolution (20 credits)
Optional modules
  • Engaged Citizenship Through Interdisciplinary Practice (20 credits)
  • Exploratory Practice (20 credits)
  • Professional Experience (20 credits)
  • Student Enterprise (20 credits)
Year 3 Core modules
  • Major Project: Concept (20 credits)
  • Major Project: Development (20 credits)
  • Major Project: Promotion (20 credits)
  • Major Project: Resolution (20 credits)
  • Portfolio (20 credits)
Optional modules
  • Visual Culture: Dissertation (20 credits)
  • Visual Culture: Research Project (20 credits)
Changes to course content We use the best and most current research and professional practice alongside feedback from our students to make sure course content is relevant to your future career or further studies. Therefore, some course content may change over time to reflect changes in the discipline or industry. If a module doesn't run, we'll let you know as soon as possible and help you choose an alternative module.


How to apply

Application codes

Please select a course option – you will then see the application code you need to use to apply for the course.

Points of entry

The following entry points are available for this course:

  • Year 1
  • Year 2
  • Year 3

Entry requirements for advanced entry (i.e. into Year 2 and beyond)

We welcome applications for advanced entry. If you’d like to apply for advanced entry, you need to select the required year when you complete your UCAS application.

Entry requirements

Qualification requirements

Additional entry requirements

Portfolio

All applicants will be asked to provide a digital portfolio of work.


English language requirements

TestGradeAdditional details
IELTS (Academic)6English language proficiency at a minimum of IELTS band 6.0 with no component score below 5.5.
PTE Academic54An overall score of 54 with a minimum of 51 in each skill.
TOEFL (iBT)7979 with a minimum of 18 in Reading, 17 in Listening, 20 in Speaking and 17 in Writing.
Cambridge English AdvancedCambridge English: Advanced (CAE) taken after January 2015. An overall score of 169 with no component score less than 162.
Cambridge English ProficiencyCambridge English: Proficiency (CPE) taken after January 2015. An overall score of 169 with no component score less than 162.
Trinity ISEPassTrinity College Integrated Skills in English (ISE) Level III with a Pass in all 4 components

Student Outcomes

Operated by the Office for Students

There is no data available for this course. For further information visit the Discover Uni website.

Fees and funding

Tuition fees

EU £9535 Year 1
England £9535 Year 1
Northern Ireland £9535 Year 1
Scotland £9535 Year 1
Wales £9535 Year 1
Channel Islands £9535 Year 1
Republic of Ireland £9535 Year 1
International £17200 Year 1

Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or overseas tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website .

Additional fee information

Students who are resident in EU countries: please note that the net fee is inclusive of the Transition Scholarship Placement Year and Year abroad (at the time of publishing for 2024/25): UK/Channel Islands and Isle of Man students – £1,385 EU – £1,385 (including Transition Scholarship) International (Non-EU) – £2,875. Fees are accurate at the time of publishing and are subject to change at any time without notice. All fees are subject to annual increase. For more information about fees, go to port.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/undergraduate-fees-and-student-finance/tuition-fees-living-costs-and-other-study-costs
Fashion Design at University of Portsmouth - UCAS