Top Fashion Design Schools & Colleges in the World

If you or anyone you know wants to pursue a career as a fashion designer, pattern maker, merchandiser, apparel entrepreneur or any other fashion-related job you are right in looking for a world-class education from a premier Fashion school – it definitely helps.

The tutelage of well qualified and experienced tutors and an enriched learning environment and exposure to international influences and acclaimed alumni can mean a world of a difference to the career of any fashion aspirant. 

Here is a list of the most prestigious Fashion designing Colleges/schools from around the world, where you can get all these and more, along with an assured career in fashion.

Top American Colleges offering Fashion Designing courses

Fashion Institute of technology, New York

This is a prestigious public college in Manhattan, Newyork. The college offers courses in design, fashion, art, communications, and business and many other fashion related courses. The World famous Museum at FIT is the highlight of this institute. Attending the Exhibitions and Programs of the Museum is a study of fashion by itself.

Check out their website here

Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising(FIDM) – Los Angeles, California

This highly acclaimed institute offers accredited Master’s, Bachelor’s and Associate Degree programs in fashion designing, pattern making technology, fashion merchandising.The Institute has campuses in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Orange County & San Diego 

A solid curriculum with a reputation of being a career-oriented, with practical, hands-on experience in fashion designing makes this course worthwhile. Their Advanced Study Fashion Design Program promises a Runway Show showcasing the creative works of the students.

Check out their website here

Parsons School of Design, New York 

They have courses in fashion designing like Digital fashion, Textile design fashion drawing, fashion marketing, retailing, merchandising.

Check out their website here

Columbus College of Art and Design, Columbus, Ohio

The college offers BA in Fashion design, fashion and textiles, fashion merchandising

Check out their fashion design curriculum here

Texas Women’s University

The University offers BA in Fashion design, fashion and textiles, fashion merchandising

Check out their website here

Rhode Island School of Design

This school offers 4 year undergraduate courses in Apparel Design and Textile. You can learn pattern drafting, draping and construction of clothes in a studio setting with an emphasis on practical skill building.

Check out the website here

Philadelphia + Thomas Jefferson University

Jefferson Fashion Design program (of 4-year duration) is a premier course for learning about fashion. It combines  real-world projects with academic learning about fashion design, technology, production and business

You can learn more about the course here.

Savannah College of Art and Design, Georgia

The college offers very prestigious graduate programs – BFA, MA & MFA –  in their campuses in Atlanta, Hong Kong, Savannah and online via eLearning.Their fashion degrees are complemented by award-winning and experienced tutors and two of the most well-known museums in the USA, one of them being the largest museum of fashion and film -The SCAD  Museum of Fashion & Film

You can learn more about the courses and the college here.

Drexel University, Pensylvania

Drexel’s Fashion Design program consists of hands-on fashion design curriculum covering all facets of fashion design in state-of-the-art well-equipped, spacious studios. The course prepares students for careers in fashion design, styling, advertising, computer-aided and technical design, and the senior year students get to present of their collection in the Drexel Fashion Show

Check out their website here

The University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri

Textile & Apparel Management (TAM) is a program offered by this University which focuses on the apparel and textile supply chain and prepares one for careers in technical and creative fashion design, sourcing, and product development.

Check out their website here

Virginia Common Wealth University

This university offers BFA in Fashion Design and BA in Fashion Merchandising. In the fashion design course, students get to learn professional processes for garment construction, pattern making, draping, fashion illustration, and technical design skills 

Check out their website here

Kent State University

The Fashion School of Kent University offers undergraduate and graduate courses of Fashion Industry Studies, fashion designing, fashion media and Fashion Merchandising. 

Check out their website here

Marist College, Poughkeepsie, New York

The college offers  Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Fashion Design and the course includes the study of design, textiles, draping and flat pattern making, garment construction, and computer-aided design

Check out their website here

European Colleges Offering Fashion Designing Courses

Marangoni Artistic Clothing Institute in Milan, Italy

This world-famous school established in 1935 to train professionals and technicians specializing in the field of fashion has campuses in London and in Paris, Milan, Firenze, Shanghai, Shenzen, Mumbai and Miami.

The institute offers Masters’ degrees in Fashion Design, Fashion Styling, Fashion Accessories, Fashion Promotion, Fashion Buying and Brand Management as well as one-year foundation courses, diplomas and summer schools.

Check out their website here

Parsons School of Design, Paris

This is the European campus of the Parsons school of design, New york. The school offers degree programs and summer and study abroad courses the same as the parent school.

Check Out their website here

Polimoda, Italy

This college considered to be one of the best fashion institutes in Italy and even among the world, was established in 1986. The college has 6 campuses in both Florence and the city of Prato. Undergraduate graduate and seasonal courses in fashion technology& fashion design are offered here.

Check out the website here

Institut Français de la Mode

by the Federation de la Haute Couture Et de la Mode which coordinates Paris Fashion Week. The official launch of the new Institut Français de la Mode took place on Tuesday 8 January 2019 in the presence of Bruno Le Maire, French Minister for Finance. 

Check out their website here

The new Institut Français de la Mode will be offering as of September 2019 many new programs in fashion design, couture dressmaking and patternmaking and tailoring and fashion management and entrepreneurship

Accademia Italiana

This premier institute of fashion offers 3 years Bachelors degree course in fashion design as well as many other fashion design related courses.The campuses are in Rome and Florence.

Check out their website here

Istituto Di Moda Burgo, Italy

A private fashion design school in Italy

Check out their website here

Royal Academy of Fine Arts – Fashion Dept, Antwerp

The Fashion Department of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts offers Bachelor in fashion design which covers Fashion design, graphics and tailoring/ pattern design. 

Check out the website here

Academia Costume & Moda, Italy

One of the top global fashion schools in the world, they offer courses in undergraduate, graduate studies and vocational well as intensive courses

Check out their website here

School of Design, Fashion Visual Arts and communication

This group has fashion schools in Italy, Spain and Brazil

Check out their website here

Esmode

A school with a long history (oldest of the fashion schools in Paris) this was founded by Alexis Lavigne, master Parisian tailor of the nineteenth century. The ESMOD (Short for École supérieure des arts et techniques de la mode,) group now consists of 20 schools in 13 countries. Fashion design and pattern drafting courses are offered

Check out the website here.

Copenhagen Academy of Fashion Design

Check out their website here for more details

Paris Fashion Institute

Established in 1976 the school has classes in design, marketing, manu­facturing, merchandising and retailing.

Check out their website here

Top British Schools/Colleges Offering Fashion Designing Courses

London College of Fashion

One of most famous colleges of fashion in the world, facilities include the biggest fashion library and archive in the UK, sample and sewing rooms, a 3D modeling room, cosmetic science labs, visual merchandising suites, and make-up studios, as told in their website. The college offers vocational foundation courses and diplomas in fashion styling, fashion pattern technology  and degrees in areas as diverse as bespoke tailoring and fashion management

Check out their website here 

St Martins School of Art and Design

London Central St Martins college boasts of stellar alumni like Stella McCartney, Alexander McQueen and John Galliano. The courses offered are BA in Fashion Design with Knitwear, Fashion design with marketing, Fashion design menswear, womenswear; BA Fashion communication  in journalism, Fashion History, Fashion Print

Website here

London’s University of the Arts  is the umbrella name now given to the group of colleges including Chelsea College of Art, the London College of Fashion, and St Martins

Westminster University

This prestigious university offers BA (3 years and 4 years duration) in Fashion designing, Fashion Merchandising, Fashion Buying, and Marketing. They are all industry-focused fashion courses with an excellent track record of successful internships in major Fashion companies in the UK.

Website here

Other colleges offering Fashion designing courses include Stafford College, Northbrook college, Salford College, Newcastle college, Ilkley college, Bournemouth and Poole college, UMIST, Manchester

Other Internationally acclaimed Colleges offering Fashion Designing Courses

Bunka College of Fashion, Japan

Check out their website here

This school founded in 1923 as the first dressmaking school in Japan by Namiki Isaburo. It is a highly ranked fashion school

National Institute of Fashion Technology, New Delhi, India

It is the most famous institute of fashion education in India and has campuses in different parts of the country other than its main campus in New Delhi. B. Des(Fashion Design ) is their Undergraduate course in fashion designing. There are postgraduate and doctoral courses on offer for fashion designing

The Website and more details are here.

Ryerson Polytechnic University, Canada

They have a career-oriented Bachelor of Design course of 4 years for Fashion communication and designing. The school also offers a Master of Arts in Fashion in conjunction with the Yeates School of Graduate Studies.

Check out the website for more details on the course here

College Laselle, Canada

This International School of Fashion, Arts and Design, by College Laselle claims to be Canada’s largest fashion school

Check out their website here

Most of these colleges offer courses which may be augmented by internships in major fashion houses, visits to other countries to study international fashion, design competitions and fashion shows to showcase their creations. These courses help students gain technical knowledge and real work experience in the world of fashion and become top fashion designers like many alumni of these colleges.

(This is a curated list and it is in no particular order of importance, rank or preference. Do all the due diligence before joining any course)

Related posts: Best fashion design insitutes in the world; Top fashion design colleges in India