Bachelor of Arts in Fashion

STADIO’s School of Fashion, offers a comprehensive 3-year Bachelor of Arts in Fashion degree that has long been preparing students for success across the entire fashion industry, spanning from haute couture to ready-to-wear and mass market. Our programme is known for its innovation and rigour, equipping graduates with the creative, strategic, and practical skills necessary for successful careers in fashion design, media, and buying. 

With our strong industry connections, we provide students with first-hand exposure to the ever-evolving fashion landscape. Through our studios and lecture rooms, we integrate real-world, project-based learning approaches, allowing you to explore specialised techniques and innovative methodologies in fashion-related work. 

At the School of Fashion, you will acquire practical skills, establish valuable industry connections, and gain real-world experience in a supportive, creative, and professional environment. Collaborating with fellow passionate students from diverse sectors of the fashion industry, our curriculum emphasises leadership, teamwork, creativity, and effective communication. 

You can choose from three elective streams: Fashion Design, Fashion Media, or Fashion Buying. Each elective within the Bachelor of Arts degree addresses a range of roles in the professional fashion field, including design, trend forecasting and analysis, styling, visual merchandising, textile development, marketing, and public relations, as well as buying, sourcing, or production. Whether you aspire to create groundbreaking garments, create media content or develop business solutions for top retailers, our programmes cater to a variety of fashion career paths.  

BUYING ELECTIVE

The Fashion Buying Elective delves into the realm of fashion industry-related buying and promotional strategies, with a specific focus on the intersection of creativity, finance, and technology. This elective fosters critical thinking, creative problem-solving, and collaborative teamwork to cultivate skills in comprehending consumer behaviour, analysing brands, navigating retail and manufacturing processes, and executing effective marketing strategies. By honing these skills, graduates are equipped to thrive in diverse business roles within the dynamic fashion industry.

DESIGN ELECTIVE

The Fashion Design elective immerses you in the art of creating clothing, encompassing essential research skills that drive inspiration and a deep understanding of manufacturing processes and techniques. This elective is highly practical, allowing you to engage in design thinking and explore innovative problem-solving approaches. Through hands-on experiences, you will develop your skills by physically exploring form, silhouette, materials, and the entire garment production process.

MEDIA ELECTIVE

The purpose of the Fashion Media Elective is to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the dynamic and influential world of fashion media. This elective aims to equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary to navigate, analyse, and contribute to various facets of fashion media. Students will explore the historical evolution of fashion media, its impact on culture and society, and the role it plays in shaping fashion trends. Students will gain insights into the operations of fashion photography, make-up, visual merchandising, styling, videography, marketing and fashion broadcasting. Additionally, students will learn to create websites, blogs, and social media channels, creating compelling fashion content, conduct interviews, and manage media campaigns.

ARTICULATION POSSIBILITIES

Students graduating from the Bachelor of Arts in Fashion may articulate into an Honours programme in a cognate field. Applicants will be required to meet the selection criteria of the programme. 

What is Contact Learning?

THE ADMISSION CRITERIA FOR THE BACHELOR OF ARTS IN FASHION ARE:

• A National Senior Certificate (NSC) with admission to Bachelor’s studies and a minimum of 45% for English as a first or additional language. A Bachelor’s pass on the NSC requires an achievement of a minimum of 50% in four 20-credit subjects (excluding Life Orientation).

• A National Certificate (Vocational) with a minimum of 60% in three fundamental subjects including English, and a minimum of 70% in four vocational subjects

• The STADIO, Higher Certificate in Fashion Retail (NQF 5); or Higher Certificate in Fashion (NQF 5); Higher Certificate in Digital Marketing Practice (NQF 5);

• The STADIO, Higher Certificate in Photography (NQF 5); OR

• A Higher Certificate (NQF 5), Advanced Certificate (NQF 6) or Diploma (NQF 6) in the field of fashion or commerce

ADDITIONAL ADMISSION REQUIREMENT

Candidates who matriculated prior to 2008 require:

• A Senior Certificate (SC) with endorsement and a minimum of 45% for English as a first or second language

• Art or Design as a school subject is not required, but is deemed an advantage

To find out more about alternate access routes at STADIO, please click HERE

The qualifying student will be able to:

1. Gather, evaluate and validate information obtained from the fashion industry, in order to determine industry needs and solve complex problems for the industry within various sectors

2. Develop, implement and evaluate strategies for the production, merchandising and consumption of fashion products within various sectors of the fashion industry

3. Apply innovative, creative and conceptual processes for the purpose of expanding and growing essential components of the fashion industry

4. Interact effectively with others in variable and unfamiliar fashion contexts, responsibly and in a self-directed manner 

5. Effectively enter into the associated vocational or professional fashion environments (at different levels) with the ability to contribute to the broader transformation of the South African economic and cultural context, while also being able to operate in the global context

6. Demonstrate theoretical competency (i.e. theories and methodologies) and entry-level procedural knowledge (i.e. application) to operate as a fashion practitioner in a broad range of commercial fashion contexts

7. Demonstrate the practical skills and theoretical competencies to operate as a fashion practitioner (vocational/craft based or professional) at the target level for all vocational or professional (4th generation) contexts that constitute the world-of-fashion-work

8. Extend his/her vocational or professional capacity beyond a single area of competency, thereby providing greater opportunities for employment and life-long learning