The best fashion schools in the world. (2023)

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Study fashion at university.means you will learn all aspects of the fashion industry, including thorough technical skills and an understanding of the industry itself, including its historical development, current trends and current issues surrounding fashion today, such as ethical sourcing, manufacturing and distribution.

Due to the specialization of most fashion schools, many of the institutions listed below are not listed in theQS® World University Ranking(in which only universities spanning multiple departments are ranked). However, they all have a good reputation in their field.

The best fashion schools in New York

The most populous city in the United States and also the most talked about,New Yorkit is the city that all other cities aspire to be. As the muse of artists like Frank Sinatra and Alicia Keys, New York City is a cultural melting pot that has inspired generations of city dwellers.

Fashion is a huge part of city life and many of the biggest names in fashion journalism in the world are based here, including Vogue, Elle, Harper's Bazaar and Marie Claire. Listed below are two of the best fashion schools in New York.

Parsons, the new school of design

Offering programs in fashion design, fashion studies and fashion marketing,Parsons, the new school of designIt features alumni such as Tom Ford, Donna Karan, Marc Jacobs, Alexander Wang and Jason Wu. Tuition is $49,844 per year, and you must also pay student services and student senate fees (a total of $198 per semester).

In addition to having an impressive alumni list, Parsons has a strong focus on cultivating relationships with its alumni. This led to the school receiving reviews and workshops with Donna Karan and the duo Proenza Schouler. Consider the school's business organizations and the fact that most faculty members work in the fashion industry and it's clear that students at Parsons, The New School for Design have good career prospects.

Fashion Technical Institute (FIT)

Known by some as MIT in the fashion world, theInstitute of Fashion Technologyoffers programs in fashion design, business, marketing, illustration and style. Founded in 1944, the school has a total of 8,846 students and counts Carolina Herrera, Calvin Klein and Michael Kors among its alumni.

In high school, New York residents pay $3,435 per semester and out-of-state students pay $10,396. The school has a lecture series and a museum curated by fashion historian Valerie Steele.

The best fashion schools in London

ranking among the worldTop five cities for students, the capital of the United Kingdom, has also gained a reputation for being one of the most modern cities in the world. In the past, fashionable Brits often took inspiration from the French across the Channel. But over the last century, as the dominance of Parisian fashion has waned, London's fashion industry has arguably become more of a leader than a follower. Three of London's best fashion schools are listed below.

Zentrum von San Martín

Parte da University of the Arts London (UAL),Zentrum von San Martínoffers programs in fashion, textile and jewelry design. Partly funded by the government, Central Saint Martins is accessible to talented students from all walks of life and boasts a world-class teaching staff, including international fashion figures such as Professor Louise Wilson.

Undergraduate tuition fees for 2019/2020 are £9,250 (€10,600) per year for UK and EU students and £19,930 per year for international students ($27,500). Notable alumni include Alexander McQueen, Paul Smith, Stella McCartney and Christopher Kane.

london fashion college

Another faculty at the University of the Arts London, thelondon fashion collegeIt is characterized by a wide range of fashion courses. The school offers not only courses in fashion design, but also fashion marketing, journalism, shopping and merchandising, as well as programs in beauty, cosmetology, curating and fashion criticism, and even specialization courses in footwear and accessories.

There are over 5,000 students enrolled and tuition is the same as Central Saint Martins as both universities are part of UAL. Famous alumni include Jimmy Choo and Rupert Sanderson.

Royal College of Art

photo credit:vicky jünger(Flickr)

The world-renowned faculty offers a variety of postgraduate courses in art and designRoyal College of ArtIt has a relatively small number of enrollments in its six schools. With higher international tuition fees compared to the other two London fashion schools listed here (£34,000; approx. $43,600), the Royal College of Art School of Materials offers students the opportunity to gain placements and jobs in some of the biggest fashion houses in to experience the world. including brands such as Prada, Louis Vuitton, Givenchy and Burberry. Famous alumni include Philip Treacy, Ossie Clark and Zandra Rhodes.

The best fashion schools in Milan

ItalyIt has long been known as one of Europe's leading trendsetters, due to its history of political power in ancient times, as well as its cultural power in the Renaissance. Cities like Florence, Rome, Naples, Genoa and Venice have long been known as centers of fashion, but Milan, with its minimalist 1980s fashion houses, has become the country's "fashion capital", joining New York and Paris, as well as London. the international capital of fashion.

Marangoni Institute

That oneMarangoni Instituteit is divided into three campuses; The main campus is in Milan and the other two in London and Paris. The school is home to 2,000 students across three campuses and offers courses in fashion design, fashion business, fashion buying, brand management and fashion promotion.

Fees range from €16,200 (US$18,270) to €19,400 (US$21,900), depending on the chosen program, nationality and language of instruction. The school is home to alumni Franco Moschino and Domenico Dolce and has a large international student community.

Milan Polytechnic

That oneMilan PolytechnicFounded in 1863, it is the largest school of architecture, design and engineering in Italy, with around 42,000 students enrolled. The school offers a BA in Fashion Design and a MA in Design for the Fashion System. It also has some of the lowest tuition fees among the top fashion schools on this list, ranging from €895 to €3,898 per year (~$1,010 to $4,400), and non-EU students pay the latter amount.

The best fashion schools in Paris

ParisIts long history as Europe's fashion hub continues to play a crucial role in the city's character and the perception of its stylish (and perhaps aloof) residents. The high cost of living is offset by the low tuition fees of France's public university systems, helping Paris rank in the top five of QS's Best Student Cities ranking.

While New York, London and Milan have established themselves as Paris on par when it comes to fashion design and journalism, the French capital remains the center of the fashion world for many aspiring fashion students. two of the bestHere Paris fashion schools are explored.

School of the Chamber of the Union of Haute Couture in Paris

With only a few hundred students enrolled, theschool camara unionparisian haute coutureoffers courses in fashion design and engineering, world-renowned haute couture courses and baccalaureate programs.

It also offers the prestige of belonging to a school associated with the body responsible for determining what can be classified as haute couture. The school's alumni are Yves Saint Laurent, Valentino and André Courreges. Students are generally not considered unless they have already completed a design course elsewhere. Tuition fees range from €13,050 to €14,400 (~$14,720 to $16,240) per year.

ESMOD

An international fashion and business design school based in Paris,ESMOD(l'Ecole Supérieure des Arts et Technologies de la Mode) has additional campuses in four other French cities and a total of 21 schools worldwide. ESMOD offers fashion design and fashion business programs to its 1,500 students. Currently, tuition fees at ESMOD are €10,550 ($11,900) per year for undergraduate studies and €12,900 (~$15,550) for postgraduate studies.

ESMOD is not only famous for its alumni, including the likes of Thierry Mugler and Nina Garcia, but also for being the first and oldest French school of fashion design, founded in 1841, and for inventing the measuring tape and the dummy.

Other high profile fashion schools…

Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp, Belgium

Antwerp is also making great strides towards becoming a fashion capital of the world. Perhaps the most notable fashion school here is theAntwerp Royal Academy of Fine Arts, an elite design school offering fashion design courses to just over 100 students a year.

Tuition fees are heavily subsidized even for foreign students, bringing the total cost to around €967 (~$1,090 USD) per year for non-EU students and €238 for EU students, the cheapest fees featured in this article. Students are expected to be fluent in Dutch and an experimental, cutting-edge approach is encouraged.

Bunka Fashion College, Japan

from tokyoBunka Fashion Schooloffers programs in fashion design, fashion creation and technology, marketing and accessories and textiles. Known for its innovative Japanese designs, as well as its more academic marketing and technology courses, Bunka is home to 8,000 students spread across its two faculties.

Bunka Fashion College gained international fame in the 1960s when graduates of the school began to show their designs in Paris. A good knowledge of Japanese is required and lessons cost around ¥1,414,360 (~US$12,800) plus additional fees.

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This article was originally published in March 2014. It was last updated in February 2019.

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