Fashion Design: Institutes, entrance exams, courses and job roles

If you’re a fashionista who enjoys experimenting with different styles, Fashion Design could just be your thing! A career in this field will give you insight into how the glamour world functions and the professional qualities needed to work in this sector.

Fashion Design and its scope:

Fashion Design communicates individual styles, moods and aesthetics. It’s now one of the most sought-after career options. Several domestic fashion hubs have been doing exceptionally well, providing a significant boost to the growth of the Indian fashion industry. After studying Fashion Design, you can work in various roles like a designer for men’s or women’s wear, stylist, illustrator, in-house expert, teacher or journalist. Retail fashion industry is another area where you can work after obtaining your degree.

Studying Fashion Design:

• You need to clear your Class XII board exams or any equivalent exam in any stream with at least 50% aggregate.
• To enrol in undergraduate or postgraduate fashion design courses, you need to clear entrance exams and usually appear for a personal interview. Some institutes, however, may offer merit-based admission.
• You can also do one- to two-year diploma and certificate courses that teach students the practical skills needed to pursue a career in Fashion Design with little to no emphasis on theoretical knowledge.

Some institutes that offer Fashion Design courses:

National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), multiple locations

Courses: Bachelor of Design (BDes) in Fashion Design/Leather Design /Accessory Design/Textile Design/Knitwear Design/Fashion Communication.

• Eligibility: You need to clear your Class XII board exams or an equivalent exam from any recognised central/state board of secondary examination.
• Admission: You need to clear the NIFT Entrance exam and then get admission according to your rank.
• Click here to know more.

Course: Bachelor of Fashion Technology (Apparel Production) (BFTech).

• Eligibility: You need to clear your Class XII board exams or an equivalent exam from any recognised central/state board of secondary examination.
• Admission: You need to clear the NIFT Entrance exam and then get admission according to your rank.
• Click here to know more

Course: Master of Design (MDes).

• Eligibility: You need an undergraduate degree in any discipline from any recognised institute/university, or an undergraduate diploma of minimum three years duration from NIFT/NID.
• Admission: You need to clear the NIFT Entrance exam and then get admission according to your rank.
• Click here to know more.

Course: Master of Fashion Technology (MFTech).

• Eligibility: You need a BFTech degree from NIFT or a BE/BTech degree from any recognised institute/university.
• Admission: You need to clear the NIFT Entrance exam and then get admission according to your rank.
• Click here to know more.

Course: Master of Fashion Management (MFM).

• Eligibility: You need an undergraduate degree in any discipline from any recognised institute/university, or an undergraduate diploma of minimum of three years duration from NIFT/NID.
• Admission: You need to clear the NIFT Entrance exam and then get admission according to your rank.
• Click here to know more.

Pearl Academy, multiple locations

Course: School of Fashion and Design (Undergraduate).

• Eligibility: You need to clear your Class XII board exams or any equivalent exams.
• Admission: You need to perform well in the General Proficiency Test (GPT) and the Design Aptitude Test (DAT) organised by the institute.
• Click here to know more.

Course: School of Fashion and Design (Postgraduate)

• Eligibility: You need to graduate in any stream from a recognised university.
• Admission: You need to perform well in the General Proficiency Test (GPT) and the Design Aptitude Test (DAT) organised by the institute.
• Click here to know more.

Symbiosis Institute of Design, Pune

Course: Bachelor of Design.

• Eligibility: You need at least 50% aggregate in your Class XII board exams or any equivalent exam from any approved state board of technical education.
• Admission: You need to clear the Symbiosis Entrance Exam for Design (SEED).
• Click here to know more.

Amity School of Fashion Technology, Noida

Course: BDesign (Fashion Design).

• Eligibility: You need at least 50% aggregate in your Class XII board exams or any equivalent exam. Your aggregate will be calculated based on the marks scored in English and three academic subjects.
• Admission: You need to perform well in an online interview and a proctored creative test.
• Click here to know more.

Course: MDesign (Fashion & Textiles).

• Eligibility: You need at least 50% aggregate in your undergraduate degree in Fashion/Textile Design.
• Admission: You will be selected based on your video responses to the questions posted through the video link available on the admission microsite.
• Click here to know more.

SATYAM Institute of Design, Noida

Course: BDesign (Fashion Design).

• Eligibility: You need to clear the Class XII board exams or any equivalent exam from any recognised central/state board of secondary examination in the current academic year.
• Admission: You need to perform well in the Design Entrance Test organised by the institute.
• Click here to know more.

Course: MDesign (Fashion Design)

• Eligibility: You need a bachelor’s degree from a recognised university in any discipline.
• Admission: You need to clear the Design Entrance Test organised by the institute.
• Click here to know more.

MIT Institute of Design, Pune

Course: BDes (Fashion Design).

• Eligibility: You need to clear your Class XII board exams or any equivalent exam.
• Admission: You need to clear the Design Aptitude Test, followed by a studio test and a personal interview.
• Click here to know more.

Course: MDes (Fashion Management and Marketing).

• Eligibility: You need to graduate in any discipline.
• Admission: You need to perform well in the Design Aptitude Test, followed by a studio test and a personal interview
• Click here to know more.

The University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES), Dehradun

Course: BDes (Fashion Designing).

• Eligibility: You need at least 50% aggregate in your Class X and Class XII board exams.
• Admission: You need to perform well in the UPES Design Aptitude Test (UPES-DAT), followed by a personal interview and a presentation of your work portfolio. Or you need your NIFT, NID and UCEED ranking.
• Click here to know more.

Course: MDes (Fashion Designing).

• Eligibility: You need a BTech/BE/BArch/BFA degree in any relevant disciplines. Or you need a three-year BSc/BA/BFA degree in Applied Art/Design or any other relevant disciplines (with minimum 50% marks) with one year of relevant industry experience. Or you need a two-year MSc/MTech degree in Computer Science and Engineering.
• Admission: You need to perform well in the UPES Design Aptitude Test (UPES-DAT), followed by a personal interview and a presentation of your work portfolio. Or you need your CEED Score, followed by a portfolio presentation and personal interview.
• Click here to know more.

Job roles with a degree in Fashion Design:

• Fashion Designer: They can either start their own label or work for a company that designs clothes. These professionals work on styling different types of clothing such as jeans, jackets, women's wear, children's wear, men's wear, knitwear and sportswear.

• Personal stylist: People who want to work as fashion consultants or personal stylists are mostly self-employed. A fashion consultant/personal stylist's classic job is to assist people in developing a wardrobe that promotes their public image. They advise others on the latest fashion trends, clothing styles, colours to wear/avoid, and how to do their make-up and hair.

• Technical designer: They are in charge of deciding how a garment should be stitched and made. tTey oversee the development of a technical package, or Sewing details, points of measurement, wash description, label/hang tag placement and packaging instructions are typically required by these professionals.

• Garment quality controller: Their job is to establish quality standards for everything that is purchased for a new collection. The quality control (QC) manager also instructs each department to ensure quality in various processes associated with garments’ production. They ensure product quality throughout the manufacturing process.

• Fashion Merchandiser: They decide what merchandise to stock for a brand by analysing their customers' previous purchasing patterns. They frequently collaborate with the management to plan the launch of revenue-generating products.