Singapore has seen a phenomenal rise in the world of fashion over the past years and as it establishes itself as a rising fashion hub, the need to foster talent is greater. Fashion Designing as a career has gained popularity and the educational institutes and private schools have grown in tandem, to roll out comprehensive courses for the aspiring designers.
A fashion designer is that creative person who not only designs apparels and accessories, but also who understands the trends in fashion and works within a team to translate a design concept in to a final product that you see at the store. A career in fashion can lead to opportunities as a fashion designer, costume designer, fashion consultant, fashion forecaster, fashion illustrator, merchandiser etc.
These designers either work for wholesalers and manufacturers or are self-employed, designing for individual clients or specialty stores. Therefore, selecting a fashion course to enroll in will depend largely on your interests, the field you would like to specialise in and the expertise that you are hoping to attain. Most courses have a minimum English language requirement as a prerequisite and the degree and diploma courses expect a portfolio submission.
MDIS School of Fashion & Design
Why study here? MDIS, founded in 1956 is Singapore’s oldest not-for-profit professional institute for lifelong learning, and it received its EduTrust Certification by the Council for Private Education in 2010. Its undergraduate programmes are offered together with its university partner, Nottingham Trent University.
Courses offered:
* Diploma in Fashion Design & Marketing
Duration: 1 year
Intake: March, May, September
* Bachelor of Arts (Hons) Fashion Design
Duration: 3 years
Intake: May, September (full-time courses).
LaSalle College of the Arts
Why study here? LaSalle is a non-profit, private educational institution operating autonomously with financial support from the Singapore Ministry of Education. LaSalle believes in shared experiences gained through creative collision between students, alumni, and faculty and it boasts of Asia-Pacific’s widest range of courses offered. Notable alumni include Sunny Lim, Founder and Designer, MILS and Goh Ling Ling, Founder and Designer, Ling Wu.
Courses offered:
* Diploma in Fashion
Duration: 3 years
Intake: August and January
* BA (Hons) in Fashion Design & Textiles (menswear)
* BA (Hons) in Fashion Design & Textiles (womenswear)
* BA (Hons) Fashion Media and Industries
Duration: 3 years
Intake: August and January
Raffles Design Institute
Why study here? Founded in 1990, Raffles Design Institute is one of the first private institutions to offer a Fashion Design course. Over the years, students from Raffles Design Institute have won numerous competitions. Raffles Alumni Sven Tan, who has dressed celebrities like Fergie, Michelle Yeoh, Lucy Liu, Danni Minogue and Zhang Ziyi, is now co-owners of fashion label, ‘In Good Company.’
Courses offered:
* Bachelor of Design with Major in Fashion Design
Duration: 3 Years (Full-time)
Intake: January, April, July and October
* Master of Design specialising in Fashion Design
Duration: 1 Year
Intake: January and July
NAFA (Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts)
Why study here? With three purpose-built campuses in the arts belt, NAFA is within walking distance from major performing venues, museums and arts groups. It has a low lecturer-to-student ratio and offers partnership programmes with reputable universities in the United Kingdom. In a survey conducted in 2011, NAFA diploma and degree holders gained employment within three months of graduation.
Courses offered:
* Diplomas in Fashion Design
* Diploma in Fashion Merchandising and Marketing.
Duration: 2 Years
Intake: July
* Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Fashion (Top Up) in collaboration with University of East London
* Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Fashion and Marketing (Top Up) in collaboration with University of East London
Duration: 3 years
The Academy of Fashion Professions
Why study here? They have local and global fashion collaborations enabling the Academy to stay in line with leading national and international fashion industry. The in-depth knowledge of pre-production processes within the fashion industry enables their students to move up the supply chain through capacity development in Merchandising, Design and Product Development.
Courses offered:
* WSQ Diploma in Fashion Technology (either in Merchanhandising & Marketing or in Apparel Design and Product Development).
Duration: 3 Months
Intake: April, September and February
First Media Professional Training Centre
Why study here? First Media Design School (FMDS) is a specialised boutique design institution offering only designing, design management and design entrepreneurship programmes. It is the education arm under the First Media Design Group
Courses offered:
The courses offered vary, depending on the awarding partner university and has time duration between 12 months to 24 months for BA Honours. One of them is BA Honours, Fashion (Top-up)
* BA (Honours) Fashion (Top-up)
Duration: 1 Year or 720 contact hours
Intake: June
* Advanced Diploma in Fashion Design and Merchandising
Duration- 2 Years
Intake: January, April, July and October.
Palin School of Art & Design
Why study here? They allow flexibility in learning as subjects are conducted on short or long term, part-time or full-time attendance basis for each category of courses.
Courses offered:
* Part time fashion design courses
