BA (Hons) Fashion and Textiles with Foundation Year

Why study this subject?

In an ever-changing industry you will develop innovative fashion and textile responses from personal influences and industry led fashion and textile trends. As the industry faces ethical, social and sustainable change you will gain greater awareness of what this means to you as a designer and practitioner.

Why study at Buckinghamshire New University?

With a history of delivery expert craft, art and design education for more than 130 years, Buckinghamshire New University is the perfect place to start your creative career. Our Fashion and Textile courses are also ranked 7^th best in the whole of the UK (The Guardian League Tables 2022).

With a comprehensive range of knowledge in the industry, our experienced and specialist course team are a mix of experienced designers, current industry practitioners and researchers. Each being someone who can help you develop your ideas into professional-standard garments, artefacts or samples.

You’ll benefit from being part of our vibrant and dynamic design studio community, where you’ll work alongside students from the Textiles, Costume Design and Making, Fashion Promotion and Communication and Fashion Design courses.

This fast-paced course will teach you how to excel at every step, from concept, construction through to final creation. You can bring your garments and ideas to life in our fashion and textile specialist workshop. As well as this you will be assigned your own personal workspace where you can continue to work independently around your timetabled lessons.

With our strong links with the fashion and textile industry, you’ll get direct access to guest lectures, master classes, and plenty of networking opportunities with leading designers. You'll have the opportunity to externally exhibit and showcase your work  in our annual art and design show.

Throughout your course you will have the opportunity to take part in international competitions, including British Fashion Council reviews, competitions, exhibitions and the BNU Summer Show.

With London only a short journey away, you can take the opportunity to visit some of the world’s best shops, galleries and museums for inspiration.

What facilities can I use?

In our professional working studio, you’ll have your own personal workspace equipped with the technology and machines you need to create your designs.

You’ll have the opportunity to work on industry standard equipment, learning key techniques and methods. You will master materials, both through traditional methods and using digital software.

We also have specialist technicians on site to support and share their knowledge with you, when and if you need it.

What will I study?

At the core of the BA (Hons) Fashion and Textiles course you can find creativity, innovative thinking and an exploration of contemporary approaches to the creation of textiles for fashion.

This course is for individuals who want to innovate through both disciplines – fashion and textiles.

You'll explore many areas within the fashion and textiles industry, including construction, knit, woven fabric and composition of materials. Alongside this you will be supported as you develop your individual strengths, building a small collection and portfolio to launch you into the design industry on graduation.

Industry connections

With regular visiting lectures and workshops led by industry this is just a snapshot of our connections.

British Fashion Council - The Fashion Design course is a member of the British Council collages organisation which allows the students to work on industry-led briefs and competitions and guest lectures from brands such as Burberry, Topshop and Armani, Stella McCartney and many others.

Lara Jensen - Costume designer and milliner, Lara has has worked with some of fashion and film's biggest names, including Karl Lagerfeld, Jonas Akerlund, Peaches, Jessie J and Lady Gaga. Lara has previously led workshops with our Fashion Design students.

Mackintosh - Working on a brief from Mackintosh our students extend their knowledge of attributes that are key to designing outerwear garments, including market levels, trend analysis and customer demographics. With the final garment and technical pack to industry standard.

New Star - New Star are denim specialists in new product development, sustainable innovation and production for the sector across Turkey, Egypt, Bangladesh and Pakistan. New Star create everything from everyday basics to high-end fashion and provide an insight into global working with their visiting lectures.

UKFT - During 2020-21, UKFT provided masterclasses and extended industry connections with the fashion design course. We were one of just five UK providers chosen to take part of the Made it collaboration.

WGSN - Guest lectures by WGSN provide the latest consumer and design trends product design and consumer forecasts, curated data and industry expertise to help innovators create the right products at the right time for tomorrow's consumer.

How will I be taught and assessed?

This course is offered as a four-year programme, including an initial Foundation Year. The Foundation Year will allow you to develop your academic study skills and build confidence in your abilities, identifying your own strengths and development needs for progression onto an undergraduate degree.

This course is 75% practice-based so you will have ample opportunity to develop your subject through a hands-on, experimental approach. You’ll get to enjoy a friendly, supportive and stimulating learning environment. This enables you to focus on perfecting your specialism, while developing your creativity and confidence.

As well as working on your own briefs, you’ll be able to meet, and work on, industry-based projects with leading designers. The Red Shed also often has guest speakers and past alumni come in to talk and cover a range of areas from fashion design, costume, styling, brand consultancy and fashion PR.

From day one to graduation, you will be making connections ,and designing and creating garments for an extensive portfolio. Meaning you’re working on your career the very moment you begin your course.

Placements Plus

BNU is a Placements Plus university. So, whatever degree you do, you can be sure there’ll be plenty of industry-relevant opportunities on offer, to help you get into your chosen field.

We’ll also prepare you for work beforehand, with special skills for work training, further boosting your CV, and building skills employers will value. In recognition of the value we place on these skills we have incorporated this experience into your study time.

Placements Plus is all about helping you get some valuable experience under your belt while you’re a student, to increase your choices later, and help you get the graduate-level job you want.