Fashion Communication & Industry Practice

This new version of our industry-focused two-year degree programme offers a unique opportunity for you to learn about the fashion and media industries from within Cond Nast, a global mass media company.

Our BA (Hons) Fashion Communication & Industry Practice programme introduces you to communication concepts and industry practices specific to fashion, media, and the wider creative industries, including beauty and lifestyle. This broad-based multi-disciplinary course examines a range of areas that include:

• fashion marketing and promotion
• branding, business, and management
• fashion styling
• image-making
• photography, film, and creative direction
• graphic & digital design
• fashion magazines, media & journalism
• fashion campaign strategies and content creation

The course covers essential theory and practice, offering you direct exposure to and interaction with industry professionals. The curriculum is designed to allow for flexibility so that the newest and emerging trends, philosophical debates, theoretical approaches, and industry practices can be integrated into your learning experience. The course encourages you to consider diverse attitudes and cultural viewpoints; recognising fashion's role and significance in cultural, economic, global, local, and community contexts.

The aim of this programme is to enable you to achieve an Honours Degree in Fashion Communication, and in so doing, develop your knowledge and understanding of industry practice, through learning and interaction with professionals within the fashion, media, and associated industries.

The course is designed to allow you to explore both the strategic and the creative facets of the fashion and media industries, investigating how the two work in tandem. The aim is to accommodate those of you who prefer hands-on creative subjects such as styling, art direction, or image-making; as well as those of you who prefer taking a more strategic or business-minded approach, plus of course, those who want to look at fashion from both perspectives.

The key aims of the programme are to:

• Introduce you to the social, cultural, economic, and political histories from which fashion, media, and communication practices have emerged
• Provide a platform for debate, encouraging you to explore possible and likely scenarios for the future of the fashion and media industries, with a focus on the potential for systemic and positive change
• Develop your communication skills across a variety of media, with an emphasis on the understanding of both strategic and creative outputs 
• Provide opportunities for you to develop key transferable skills in research and analysis, intellectual autonomy, creative thinking, innovation, and the production of creative and strategic outputs
• Enable you to develop knowledge and understanding of industry practice, through learning and interaction with professionals within the fashion, media, and associated industries 
• Support you to determine your personal and professional strengths through critical reflection, with a view to identifying and pursuing a suitable career path within fashion, media, and related industries, or continuing with further study within Higher Education.
• On completion of your BA you will also be awarded Chartered Management Institute (CMI) Level 5 Award in Management and Leadership

Our BA (Hons) Fashion Communication degree is validated by the University of Buckingham. The University of Buckingham was named the University of the Year for student satisfaction by The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide in 2019 and is one of only two private universities in the UK

Unique Features of the Course

The Cond Nast College has unrivalled access to the best and brightest minds in the industry, including the editorial and business teams within Cond Nast, responsible for titles including; Vogue, GQ, Glamour, Tatler, House & Garden, World of Interiors and WIRED. The College is in the elevated position of being able to combine academic excellence with unrivalled links to the fashion and media industry. This creates a unique educational environment in which you will undertake your studies. 

Key to the course are the Fashion Industry Placement module and the Collaborative Industry Project. These modules give you an opportunity to interact with and learn from industry professionals. You will undertake your placement for four weeks during the summer at the end of year 1, returning in the autumn when you will work on a live industry brief set by a partner company. Previous industry project partners include Vogue, Louis Vuitton, Jaguar Land Rover, Este Lauder, Cond Nast Contract Publishing, Modus PR, Manolo Blahnik, GQ, Hugo Boss, Coach, Mtier London, and Penhaligon's.

The two-year programme takes place over 8 terms with transition from level 4 to level 5 taking place in term 3, and transition from level 5 to 6, taking place in term 6.

The course offers a unique blend combining academic rigour and industry engagement with practical and professional skills acquisition, drawing on the expertise of Cond Nast Publications and the College's wide network of industry professionals.

You are encouraged to develop your understanding of how the fast-paced and ever-changing fashion and media industries operate, and to consider your potential future role within these industries.

Course Schedule Year 1

Course Structure

Exceptional ideas and eye-opening perspectives come from everywhere and anywhere. We are looking for those of you who want to learn about the fashion and media industries and believe you may have something important to say about the future direction of fashion.  If you would like to join our broad community of students, academics, industry professionals, and alumni"¦if you value imagination, creativity, and innovation and are open to new ideas, then this could be the course for you.

Students must be aged at least 18 years old on 31st August at the start of the academic year in which they intend to join this course. An academic year runs 1st September-31st August annually. For the duration of the academic year, a student is considered to be their academic age for admissions purposes, regardless of when their birthday falls within that academic year.

The standard entry requirements for this course are:

• Three A-levels graded BBB, or an equivalent EU / international qualification
• GCSE English and Maths at Grade C (4) or above
• Aged 18 years or older on the first day of the course

The College also accepts equivalent qualifications, such as BTEC and International Baccalaureate Diploma qualifications; the preferred International Baccalaureate (IB) score is between 28-32.

Cond Nast College students who have completed a Vogue Fashion Certificate or Foundation Programme can also apply for this course.

Completion of a Diploma in Foundation Studies (Art & Design or Art, Design & Media) also fulfils the entry requirements.

With our unique access to the fashion industry, the College prepares students for employment through live industry projects and provides expert career advice to students and graduates.

Throughout your time here, you are encouraged to develop your own industry links and arrange a placement that will contribute to your study and professional development, while broadening your knowledge of specific roles and careers.

The personal and professional development of students is a constant focus throughout the course and is key in the process of securing placements and identifying future careers within the fashion industry.

Recent technological advancements have created new opportunities within fashion communication and there are now plenty of varied and exciting career opportunities in both publishing and brand communication. The boundaries between retail and media have broken down to create an exciting creative landscape for media communication across all aspects of the fashion and lifestyle industries, resulting in a broad range of job opportunities.

Students on this course will also have access to our Career Services including, but not limited to:

• Strengths testing
• CV editing
• Mock Interviews
• Career path planning

You can apply via the Book & Pay button Or Apply button on the course home page.

1. Obtain Confirmation of Acceptance of Studies (CAS) from the admissions office after receiving your offer, but no more than 6 months before the course start date. 
2. Complete Student Visa application form online, (if you plan to apply from within the UK, check to make sure you are eligible
3. Pay immigration health surcharge and application fee
4. Book a biometric appointment at a visa application centre (to get a biometric residence permit) as part of your application
5. Attend biometrics appointment (scan and upload your documents before the appointment)
6. Attend credibility interview (if asked to do so)
7. Home Office will contact you with a decision (often within three weeks, but visa processing times vary by country)
8. If your visa is refused, please contact the admissions team at [email protected] and attach your visa refusal letter
9. Collect your biometric residence permit (BRP) within 10 days of your arrival in the UK (or, if you applied within the UK, your BRP will be posted directly to you).