Fashion Design BA Honours

University of Westminster

United Kingdom, London

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University of Westminster

United Kingdom , London

Key Facts

Program Level

Bachelor

Study Type

Full Time

Delivery

On Campus

Course Code

W230

Campuses

Harrow

Program Language

English

Start & Deadlines

Next Intake DeadlinesSeptember-2026

Apply to this program

Go to the official application for the university

Duration 3 year(s)

Tuition Fee

GBP 17,600 / year

Next Intake September-2026

Fashion Design BA Honours

About

Course summary

Our Fashion Design BA has an exceptional reputation for being aligned with the international fashion industry and enabling you to have outstanding opportunities to engage with the industry throughout your course.

We specialise in helping you to become a highly original and individual creative designer, capable of working at the highest levels of the international fashion industry. We were the first undergraduate course to show at London Fashion Week, and able to show in February 2020, prior to the national lockdown. In 2021, when unable to have a live show, we collaborated with SHOWstudio to present graduate work using fashion film and a documentary, before returning to a live catwalk show in 2022 to close London Fashion Week.

In 2023, we opened London Fashion Week with our catwalk show. The 2024 catwalk show attracted a capacity crowd and generated a large amount of global press and social media reach.

Throughout our course, the emphasis is on the development of your personal design philosophy with an understanding of the changing context of fashion due to climate and societal changes. We are committed to sustainability and diversity and place this at the core of our teaching. The course offers a comprehensive design education for dedicated and ambitious individuals looking for a specialist career in the international fashion industry. You'll also gain the transferable and cognitive skills necessary for lifelong personal and professional development alongside up-to-date digital skills for fashion design.

Our students gain an enormous amount of specific and transferable knowledge from working within the fashion industry, whether these are in the context of ‘live’ design projects at university or out on extended periods of work placement.

Internships on both the three-year and with Professional Experience course take place with leading international fashion companies and have previously included Acne, Adidas, Alexander McQueen, Anya Hindmarch, Balenciaga, Balmain, Burberry, Celine, Charles Jeffrey Loverboy, Dior, Dunhill, Ferragamo, Fred Perry, Gucci, Gym shark, H&M, J.W. Anderson, Jacquemus, Kenzo, Loewe, Louis Vuitton, Maison Margiela, Marc Jacobs, Martine Rose, MaxMara, Norse Projects, Paul Smith, Phoebe Philo, Preen, Pull & Bear, Rapha, Rick Owens, Thom Browne, Tiger, Tom Ford, Versace, Vivienne Westwood, Wales Bonner, Walter Van Beirendonck, Wood Wood and Zara.

Opportunities to engage with the international fashion industry through set live briefs with companies have previously included FENTY, The Gap, CLOSED denim, Epson, Topshop, H&M, ISKO Denim, Max Mara, Abercrombie and ASOS.

Course graduates include London Fashion Week designers Steven Stokey Daley (2022 LVMH Prize winner), Paolo Carzana (2024 LVMH Prize Shortlist), Roberta Einer, Ashley Williams, as well as Stuart Vevers, Creative Director of Coach, Christopher Bailey and Katie Hillier.

Our previous Fashion Design BA graduates have gained employment at companies including Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, Burberry, Dunhill, Ferragamo, H&M, Loewe, Louis Vuitton, Maison Margiela, Paul Smith, Phoebe Philo, Vivienne Westwood and Zara.

Top reasons to study with us

London Fashion Week opportunities – We were the first undergraduate course in the world to show a selection of our students on the official London Fashion Week schedule
Outstanding design facilities – You’ll have a dedicated studio equipped with industrial sewing machines, pattern-cutting tables and mannequins
Industry links – Our course has exceptional industry connections to support you with your career
Sustainability, diversity and digital skills – Our course has invested in developing expertise in design for sustainability, a decolonised curriculum and a commitment to diversity and digital skills for fashion design, including training in CLO 3D
Award-winning students – Our student success is recognised internationally with recent awards, including the FACE Excellence Award 2023 and 2024, Arts Thread/Gucci prize – Sports & Denim 2021, SHOWstudio Graduates to Watch 2021, DRAWFASHION Illustration Prize (2020), FENTY Design Project (2020)
Westminster is ranked 2nd in the UK in the Complete University Guide 2023 for ‘Research Quality’ in Art and Design

Requirements

Entry Requirements

Level 3 Foundation Diploma in Art and Design – Pass
International Baccalaureate – 128 UCAS Tariff points from the IB, to include HL 6 in Visual Arts
BTEC Extended Diploma – DDM in Art & Design or arts related subject
UAL Extended Diploma – Merit
Access – 128 UCAS Tariff points from the Access course in an Art & Design or arts related subject
First year of a university degree in an art and design subject

Please note: A levels – we do not accept A Levels or country specific equivalent awards such Abitur, French Baccalaureat, Scottish and Irish Highers or High School Diplomas.

In addition to one of the above, you should have:

GCSE English Language grade 4/C – IB grade 4 Higher level, GCSE Maths grade 4/C – IB grade 4

Selected applicant will be invited to present a portfolio of their work. We do not consider applications for year 2 or above. We do not offer deferred entry.

English language requirements

If your first language is not English, you will need an IELTS of 6.0 overall with 6.0 writing and speaking. Please note we accept a wide range of English language qualifications and assessments. Find out more at English language requirements.
If you don't meet the English language requirements yet, then we offer online and on campus pre-sessional English programmes to help develop your English language skills to the required level before you start your course. Find out more about our pre-sessional English programmes.

More information

Portfolio guidance

To be able to gain an understanding of you as a practitioner and your current breadth and depth of fashion related knowledge, we would like to see an edited sample portfolio of recent work.

What should I include in my portfolio submission?

Your edited sample portfolio should not exceed 10 pages and should include:

A minimum of three pages of fashion related research. Use your own photographs, sketches, notes, and gathered inspirational images, etc.
At least three pages of design development from your initial related research. These can be a mix of hand-drawn, collage and computer work. This development work can also include sewn samples, knit, print etc.
At least two pages of your outcome developed from, and in response to, your research and design development above. Demonstrated through photographs of the work, in close-up etc.
At least one page that demonstrates either your skills in drawing (for example a fashion illustration) or demonstrates your personal inspirations/skills (outside of your Foundation or BTech project work).
One page of fashion illustration that shows your skills in drawing while also showing your awareness of contemporary fashion and fashion illustration.

How should I structure my portfolio?

Please prepare a portfolio and save it on a free website such as Flickr, Dropbox, Behance, Issuu, Google or any other portfolio platform. We would like you to copy and paste the portfolio web-link onto a Word document and upload that document to the Applicant Portal, as per instructions on the cover email. Please ensure that we can view the portfolio publicly by simply clicking on the link and that there are no passwords or expiry dates. Please type your full name and reference number on each page. Do not upload the portfolio as a PDF – links only please! Please note that we will not accept portfolios sent by email.

How will my portfolio be evaluated?

Your portfolio will be reviewed by a member of the academic team and some applicants will be invited for interview. We are keen that you use this process to help us to understand you as an individual, including your skills, your inspirations and current expertise. We are keen to see a broad range of your work within the limits of an edited online portfolio of no more than 10 pages.

What happens next?

If you upload your work by the deadline, it will be reviewed by the course tutors, and a decision will be made. Selected applicants will be invited to either an in-person or online 15 minute interview where you can show a full portfolio of your recent work. they will let the admission team know and they will contact you directly.

Top Tip from our course team

Check out the Westminster fashion Instagram to see images of current students work and https://degree-shows.westminster.ac.uk to see recent graduates work.

Please do not send in portfolios until requested to do so by the University's Admissions team. You will be notified by email about when to submit your portfolio.

Career

Graduates of the course are incredibly successful in the international fashion industry with many of our students going directly into fashion design roles, predominantly as designers or assistant designers working within established companies.

With a growing global network of 3,000 employers, our Careers and Employability Service is here to support you to achieve your full potential.

Many of our courses offer international study and work experiences, and the University provides other global opportunities that all students can apply for - so whatever you're studying, you'll have the chance to go abroad.

Opportunities could include: