Offers from universities...

Unsuccessful offers...

- Edinburgh and Westminster declined my offer due to me not showing to be a suitable candidate...

- Central Saint Martins declined my offer because I didn't meet their standards or their course was full...

Offers I did get...

After visiting Instituto I decided it was where I wanted to go...

UCAS update....

Recent updates on Universities....Edinburgh and Westminster Rejected my application on the grounds that I was an unsuitable candidate and did not show enough potential in my portfolio....

However London College of Fashion hae offered me a coditionnal place on the Fashion Design and Developement course, on the condition that I recieve a MMM grade in my BTEC.

Universities I am apllying for...

London College of Fashion - Fashion Design and Developement
The BA (Hons) Fashion Design and Development course is situated in the School of Design and Technology, and is concerned with the design, development and realisation of fashion products for the fashion clothing industry. You will learn the skills of research, how to produce initial design ideas, and how to develop designs through to a finished 3D prototype. You will gain a comprehensive understanding of the fashion industry, its markets, and the particular role of the fashion product designer and developer within the industry.  Fashion Design and Development is one of a group of fashion product courses, all of which are designed and delivered with employment in the relevant industry in mind. To this end you will study a range of units that will equip you with the relevant professional, communication and business skills, and undertake live projects set by industry where there will be presentations to and from the companies involved. You will have the option of doing a placement year in the industry between the second and final year of the course. Successful completion of this year will give you an additional qualification, and you will have the opportunity to make contacts and build valuable relationships for your future career before the end of your studies. This course focuses on producing graduates who are encouraged to make an innovative and visionary contribution to product development within the fashion industry.
BA (Hons) Fashion Design and Development is based at Curtain Road in Shoreditch, on the edge of the City of London and very near to Hoxton. The area is rich in creative studios, fashion PR companies, magazine head offices, art galleries and hip restaurants, bars and clubs. Specialist markets nearby include Spitalfields and Columbia Road, the White Cube Gallery is just down the road in Hoxton Square and the Geffrye Museum is a short walk away at the bottom end of Kingsland Road.

Course Structure

Year One             Stage One             level 4                        120 credits 
Term One: Introduction to Study in Higher Education (20 credits); Product Technologies (20 credits)
Term Two: Introduction to Cultural and Historical Studies (20 credits); Product Creativity and Communication (20 credits)
Term Three: Product Design and Development (40 credits)

Year Two            Stage Two            level 5                        120 credits
Term One: Cultural and Historical Studies (20 credits); Creative Professional Practice (20 credits)
Term Two: Research Methods for Product Development (20 credits); Creative Industry Practice (20 credits)
Term Three: Industry Project (40 credits)

Professional Placement Year (optional)
Diploma in Professional Studies

Final Year            Stage Three            level 6                        120 credits
Term One: Concept Development (40 credits)
Terms One Two and Three: Contextualising Your Practice (20 credits)
Terms Two and Three: Product Design and Realisation (60 credits)

Edinburgh University - Fashion Design 

Overview

Contemporary Fashion Design can often be seen as a reactionary movement to the social and economic climes of our modern age. The fashion industry has multiplied vastly over the last twenty years, consisting of designers with far-reaching and diverse styles, serving many markets and cultures. As a result of this expansion, the need for individuality is paramount to making a mark within the industry.
At Edinburgh College of Art we have developed a unique and cutting-edge fashion course with a strong emphasis on personal creative freedom and design innovation that ensures our students have the best chance of employment and career development upon graduation.
Our Fashion degree offers a comprehensive programme of study for individuals interested in pursuing a career within the fashion industry. It is unique in its approach to fashion research and design practice and offers invaluable creative design experience by developing your understanding of design, contexts, illustration, accessories, knitwear, creative cutting techniques and applied surface decoration.
We believe that the only way to create the fashion innovators of the future is to promote the students individuality by cultivating expressive and conceptual design abilities. The course enables students to become independent thinkers with an advanced knowledge of the industry by offering a coherent and balanced teaching experience, symbiotically integrating technical, artistic, and design based projects.
Integrated with the practical studio work, contextual and theoretical studies provide a sound understanding of the holistic nature of contemporary fashion design.

Westminster - Fashion Design 
 

This course has an outstanding reputation for developing highly talented and original fashion graduates. We specialise in enabling you to become an individual and creative designer, capable of working within all levels of the international fashion industry.
Throughout the course, the emphasis is on the development of your personal design philosophy. The course offers a comprehensive design education for dedicated and ambitious individuals looking for a specialist career in the creative arena of the fashion industry. Work placements on both the three-year and sandwich course are undertaken at leading international fashion companies and have included Alexander McQueen, Celine, Christopher Kane, Tom Ford, Marc Jacobs, Chanel, Dior, Alexander Wang, Diane Von Furstenburg, Lanvin, Givenchy and Balenciaga.
Course graduates include Christopher Bailey, Chief Creative Officer of Burberry; Claire Barrow; Ashley Williams; Michael Herz, Creative Director of Bally; Katie Hillier, Consultant Accessory Designer for Marc Jacobs; Jutta Kraus, Creative Director of Bernhard Willhelm; Carri Mundane, Creative Director of Cassette Playa; and Stuart Vevers, Creative Director of Loewe.

Course content

The course’s philosophy is to develop you as an individual to become an innovative and creative designer, and challenge you to develop an aesthetic style relevant to the contemporary international fashion industry. The course’s exceptional links with the fashion industry ensure fast-track access to both cutting-edge and established designers.

Year 1 (Credit Level 4)

This level covers the basic elements of the fashion design discipline, including 2D and 3D practice, design, research, illustration, pattern cutting, construction, trend research, print and CAD. Modules include:

• Experimental Design and Modernity
• Fashion Research for Design Development
• Introduction to Design Development and Creative Cut
• Introduction to Fabrication and Print
• Introduction to Tailoring and Menswear
• Technology for Illustration

Year 2 (Credit Level 5)

In the second year you will focus on working with the fashion industry, either with live projects set by industry partners, or through a sustained eight-week period of work placement within the international fashion industry. You will be encouraged to develop a more personal design style, and to develop collections through research, design development and design translation. Modules include:

• Design for Sportswear
• Future Textiles Fabrication and Print
• Historical Research for Design Innovation
• Industrial Work Placement
• The Fashion Business Proposal

Optional sandwich placement year The optional year-long industry placement between Years 2 and 3 allows you to put into practice your learning to date and to apply it to the context of the international fashion industry. The optional sandwich year is subject to an annual University administration fee. Work placements on both the three-year and sandwich course are undertaken at leading fashion organisations.

Optional sandwich placement year

The optional year-long industry placement between Years 2 and 3 allows you to put into practice your learning to date and to apply it to the context of the international fashion industry. The optional sandwich year is subject to an annual university administration fee. Work placements on both the three-year and sandwich course are undertaken at leading fashion organisations.

Year 3 (Credit Level 6)

You will develop your signature design style, leading to a final portfolio and a fully realised runway collection. You will also develop a diffusion collection from this, and a personal marketing strategy. An industry panel of designers and journalists selects the very best students from the final year to present their collections at a runway show to the fashion industry in May.
Additionally all graduate students also feature on our own portfolio website, at westminsterfashion.com
Subjects of study include:

• Brand Identity and the Fashion Product
• Fashion Thesis
• Final Portfolio Project
• Major Project: Research, Pre-collection, Design and Realisation
• Market Specific Portfolio

For more information visit westminster.ac.uk/fashion
Selection for the course is highly competitive, and we do not take students straight from A Levels. You will need to have at least five GCSE passes at Grade C or above, including English and Maths, and at least DDM in a BTEC National Award or HNC/HND, or have completed an appropriate Access or Foundation course with a Distinction. If you meet the entry requirements you will be asked to submit example pages from your portfolio. If you are then invited to an interview, you will be asked to present your full portfolio. We are looking for creative individuals who can show evidence of personal expression, creative ideas, related skills, and a depth of subject knowledge.

Why I want to apply to this course... 

 Fashion has always been an interest of mine. I have always been fascinated by the industry that employs, creates and celebrates artists of all kinds, photographers, Actors, film directors, graphic designers, clothing designers etc. Fashion represents something so powerful...a concept, an idea, a lifestyle, a story...It celebrates us as individuals from affar and is everywhere in our lives. The coursae I have chosen will not onl give teach me the knowledge of how this industry workd, but will give me the oppurtunities to actally go into the industry and make a name for myself. 

Central Saint Martins is a celebrated art university. I feel my BTEC experience at BRIT and my personal interest in fashion and the arts willl help me thrive there.

Additionally, I vvisited the college and have seen the studios and work places and completely fell in love with the entire place. CSM is my first choice in my UCAS application.
 

University course I am applying to...

Central Saint Martins - Fashion Design and Marketing
The BA Fashion curriculum is flexible, providing excellent scope for networking with the fashion industry. Active learning through project-based enquiry is a cornerstone. You'll do collaborative projects that involve working together in mixed pathway groups or with external professionals and sponsors (e.g. L'Oreal Professionel, Christian Dior, Louis Vuitton, Tie Rack, Solstiss, Liberty, Paul Smith, Victoria and Albert Museum). This promotes interdisciplinary peer learning. It helps you develop the ability to work with others, the capacity for independent learning, and greater awareness of the skills you'll need to further your career. Visiting lecturers include Wakako Kishimoto, Mark Fast, Emma Cooke and Jean-Pierre Braganza.

Length of study for all design pathways is three or four years. You can apply to interrupt your degree course after two years full time study to do a period of work placement (subject to academic approval). If you meet the approved requirements of this work placement period you'll qualify additionally for the Diploma in Professional Studies.

BA Fashion runs for 90 weeks full time over three years, and is divided into three Levels, (or Stages) each lasting 30 weeks. The whole degree course is credit-rated at 360 credits, with 120 credits at each Level.

Under the Framework for Higher Education Qualifications the Levels for a BA are: Level 4 (which is stage 1 of the course), Level 5 (Stage 2) and Level 6 (Stage 3).
There's a progression point at the end of each Level and, in order to progress, all units of the preceding Level must normally have been passed.
If you're unable to continue on the course a Certificate of Higher Education (Cert HE) will normally be offered following the successful completion of Level 4, or a Diploma in Higher Education following the successful completion of Level 5.
To gain a BA (Honours), students must successfully complete 360 credits. The final award consists of marks from Level 6 units only, weighted according to their credits.
At enrolment you need to identify if you wish to study for three years full time or take the four-year mode. The work placement takes place at the end of Stage Two. A Diploma in Professional Studies is awarded on successful completion of this year.

Course outline

This pathway is for designers who want to contribute innovative ideas to marketing activities operating alongside the international design industry today. Clothing, at the heart of lifestyle choice, is marketed in association with beauty products, music, food, interiors, fine art and more. Within this contextual mix, our graduating students play an important role as designers, marketing specialists and fashion consultants.

The pathway benefits from collaboration with sponsors and from teaching by a range of practitioners working in design and marketing. They include specialists in fashion design, forecasting, branding, product development, public relations and advertising.

Acknowledging the importance of global communication, the pathway introduces you to processes for communicating design information to international manufacturers and consumers within specific markets, actual or projected. Your presentations will feature personal signature clothes aligned to labelling and packaging ideas and must be supported by a convincing rationale linking product to consumer. Today's global fashion design and marketing industry demands creative, articulate, highly organised individuals with communications flair. This pathway meets that demand.

Main study - Stage One

This stage lays the foundation for the generation and development of design ideas through practical or technical workshops. While focusing on the unique aspects of your chosen pathway, Stage One introduces you to related pathways, encouraging you to research, explore and develop individual strengths and approaches.

Main study - Stage Two

This stage carries you deeper into your pathway, allowing you to develop a variety of approaches through individual and often experimental responses while acquiring the discipline demanded by professional practice. Through a combination of studio work, formal tutorial guidance, seminars, lectures, external projects, competitions, critiques, personal research, independent study and team projects, you'll explore the breadth of your subjects and develop your individual talents in relation to them. During this stage you'll benefit from the learning experience gained from helping our final year students prepare work for the degree shows.
You may also have the opportunity to go abroad (at your own expense) during this year to visit trade shows or fashion collections relevant to your field of study.
At the beginning of the summer term, students on the four-year programme are involved in the planning and preparation for their work placement. Exceptionally, three-year full-time students may apply to transfer to the four-year mode to do a work placement. Such applications have to be made via the Placement Administrator.

Main study - Stage Three

The focus during Stage Three is on the further development of your individuality and independence as you initiate, develop and complete your final degree project. Your course work helps you locate, explore and exploit your design and communication strengths while identifying areas that may require further attention or focus.
In the summer term you complete your degree work for examination. As part of this process design pathway students participate in an assessment presentation of collections, normally in the form of a fashion show. You'll also show work in a degree examination exhibition.

Cultural studies

The cultural studies programme is designed to enhance your communication, research, critical and writing skills. The discipline involves the study of cultural and creative processes, but goes beyond history and theory of art and design to encompass various aspects of cultural knowledge. In stage one and two you attend lectures and seminars on units relating to the city and creative culture, you explore key cultural concepts and choose from a range of elective choices such as art and fashion, postcolonialism, visual cultures, the body and sexuality. In the final stage of your degree you undertake dissertation research under the supervision of an assigned tutor who supports your research on a subject of your choice. It may be weighted at 20 or 40 credits. The dissertation is a written project where you explore an aspect of visual, textual material or spatial culture. There are many areas to explore in the cultural studies programme such as art, design, technology, concepts of taste, material culture, multiculturalism, identity politics, gender, consumerism, ethics, sustainability and media studies.
Personal and Professional Development, (PPD) helps to prepare you for employment and career development by providing you with skills to enable you to take responsibility for your own learning. The core study of all the fashion pathways also helps develop many of these transferable skills, which play their part in equipping you for a professional career and the generic activities of creative practice.
PPD is integral to BA Fashion and is embedded in many aspects of both the studio and cultural studies programmes as a planned part of their structure and learning content. PPD activities take place in all Stages of the degree course and aim to improve your capacity to understand what and how you are learning and to help you to review, plan and take responsibility for your own learning. A considerable number of the skills learned in the academic context of BA Fashion have a wider value and use in other areas of life. These transferable skills are highly valued by employers

Portfolio Work 2

I have been scanning my work from the previous year into the computer to create an online portfolio for people and universities to view. Here are a few images...