Fashion MA
Why choose this course?
We were ranked No.1 in London and No.2 in the UK for fashion in the Guardian University League Tables 2023.
The Fashion MA at Kingston University is a unique and innovative course combining the creative thinking of the Design School's core beliefs with a very solid and 'creative' fashion industry focus.
The course equips students with the skills and attributes to thrive in a professional environment shaped by rapid cultural and technological change. The role of the fashion designer is changing within a digital age that embraces current and emerging digital technologies and the pre-digital methodologies of designing through making that are associated with the craft of fashion. Fashion MA designers will respond to this shift by applying inventive, daring and responsible approaches to fashion practice, including a return to ‘pre-digital' crafts, experimenting with new digital crafts, and /or adopting a hybrid practice which explores the innovative potential of synthesising digital technologies within crafts-based practice. This aligns with Kingston University's Town House Strategy and the development of students' future skills where they are actively encouraged to explore new and unfamiliar processes and techniques and use these to experiment and innovate within their own disciplines and individual creative practices.
The ethos of Kingston School of Art is thinking through making and Fashion MA students will not only realise their 2D ideas in 3D but will also use the 3D process to generate ideas in 2D, establishing the craft of fashion in response to the broader environment of AI and digital technologies. Students will explore making for design through the production of samples and modelling on the stand as a methodology that produces innovation.
Fashion MA students will synthesise their individual design identities through a series of challenging projects that elevate the students' approach to research skills, their ability to critically reflect and analyse their work and the work of other practitioners. The projects hone the students' ability to design responsibly, their communication skills, and their ability to think through making as a methodology that enables thoroughly considered and industry-appropriate outcomes. As the students progress through the modules over the course of the academic year, they will also consider the professional application of their work and develop the professional skills needed for their future careers. This approach to PG fashion design education aligns with KU's Future Skills strategy.
Key features
The Fashion MA focuses on the craft of making enables skill-based making practices for elevated design outputs, which include exploration and innovation of manufacture, fabrication, responsible approaches to garment construction and slower small-scale production. This aligns with the UN Sustainability Goals of responsible consumption and production and climate action.
The craft of making aligns with the KSA philosophy of thinking through making, ensuring quality and skills are celebrated as professional attributes for future practitioners. An elevated understanding of how clothes are made is essential for many roles within the fashion industry; designer, pattern cutter, product developer, or artisanal crafts person working within a specialist atelier within a brand.
The course enables students to work independently and collaboratively, and to develop professional networks through engagement with industry projects and visiting professionals, preparing them for professional placement, employment, or further study.
The design team have diverse and relevant industry experience as well as the academic skills and experience needed to help nurture fashion design talent.
Guest speakers from our well-established industry links and partnerships are invited to talk directly to the students, sharing their knowledge, insight and experience, adding texture and depth to the students' understanding of the fashion machine.
Students have access to the wealth of high-tech workshops and facilities available at Kingston School of Art.
| Mode | Duration | Attendance | Start date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full time | 1 year | 2 days a week | September 2025 |
| Full time | 2 years including professional placement | 2 days a week, plus placement year | September 2025 |
| Main Location | Kingston School of Art, Knights Park |
Reasons to choose Kingston University
- In Kingston's broad design community, you can connect and interact with designers from a wide set of disciplines. There is a wealth of high-tech workshops and facilities.
- Kingston has well-established industry links and partnerships, enabling you to work on live projects with collaborative partners.
- There is the opportunity for work placements at prestigious design houses. Previous placements include Viktor & Rolf, McQ, Craig Green, JW Anderson, Paul Smith, Hugo Boss, COS, Roland Mouret, Julien Macdonald, Erdem, Roksanda, Orla Kiely and Mother of Pearl.
The Art School Experience
As part of Kingston School of Art, students on this course benefit from joining a creative community where collaborative working and critical practice are encouraged.
Our workshops and studios are open to all disciplines, enabling students and staff to work together, share ideas and explore multi-disciplinary making.
Gallery of student work
Work by Zhengyang Zhao
Work by Ashnah Jones
Work by Ashnah Jones
Work by Ashnah Jones
Work by Ashnah Jones
Work by Sebastian Nissl
Work by Camilla Ceccardi
Work by Shimla Eliyas
Work by Shimla Eliyas
Work by Shimla Eliyas
Work by Shimla Eliyas
Work by Magda Mikulicakova
Work by Yusun Lee
Work by Rachel Page
Work by Rachel Page
Work by Rachel Page
Fashion Showcase 2022
Our MA Fashion students showcase their work.
Fashion Showcase 2021
Our MA Fashion students showcase their work.
Fashion Show 2019
Our MA Fashion students showcase their work at the end-of-year show.
What you will study
The fashion-based modules will encourage you to think creatively and will challenge you to apply your ideas and concepts to a series of briefs, some of which will arrive directly from industry sources and practitioners. The outcomes are non-prescriptive and should be driven by your ambitions and approach to fashion.
You will identify design narratives to inspire extensive research culminating in exciting, considered and forward-thinking design developments, challenging you to create new responses for fashion design. Addressing the contemporary culture of fashion, you will engage within important areas of development – social politics, economics, environments, sciences and technology futures – creating a clearer understanding of fashion context.
Modules
Optional placement year
The Fashion MA course consists of three Teaching Blocks. In Teaching Blocks 1 and 2 you will take two 30-credit modules. In Teaching Block 3 you will take one 60-credit module.
Core Modules - Teaching Block 1
Studio: Building Fashion
30 credits
'Studio: Building Fashion' introduces students to a range of analytical tools with which to interrogate designed objects and artefacts to enable them to forge links between analytical and propositional methods underpinned by theoretical approaches to research – shaping a framework within which to structure self-initiated projects.
Practical research methods are explored, with an emphasis on the development of creative, rational, and effective approaches to visual experimentation. Students are encouraged to develop a critical approach to practice that considers responsible approaches
to existing and emerging issues within fashion and to critically reflect on practical design work within a logical and measurable framework. The module aims to build understanding of the wide-ranging methods and tools that are available to inform and support the development of students' practical study and to provide the basis of their further study on the course.
The integrative programme encourages students to develop a personal and critical point of view through recording, documentation, and evaluation of ideas and to apply those findings within project work and approaches to making.
As part of personal and professional development, collaboration is integrated into the curriculum alongside a supportive studio culture where knowledge is shared and creative and informed risk-taking is encouraged.
Process: Making Fashion
30 credits
Process: Making Fashion focuses on the realisation of 2D and 3D fashion practice. Students will enhance existing skills, applying thinking through making to the development and prototyping of physical fashion outcomes, and the fashion portfolio of project work developed in the Studio: Building Fashion module to a professional standard.
Within this module, students will produce a toile or series of toiles of their chosen designs. Students will demonstrate an understanding of garment construction through pattern cutting and/or 3D modelling to create a contemporary design or series of designs that evidence understanding of silhouette, detail, and fabrication. They will produce a body of work within a fashion portfolio informed by consideration of responsible practices and cultural and social contexts, that demonstrates an understanding of visual communication; how to articulate a design project process from research through to final outcomes within the confines of an industry-standard fashion portfolio.
Specialist workshops will provide opportunities to enhance existing skills. Workshops include fashion illustration skills, pattern cutting, draping, materiality, visual communication, fashion portfolio building, and responsible fashion practice.
This module encourages students to develop a personal and critical viewpoint through recording, documentation, and evaluation of ideas, applying those findings within project work and approaches to making.
Core Modules - Teaching Block 2
Presentation: Fashion in Practice
30 credits
This module focuses on the Future Skills strategy, professional practice, the synthesis of students' skills and graduate attributes needed for their future careers. This is done through engagement with collaborative projects and/or live projects and how communication skills can be used to articulate work with diverse stakeholders. The student will also present a self-initiated capstone project proposal for Studio: Performing Fashion which allows them to take ownership of their final outputs which are realised in Teaching Block 3. Students will gather visual research, develop a theme or concept, and state their interests and proposed outcomes for the Studio: Performing Fashion module which could take a variety of forms.
Future skills will be developed that are not only valuable to the creative industries, but to the global economy: creative problem-solving as well as adaptability, communication, critical and analytical skills.
Students are introduced to key industry bodies supporting fashion education such as the British Fashion Council and Denza Recruitment and encouraged to engage with competitions, resources, events and other related activities received from industry partners.
Process: Realising Fashion
30 credits
This module builds on skills developed in 'Process: Fashion Making' enabling students to apply them within a professional context.
The module furthers the realisation of 2D and 3D fashion practice. Students will enhance their skills by developing and prototyping physical fashion outcomes that are informed by consideration of responsible practices. The fashion portfolio will integrate prior learning by expanding upon fundamental concepts and methods, refining research methodologies and design outcomes in the production of a professional portfolio of project work.
Students will produce a garment or series of garments in the intended fabrics of their chosen design or designs. They will synthesise their understanding of garment construction through their use of pattern cutting and/or 3D modelling to create a contemporary design or series of designs to evidence elevated understanding of silhouette, detail, and fabrication.
Students will further develop the body of work within a fashion portfolio that demonstrates an enhanced understanding of visual communication; how to articulate the process of a series of design projects from research through to final outcomes within an industry-standard fashion portfolio.
Students will enhance their personal and critical viewpoint through the documentation and evaluation of ideas, applying those findings within project work and refined approaches to making.
Core Modules - Teaching Block 3
Studio: Performing Fashion
60 credits
'Studio: Performing Fashion' consolidates knowledge and skills gained so far on the course to produce an individually defined body of work that enables the next stage of students' professional development, whether placement or internship, application for roles within industry, or further study.
The module establishes an autonomous and situated fashion practice through enquiry-led learning and practice-based investigation. Students will be given creative agency to initiate and complete a project that demonstrates their advanced understanding of contemporary design practice. By assimilating the learning established on the course, students will bring an individual critical position to a substantial and resolved body of work that articulates the context of their practice, demonstrating in content and form their advanced understanding of contemporary fashion practice.
The research and documentation of the project is integral to the submission, reflecting on the process, critical analysis of the research methodology, and its conceptual integration within the practical work. The project will be summarised visually through the fashion portfolio. Project topics are expected to be wide-ranging, providing opportunity to fully investigate a practical solution, underpinned by a critical report on the work produced. Topics must demonstrate the potential required to achieve the level appropriate to the learning outcomes, positioning the work politically, socially, and culturally, identifying and applying appropriate technology within delivery.
Work placement scheme
Many postgraduate courses at Kingston University allow students to do a 12-month work placement as part of their course. The responsibility for finding the work placement is with the student; we cannot guarantee the work placement, just the opportunity to undertake it. As the work placement is an assessed part of the course, it is covered by a student's Student Route visa.
Find out more about the postgraduate work placement scheme.
Optional modules
Professional Placement
120 credits
The Professional Placement module is a core module for those students following a masters programme that incorporates professional placement learning, following completion of 120 credits. It provides you with the opportunity to apply your knowledge and skills to an appropriate working environment, and to develop and enhance key employability skills and subject-specific professional skills in your chosen subject. You may wish to use the placement experience as a platform for your subsequent major project module, and would be expected to use it to help inform your decisions about future careers.
Entry requirements
Gallery of student work
Work by Nga Le Pham
Work by Nga Le Pham
Work by Sambi Ibanichuka
Work by Sambi Ibanichuka
Work by Sambi Ibanichuka
Work by Sambi Ibanichuka
Work by Alice Horsnell
Work by Alice Horsnell
Work by Seonghee Ha
Work by Seonghee Ha
Work by Seonghee Ha
Work by Cheng Cheng
Work by Jennifer Zhu
Work by Jennifer Zhu
Work by Jennifer Zhu
Work by Jennifer Zhu
Teaching and assessment
Who teaches this course?
This course is delivered by Kingston School of Art, which has its roots in the studio-based approach of Britain's art school system (the original School of Art was founded in the 1890s).
Today, for most courses, learning still takes place in our specialist studios, each subject area having its own fully-equipped studio, where you take part in classes, tutorials and critical reviews with fellow students. This strong studio culture also ensures regular interaction between students and tutors.
For non-studio-based courses, learning takes place in classroom-based seminars, tutorials and lectures, alongside site visits to museums, galleries, auction houses and other creative professional environments.
Postgraduate students may also contribute to the teaching of seminars under the supervision of the module leader.
Our students are encouraged to engage closely with the diverse businesses that make London one of the most important centres for the creative industries. Our industry connections mean we provide unique study opportunities, such as:
- the chance to have your work seen by eminent members of your profession;
- 'live' projects, site visits and placements in prestigious companies or institutions; and
- project work and workshops with visiting lecturers and industry specialists.
Our excellent reputation means that industry leaders regularly visit our student shows to see the best of the new talent.
Fees for this course
Additional costs
Depending on the programme of study, there may be extra costs that are not covered by tuition fees which students will need to consider when planning their studies. Tuition fees cover the cost of your teaching, assessment and operating University facilities such as the library, access to shared IT equipment and other support services. Accommodation and living costs are not included in our fees.
Where a course has additional expenses, we make every effort to highlight them. These may include optional field trips, materials (e.g. art, design, engineering), security checks such as DBS, uniforms, specialist clothing or professional memberships.
Facilities
There is a wide range of facilities at our Knights Park campus, where this course is based. The Fashion department has dedicated workshops of both digital and analogue machines to enable the production of high quality work. The Fashion archive houses an eclectic collection of historical and contemporary garments that you can use for reference and inspiration.
Kingston School of Art's workshops and studios are open for creative exploration and offer you plenty of opportunities to collaborate on projects and share ideas, whether you are studying or researching. Building on this open approach, there are many adaptable studio and workshop spaces, alongside active breakout spaces.
At the heart of Knights Park campus are new, professional-standard workshop facilities, which include:
- 3D workshop, with ceramics, concrete, resin-casting, plastics, metalwork, woodwork and a bronze-casting foundry, as well as a Big Build space for Architecture, set design and large scale model making
- Animation and post production studios
- Digital Media workshop
- Fashion (knitting and sewing workshops), with digital and analogue facilities, plus a working dress archive which includes pieces from 1750 to the present day
- HackSpace (for collaborative, creative, solutions-focussed projects)
- Letterpress and printmaking workshop, with digital and analogue facilities, to experiment creatively
- Moving Image workshop, with studios, editing suite, and industry-standard equipment
- Photography workshop, including studios, colour, and black and white darkrooms, processing facilities
All our facilities are open access, meaning you can use them whenever you want, and irrespective of what degree you're studying.
The University also has its own on-site galleries, including:
- Dorich House - the former studio home of the sculptor Dora Gordine and her husband the Hon. Richard Hare, a scholar of Russian art and literature. Now Grade II listed, the building was completed in 1936, to Gordine's design, and is an exceptional example of a modern studio house created by and for a female artist.
- Stanley Picker Gallery - one of the leading examples of a university gallery in the UK. Its public activities are dedicated to the research, commissioning and presentation of innovative new practice across the fields of art, design and architecture for general, academic and specialist audiences.
- Project spaces at Knights Park campus, which you can book for the exhibition of large-scale work.
Resources in London
Kingston is just a 30-minute train journey from central London, where you can access world-famous museums and galleries.
After you graduate
Many of our recent graduates are setting up their own businesses internationally (China, Brazil, Korea), freelancing across the creative industries, and gaining positions in world leading design houses.
Notable placement and graduate destinations include: Viktor & Rolf, Haider Ackermann, Proenza Schouler, Karl Lagerfeld, Matthew Williamson, Sonia Rykiel, The Row, Alexander McQueen, McQ, Burberry, Gareth Pugh, Craig Green, JW Anderson, Acne Studios, Adidas by Stella McCartney, Tommy Hilfiger, Victoria Beckham, Allsaints, Urban Outfitters, H&M, Arket, COS, Hugo Boss, Paul Smith, Reiss, Aquascutum London, Erdem, Roksanda, Richard Quinn, Halpern, Aadnevik, Eudon Choi, Martine Rose, Aitor Throup, Per Gotesson, Mother of Pearl, Roland Mouret, Paul Costelloe, Rejina Pyo, Palmer/Harding, David Koma, Preen, Osman London, Orla Kiely, Emilia Wickstead, Studio Nicholson, Berthold, Orlebar Brown, Av Vattev, Di Mainstone at Eye Beam New York, Sibling London, Clemency London, Holly Fulton,1801 London, Kei Kagami, Tatty Devine, Clio Peppiatt, Philips Design, Wright Design and WGSN.
Recent graduates Cheng Cheng and Yehua Fan have both established their own labels and show during Shanghai Fashion Week.
Recent graduates have also gone on to work as fashion lecturers at Kingston University, Westminster University, Middlesex University, De Montford University and Bucks New University.
We encourage design research practice during our Fashion MA programme and several of our students go on to develop their postgraduate practice at MPhil and PhD level.
Work placements and student competitions
Our strong industry links mean you will learn to apply creativity to the real-world and will be industry-ready on graduation. Professional Practice is a fundamental part of the course and employability is embedded into the curriculum.
There is the opportunity for work placements and graduate level roles at prestigious design houses and companies. Notable placement and graduate destinations include: Viktor & Rolf, Haider Ackermann, Proenza Schouler, Karl Lagerfeld, Sonia Rykiel, The Row, Alexander McQueen, McQ, Burberry, Gareth Pugh, Craig Green, JW Anderson, Acne Studios, Adidas by Stella McCartney, Tommy Hilfiger, Victoria Beckham, Allsaints, Urban Outfitters, H&M, Arket, COS, Hugo Boss, Paul Smith, Reiss, Aquascutum London, Erdem, Roksanda, Richard Quinn, Halpern, Aadnevik, Eudon Choi, Martine Rose, Aitor Throup, Per Gotesson, Mother of Pearl, Roland Mouret, Paul Costelloe, Rejina Pyo, Palmer/Harding, David Koma, Preen, Osman London, Orla Kiely, Emilia Wickstead, Studio Nicholson, Berthold, Orlebar Brown, Av Vattev, Di Mainstone at Eye Beam New York, Sibling London, Clemency London, Holly Fulton,1801 London, Kei Kagami, Tatty Devine, Clio Peppiatt, Philips Design, Wright Design and WGSN.
2022 China Fashion Week Film Sponsorship Winners Shimla Eliyas and Lili Sipeki.
2021 Lili Sipeki and Kristina Vyzaite Shortlisted for Redress Awards both featuring in the Redress Catwalk Show.
2021 Andrea Lopa and Nga Le Pham were both awarded Global Talent Visas by the British Fashion Council.
2019 MA Fashion student Camilla Ceccardi shortlisted for the ‘URBN Design Day 2019', resulting in her being offered a design position at Urban Outfitters, USA.
2017 MA Fashion student Dardana Djantio Etchike wins the international ZARA/Inditex ‘Shape the Invisible' competition with a prize of 20,000 Euros.
Hanbyeol Lee (Baylee), a Fashion MA student, worked as a fashion design intern at Craig Green, a menswear designer with accolades such as British menswear designer at the Fashion Awards 2016 and more. This was her integrated work placement as part of the two-year postgraduate course.
What our students and graduates say
Links with business and industry
Students from our Fashion MA work on live projects with industry. Recently we have collaborated with denim expert Mohsin Sajid, owner and creative director of Endrime® and various international denim mills, culminating in Kingston students exhibiting work at Kingpins trade show in Amsterdam. In 2019, London-based design studio Raeburn provided the brief. We have previously partnered with Ede & Ravenscroft, the heritage tailors, and Givaudan, the world's largest company in the flavour and fragrance industries.
Guest speakers include the Vice Principle of Menswear, Versace; Design Director Tommy Hilfiger Menswear; the director and owner of Denza International recruitment agency; Raeburn; Caryn Franklin and Iain R. Webb.
Research areas
Kingston School of Art has a well-established research culture that encourages activity across a wide range of visual, spatial and material practice and culture. This rich spectrum includes practitioners, theorists and historians engaged in the creative and performing arts, curating, design, architecture, fashion, film, and town planning.
Our aim is to foster a stimulating environment that encourages an exchange of ideas within and across the disciplines. Support from the public sector includes the Department of Trade and Industry, the Arts Council, and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).
There is also the option to study research-specific fashion and body themes through our Fashion MA by Research, MPhil in Fashion and PhD in Fashion.
Course changes and regulations
The information on this page reflects the currently intended course structure and module details. To improve your student experience and the quality of your degree, we may review and change the material information of this course. Course changes explained.
Programme Specifications for the course are published ahead of each academic year.
Regulations governing this course can be found on our website.
