Program Overview

BA (Hons) Fashion Art Direction

Overview

The BA (Hons) Fashion Art Direction course is designed to equip students with the skills and knowledge required to succeed in the fashion industry. The course focuses on the visual languages of fashion, encouraging students to develop and present innovative concepts and ideas.

Course Information

The course explores anticipating change, trend analysis, and the generation of new creative visual fashion concepts and outputs. Students will develop skills and experiences in still and moving image making, styling, art direction, editorial and self-publishing, fashion graphics, and illustration.

Features and Benefits

• Collaborative spirit: Work with students from across Manchester Fashion Institute and the wider Faculty of Arts and Humanities on inter-disciplinary projects.
• Manchester and beyond: Our network spans the globe, including placements, collaborations, and live briefs from partner universities, workshops, and design studios in various countries.
• Cutting-edge facilities: Make use of our dedicated photography workshops and Mac suites with industry-standard software.
• First-hand experience: Benefit from excellent placement opportunities in the UK and abroad.

Accreditations, Awards, and Endorsements

• Teaching Excellence Framework: We have received an overall gold status, meaning we're rated as an outstanding university for our student experience.
• UK Fashion and Textile Association: We are a UK Fashion and Textile Association Education Partner.
• Association of Fashion and Textiles Courses: We are members of the Association of Fashion and Textiles Courses.
• British Fashion Council (BFC) Colleges Council: We are members of the British Fashion Council (BFC) Colleges Council.

Year 1

In year 1, students will be introduced to the conventions, languages, and systems of fashion through a series of 'scoping' projects. Core modules include:

• Scoping: Introduces contextual and historical fashion awareness, creative disciplines, communications skills, and art methodologies.
• Fashion Cultures: Introduces key cultural theories, concepts, and significant contemporary challenges and issues affecting global society.
• Responding: Researches and evaluates fashion trends to propose future fashion styles through considered fashion image making.
• Fashion Collaboration: Explores collaborative and interdisciplinary practice in response to industry contexts.

Year 2

In year 2, students will start to contextualize and refine their ideas and concepts through a series of outward-facing projects and working with external organizations. Core modules include:

• Anticipating: Explores individual fashion interests and considers industry application to anticipate change.
• Fashion Cultures in Context: Develops knowledge of key cultural theories, concepts, and significant contemporary challenges and issues affecting global society.
• Refining: Enhances research, development, and practical skills through making contact with an external fashion-related organization.
• Fashion X: Provides a space for collaborative projects with external and/or internal partners.

Year 3

In year 3, students will become more confident in directing and producing work, confirming the direction of their work and designing work. Core modules include:

• Fashion Futures: Draws upon key ideas, theories, and methods encountered in previous modules to develop independent research, critical analysis methods, and writing.
• Industry Proposal: Explores professional practice, communication, and presentation in response to an external-facing brief.
• Directing and Producing: Authors a final project leading to a showcase of finished work.

Study and Assessment

• Year 1: 20% lectures, seminars, or similar; 80% independent study. 100% coursework.
• Year 2: 30% lectures, seminars, or similar; 70% independent study. 100% coursework.
• Year 3: 15% lectures, seminars, or similar; 85% independent study. 100% coursework.

Placements

The course offers an optional placement year route that gives students the opportunity to apply for an industry placement between their second and final year.

Entry Requirements

• Typical offer: 104-112 UCAS tariff points.
• IELTS score: 6.0 overall with no individual element below 5.5.
• Portfolio: A portfolio of work is required as part of the application.
• UK students: Level 3 qualifications, including GCE A levels, Pearson BTEC National Extended Diploma, Access to HE Diploma, UAL Level 3 Extended Diploma, OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma, and T level.
• International students: IB Diploma with minimum 26 points overall or 104 UCAS Tariff points from three Higher Level subjects. IELTS score of 6.0 overall with no individual element below 5.5.

Fees and Funding

Tuition fees for the 2026/27 academic year are still being finalized. Information on 2025/26 standard undergraduate fees for UK/Channel Islands and EU/Non-EU international students is available.

Careers Support and Prospects

• Employed or in further study: 88.7% of UK-domiciled, full-time, first-degree graduates are employed or in further study 15 months after graduation.
• Explore your options and build sought-after skills: Through the Careers Service, students are supported and encouraged to get ready for further study or working life.
• Graduate outcomes: Graduates of this course will develop skills and experiences to work within a range of exciting creative areas within fashion and the design industry. Potential roles include art directors, designers, digital publishers, writers, fashion filmmakers, stylists, fashion curators, and fashion brand designers.