Associate Degree in Fashion Design and Technology

at EduCo - RMIT University - Brunswick Campus Australia

The Associate Degree in Fashion and Textile Merchandising has been designed to help you develop the high-level business acumen and creative thinking required to succeed within the fast-paced fashion industry.

In this intensive, industry-led associate degree, you will learn to research, analyse, interpret and transmit solutions to unpredictable and complex problems in the fashion and textiles industries. Building skills in teamwork, autonomy and work-readiness, you will connect theory and practice with hands-on projects in marketing, product ranging, distribution, product development, and more.

As a graduate of this course, you will be able to develop, analyse and launch successful strategies for products, brands and retail, and navigate buying and merchandising practices to find your place in this global and competitive industry

As a student, you’ll be encouraged to create ethical design propositions and use cross-disciplinary strategies to drive global and competitive practice. As a graduate, you will have comprehensive knowledge in fashion design, preparing you for a wide range of existing and new industry contexts, jobs of the future, or further study.

RMIT students and graduates receive national design awards, scholarships, and invitations to participate in national and international showcases, events and exhibitions, including:

• Virgin australia melbourne fashion festival (vamff) national graduate showcase
• Melbourne fashion week (m/fw) student collections runway
• Graduate fashion week (gfw) london international catwalk
• Id dunedin emerging designer award
• Design institute of australia (dia) graduate of the year award (gotya)

The RMIT School of Fashion and Textiles is globally recognised, and ranked among the Business of Fashion’s The Best Fashion Schools in the World, Undergraduate Fashion Design Programs in 2019.

Textile designers work across multiple contexts and collaborate with other disciplines, such as fashion, interior, architecture, industrial, automotive industries, as well as developing emerging, custom and niche independent design practices.

Your studies will cover diverse and contemporary practice, including commercial, contemporary and global textile design industry, related fields and emerging markets. You will be able to customise your study when you select a minor specialisation in fashion design, enterprise, and sustainable innovation. As part of this, you’ll be encouraged to create ethical design propositions and use cross-disciplinary design strategies and collaboration to drive global and competitive practice.

Technology innovations and improved environmental, social and ethical practices will fundamentally change how clothes are made, consumed and experienced. To support the development of sustainable solutions for the fashion industry, capabilities in technology and sustainability need to be developed and combined with traditional fashion and textile craft-based knowledge and skills.

The Bachelor of Fashion and Textiles (Sustainable Innovation) provides you with the capability to work in diverse roles across the fashion and textiles sector with these principles in mind. You will gain practical, theoretical and technical skills to develop solutions, products and systems, using user-centred approaches at the intersection of design, technology, science, and art.

In this cutting-edge degree, you will delve into sustainability as a concept and goal within fashion and textiles.

You will explore industry-relevant knowledge and projects, ethical and sustainable practices, and material and digital technologies. You will also have the opportunity to minor in either fashion design, textile design, or fashion enterprise.

This diploma will equip you with the skills and knowledge to bring products from conception to market.

We are the makers, the sketchers, the inventors, the experimenters, the idea generators, the thinkers and tinkerers. We are product designers.

This is your hands-on pathway to the world of design. This diploma allows you to imagine, explore and create objects that people will manufacture, buy, use and appreciate. You will gain the skills and experience you need to work in small or large design companies or as an independent designer.

Through your studies you will learn to create designs for consumer products, experiences and systems. You will present your ideas through a combination of skills in visual and verbal communication, 3D models and computer software.

The curriculum looks at all aspects of design, including:

• Aesthetics
• Technology
• Ergonomics
• Usability
• Sustainability
• Materials

You will learn cutting-edge product development techniques, starting from a project brief, and find solutions to design problems using the latest industry tools and practices. You’ll become familiar with new consumer product development processes for a variety of products, resolving practical, manufacturing and sustainability/environmental issues.

You’ll work to real and simulated industry briefs and learn how to provide an individual or business with creative styling solutions for areas such as personal styling, image consultancy, social media content, fashion editorial or styling for television.

Using a combination of RMIT’s state-of-the-art studios and virtual learning spaces and guided by real practitioners with strong connections to industry, you will learn the skills and knowledge to set up your own consulting business, work for a company or simply continue exploring other areas of fashion.

To be industry-ready for a successful career in fashion styling, you will:

• Build your knowledge of body shape, colour and personality
• Gain an understanding of marketing and consumer behaviour
• Develop the skills required to establish a freelance business  
• Learn to create and execute photoshoots for fashion 
• Be able to identify current local and global fashion trends
• Have the skills to create, plan and manage an event 
• Develop technical knowledge including photography, sewing and it
• Build networks within the fashion industry.

The Certificate IV of Textile Design, Development and Production is a practical, studio-based course that gives you access to state-of-the-art facilities and industry-connected instructors to undertake project briefs.

Learn to create designs for knitted, woven and printed fabrics or textile products for a range of contexts, including fashion, interiors, homewares, craft and other commercial applications. You will develop skills in drawing, painting and illustration, design and concept development, as well as textile history and contemporary practice. You’ll learn how to present your concepts using computer-aided design techniques.

You will build on your skills to create experimental textile samples using a range of materials and processes, including dye technologies, digital printing, laser cutting and fabric manipulation. With a focus on industry-based projects you’ll work with major and independent Australian and international companies, giving you the opportunity to be involved in developing a collection of textiles to technical and market specifications.

Develop your technical and practical skills to produce custom-made footwear, focusing on design, pattern, manufacturing and the presentation of finished ideas.

The Certificate IV In Custom Made Footwear has been designed to prepare you for a career in the production of custom-made footwear, or footwear in small production quantities.

By understanding the nature and environment in which footwear is created, you'll learn the skills that are applied at each stage of the construction process.

From the creation of freehand to computer aided design sketches and technical drawings, you'll learn how to prepare, cut and sew the necessary components using a variety of materials to create uniquely original shoes.

You’ll use industry standard software and gain in-depth knowledge of the design process to work in areas of visual and graphic design.

As a graphic designer, daily activities may include:

• Creating logos and artwork for products such as packaging or cafe menus
• Focusing on graphics used for websites, digital and online platforms.
• Creating graphics for clients to sell a product or service. This may be through print or digital publications such as newspapers and magazines or outdoor signage.

This diploma provides you with a strong technical focus that develops your technical expertise in digital design, print production and typography, along with a thorough understanding of design concept development and the design process.

You will explore many forms of visual and graphic communication, including illustration, digital design, typography, calligraphy and lettering, packaging design, books, advertising and publicity material.

You’ll become competent in industry standard software including Adobe InDesign, Illustrator and Photoshop.

You will gain an understanding of the dynamics of the industry, including consumer buying patterns, and how to design, develop, source, communicate and sell fashion products.

With emphasis on the emerging markets and innovations of the Asia Pacific region, this degree incorporates the latest innovations in technology, e-commerce, sustainability and emerging consumer trends.

As a graduate, you will have the necessary foundation to further specialise and apply your knowledge in fashion enterprise as an emerging entrepreneur or intrapreneur across large, medium or small global fashion enterprises, or further study.

In addition to the multitude of fashion management areas you will cover - including fashion buying, merchandise planning and allocation, and trend analysis - this course will emphasise new practices, from data-driven approaches to interactive virtual environments, transparency of global value chains and improved practices in a sustainable and circular economy.