About Our MFA Program

School of Fashion

About Our MFA Program

The MFA fashion curriculum refines and focuses the graduate candidate’s individual vision, offering courses in fashion design, merchandising, textiles, and knitwear. Studio courses for fashion design, textile, and knitwear students hone the graduate candidate’s mastery of fashion industry standards in design and construction, enhancing design excellence with computer skills, and preparing MFA candidates to launch themselves into the industry upon graduating. Merchandising majors acquire the skills to succeed in fashion careers in buying, product development, retail management, or marketing. Courses include textiles, product sourcing, trend forecasting and product development, product line development, merchandising principles, retail and human resource management, marketing and visual merchandising and business planning.

Subsequent to intensive studio and academic courses, the graduate candidate is guided through directed study, culminating in a Final Project—production of a professional fashion collection and portfolio, or merchandising project. Selected collections are chosen to be part of the Academy’s Annual Fashion Show.

Program Learning Outcomes, MFA

School of Fashion

MFA graduates of the School of Fashion will meet the following student performance criteria:

1. MFA Thesis Project

   • Ability to plan and produce an advanced-level thesis project demonstrating mastery and synthesis of the skills taught in the program, appropriate to the student's professional goals. Graduate Students are required to present to a review committee prior to being granted an MFA degree.

2. Verbal Communication

   • Advanced ability to communicate fashion terminology as it refers to various international fashion markets.

3. Written Communication

   • Ability to express concepts and strategies in clear and professional English, with correct sentence construction and grammar for effective communication, regardless of the specific area of fashion concentration.
   • Knowledge of the difference between plagiarism and attribution.

4. Drawing Skills

   • Advanced ability in rendering a three-dimensional body in two-dimensional media.
   • Ability to apply knowledge of the human body (life drawing) in order to create individualized and stylized fashion illustrations.
   • Ability to apply advanced principles of composition employing a highly developed sense of color when drawing.

5. Historical Content

   • Advanced knowledge of art, design and fashion history and the ability to apply to research development.

6. Work Ethic and Time Management

   • Demonstrate punctuality and recognize the necessity of working long hours to meet deadlines.
   • Ability to prioritize tasks and use time effectively.
   • To understand the demands and the competitive nature of the fashion industry.

7. Research / Analytical Skills

   • Ability to continually research the fashion industry and apply that research to every aspect of their work, both in design and merchandising.

8. Collaborative Skills

   • Ability to collaborate at all levels among design, merchandising, and management teams.

9. Human Behavior (Psychology)

   • Advanced knowledge of the various international consumer market segmentations.
   • Ability to determine a specific target market on which to focus a design project.

10. Understanding of Trends

    • In depth understanding of trend forecasting teamed with the ability to create a trend report for any given season for a specific market segment.

11. Understanding of Business Aspects

    • To maintain a developed understanding of the various business aspects of the industry.
    • To understand, manufacturing, produce development, sourcing, production, retail strategies and marketing.

12. Collaborative Skill Development

    • Understanding of the different areas of specialty work.
    • Ability to collaborate on projects to simulate a real life industry situation.

13. Sustainability in Fashion

    • Highly developed understanding of concepts of sustainability in the global context of the fashion industry (environmental, social and economic).
    • To understand the impact that traditional industrial production has on the environment.

14. Specialty Tracks

    • A. Fashion Design

      • Advance ability to undertake extensive visual research development.
      • Ability to develop color story, fabric story and design detail inspiration.
      • Ability to create mood boards and presentation board building for presentation.
      • Commanding ability to communicate design development ideas using quick sketch techniques.
      • Advanced ability to build a balanced collection.
      • Advanced skills application in fashion design sketch illustration for croquis and fabric rendering.
      • Advanced flat technical specification drawing by hand and by computer.
      • Personalized professional presentation skills for portfolio development.
      • Thorough understanding of the various international market segmentations.
      • Ability to design for different seasons and classifications.
      • Advanced ability to use computer skills to industry standard for fashion illustration, rendering, flat sketching and presentation.

      B. 3-Dimensional Design / Technical Design / CDFP

      • Advanced application of broad and in-depth understanding of flat pattern making.
      • Advanced understanding of draping and 3-dimensional cutting on a dress form.
      • Ability to take a 2-dimensional sketch or flat diagram of a garment and develop and produce this as a finished pattern and sample garment.
      • Understanding of lay plans, correct cutting techniques and how to cost a sample garment.
      • Ability to identify suitable and correct types of fabrics used for specific designs.
      • Advanced ability to fit garments on a life fit model and adjust provisional samples and make any necessary corrections.
      • Advanced ability to construct garments to a professional standard, using current industry techniques.

      C. Applied Textile Design

      • Ability to follow a textile design brief from research to completion of a successful project meeting all criteria in the time allotted.
      • Advanced ability to draw and paint using a variety of mediums.
      • Advanced ability to mix color and match color accurately.
      • Thorough knowledge of repeats and engineered prints both on paper and fabric.
      • Advanced ability to design surface patterns for a wide variety of end products.
      • Advanced knowledge of computer software used in industry.

      D. Knitwear Design and Construction

      • Mastery of single bed knitting and double bed knitting on hand flat machines.
      • Experience in programming and operating computerized industrial knitting machines.
      • Advanced ability to develop their original design concepts from knit swatches through to garment design, illustrated and rendered to industry standards.
      • Advanced ability to cut paper patterns for specifically for knitwear.
      • Advanced ability to construct fully-fashioned as well as cut-and-sew knit garments to industry standards.
      • In depth understanding of the various gauges of knitting machines used in the Industry.
      • In depth understanding of the properties of a wide variety of fibers used in industrial knitting yarns.
      • Broad knowledge of widely used knit stitch structures and the industry terminology used to describe them.

Academy of Art University Learning Outcomes

Graduates of the Academy of Art University will demonstrate the ability to:

1. Produce a body of work suitable for seeking professional opportunities in their chosen field of art and design.
2. Solve creative problems within their field of art and design, including research and synthesis of technical, aesthetic, and conceptual knowledge.
3. Communicate their ideas professionally and connect with their intended audience using visual, oral, and written presentation skills relevant to their field.
4. Execute technical, aesthetic, and conceptual decisions based on an understanding of art and design principles.
5. Evaluate work in their field, including their own work, using professional terminology.
6. Recognize the influence of major cultural and aesthetic trends, both historical and contemporary, on art and design products.
7. Learn the professional skills and behaviors necessary to compete in the global marketplace for art and design.

For application and portfolio requirements, please contact Graduate Admissions at 800-544-2787 or info@academyart.edu.

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