Fashion Merchandising Schools

What is Fashion Merchandising?
Fashion Merchandising involves the design and display of various types of clothing and accessories. Fashion merchandising schools aim to teach students the skills necessary for large scale retail, brand identity and promotion of sales. Students learn how to reach out to consumers with their products. Fashion merchandisers work together with designers to manufacture various types of clothing, fabrics, handbags and jewelry. Designing aesthetically pleasing clothes and accessories requires deep knowledge of customer demands and expectations in line with the culture and tradition of a particular region. Fashion merchandisers are then responsible for marketing the products in a way that assures maximum sales as well as buying various materials for designers, consultation and organizing various fashion shows and events where the latest lines of designer wear are unveiled.

Top Schools Offering Fashion Merchandising Programs

Capella University

Strayer University

International Academy of Design and Technology

Harrison College

What courses can I take & what will I learn?
Fashion merchandising schools have very basic entry requirements, making them accessible to a larger number of people. Most programs require just a secondary school certificate to enroll in and a variety of degrees are offered both online and offline. These include ‘Associate of Arts in Fashion Merchandising’ and ‘Bachelor of Science in Business & Fashion Merchandising’ degrees. The 2- year associate’s degree includes elementary instruction on marketing principles, consumer trends, market demands and basic fashion designing. Other areas of instruction include technical writing which is useful in describing various products in fashion catalogues and magazines and business communications which impart the core principles of communicating with clients to students. The bachelor’s degree follows a more rigorous 4-year program, with the majority of courses being based on business management and business practices. Courses include marketing principles and communication, merchandising practices, visual marketing, retail management, accounting, finance and pricing strategies. Students are also taught important planning and inventory control techniques, project management skills, business law basics and purchasing techniques. Additionally, courses in fashion design, fashion drawing, computer aided design, computer graphics and textile design are taught to give the students a strong working knowledge of the fashion industry. With the increased exposure of the media to people, some universities offer courses in fashion media and fashion publicity to give their students an added advantage in marketing their products. Fashion merchandising schools offer a variety of scholarships to students who wish to join this exciting and glamorous field, and employ famous fashion designers and marketing experts who are recognized by the global industry to teach courses, maximizing the students’ exposure to real world situations.

What are the career prospects?
The glamorous world of fashion is an exhilarating field offering thousands of amazing career opportunities. As a Fashion Merchandising major, you have the unique edge of being well versed with fashion design and business management over other applicants. According to statistics, graduates in fashion merchandising have a wider number of opportunities as compared to any other field in the fashion industry. Professionals in this field decide how, when and where to display different items in a way that maximized their appeal to the general public. They also work closely with various media producers to broadcast their messages through tv, the internet and newspapers and magazines. A large number of opportunities exist in the fashion magazine industry as well. From designing the red carpets at major ceremonies to designing brand images, fashion merchandising majors are in high demand across the world.