If you have an eye for style, love flicking through fashion magazines and websites and are always one step ahead of the latest season’s trends, then a career in fashion could be right for you. Read on to discover why now is an excellent time to join this exciting industry, what kind of fashion jobs you could turn into a rewarding and fulfilling career, and which fashion degree you should look at studying.
3 reasons to consider a fashion career
If you want a job that offers versatility, challenges and excitement, working in the fashion industry could be perfect for you. Trends and styles are constantly evolving, and in order to keep up with consumer demands, culture shifts and emerging styles, you need to constantly be on the ball.
A career in fashion will also present you with the opportunity to meet and work with a diverse group of people who all share a passion for fashion. This is a global industry — and with more emphasis on sustainable practices and fashion as a way to advocate for social justice — it will open up many opportunities for you to work with people from all walks of life and network with a variety of industry professionals.
Working in fashion can put you in a position to represent and define culture, as well as seek change. Consider forward-thinking brands that proudly and literally wear their mottos on their sleeves, such as Gammin Threads. This Aboriginal owned and operated clothing brand based in Melbourne creates clothing for people who believe in “paying respect and empowering women.” You could pursue a career in fashion by working with sustainable and ethically-minded fashion brands whose values align with yours, or you could go into business for yourself designing sustainable clothing items and accessories.
The rise of ‘slow’ fashion
More and more, we’re seeing a greater focus on ‘slow’ fashion as opposed to fast fashion. As customers begin to demand more transparency around where their clothing and accessories come from and how they are made, companies have realised that they need to work harder when it comes to implementing ethical and sustainable practices. While some fashion brands have made this their core focus right from the get-go, others that have spotted this gap in the market are now entering the industry with this as their major selling point.
As you can see, working in the fashion industry and caring strongly about the planet, people and animals are not mutually exclusive. In fact, if you have a creative eye for fashion and are also passionate about the environment, now is a great time to get involved in the industry as more companies step up to do their bit.
What you can do with a degree in fashion
If you’re considering a career in fashion, then here are some of the jobs you could pursue with a fashion degree beyond the role of a fashion designer:
The job of a fashion stylist is to make people look good by styling them in the right clothes and accessories. You could find yourself working on the set of a magazine shoot, a music video, a TV show or a commercial. Fashion stylists often work very closely with the photographer or the director on set to bring their ideas to life. To become a fashion stylist, raw talent is important, but this can always be improved upon by studying an accredited fashion course such as a fashion degree such as a Bachelor of Fashion Business where there is a whole specialist subject on fashion styling and being a fashion stylist in Australia.
A pattern maker (also sometimes spelled as patternmaker) is someone who creates templates of items that can be reproduced en masse. This could be any number of things — from furniture to kitchenware. But in the fashion industry, a pattern maker specifically creates templates for clothing, shoes and related accessories. The role involves studying sketches and design models to create a template that can be used for mass production. A fashion course like the MST40519 Certificate IV in Applied Fashion Design & Merchandising will help you learn the skills and knowledge to find a job as a fashion pattern maker.
Combine your love of fashion with your love of the written word. As a fashion writer, you could find yourself working for a magazine, a blog or a fashion website. Alternatively, you could also work as a specialist freelance writer. Here, a fashion degree such as a Bachelor of Fashion Business will enable you to gain industry knowledge and experience that will inform your writing and potentially help you land a job or begin a career in writing.
If you’re up to date with all the latest styles and have an uncanny knack for predicting new trends, then you could consider a career as a fashion buyer. Retail fashion buyers often work for a particular company, and their role is to liaise with suppliers and manufacturers on procuring new stock before the upcoming season arrives. This role is as much about thorough research and in-depth knowledge of the industry as it is about being able to intuitively predict the next big thing. An accredited fashion course such as the Undergraduate Certificate in Fashion Business could help you find a job as an assistant buyer or a retail manager as there are a number of specific subjects that focus on buying, merchandising and the retail fashion industry in Australia.
Are you considering a creative career in fashion?
The Masters Institute of Creative Education has brought together five of Australia’s leading educational institutes to provide aspiring students with an excellent range of choices, all in one place. If you’re looking to begin a fashion career, then make sure you take a look at our range of the fashion courses. If you’re ready to start an exciting career in fashion, now is the time to start studying.
If you’re unsure of where to begin or aren’t sure what kind of fashion career path you would like to follow, please feel free to reach out and get in touch with us. We would love to help you discover where your passions and talents lie. What are you waiting for? Start making your dreams of a career in fashion a reality today.
