Programme Specification for Fashion MA
|
Final award |
MA |
|
Intermediate awards available |
PGCert, PGDip |
|
UCAS code |
N/A |
|
Details of professional body accreditation |
N/A |
|
Relevant QAA Benchmark statements |
Subject Benchmark Statements, Master's Degree in Business and Management |
|
Date specification last up-dated |
May 2012 |
Profile
The summary - programme advertising leaflet
Programme content
This programme seeks to enable the student to advance new concepts in fashion by recognizing the importance of subject specific discourse, interdisciplinary practice and the influence of other areas of the visual arts on the development of contemporary fashion design.
MA Fashion at UEL
MA in Fashion at UEL offers a unique opportunity for the students’ creative practice to evolve through risk taking and experimentation. The aim of this programme is to provide opportunities for imaginative and innovative creative practice in response to new contexts, materials, processes, environments and art forms.
Admission requirements
The programme is suitable for:
- Candidates with an honours degree in Fashion
- Candidates with an good honours degree in Art or Design, with a particular interest, experience and ability for developing creative and innovative approaches to fashion
- Qualified fashion design professionals who wish to readdress their professional practice through creativity and innovation.
- Relevant lecturers from Higher Education Institutions wishing to gain a higher qualification.
Applications are welcomed from the EU and overseas.
Students whose first language is not English will have achieved a score of 6.0 in IELTS or equivalent. Eligibility for students without degree equivalent qualifications will be assessed on the basis of a personal statement and a portfolio. Places will be offered after a successful interview (in person or online) with a member of the programme team.
Accredited Learning
Students that apply to enter stages of the programme may be admitted through normal Accreditation of Experiential Learning (AEL) or Accreditation of Certificated Learning (ACL) processes, or through an approved articulation agreement. Therefore such applicants must be able to demonstrate and evidence that they have the required learning outcomes as listed in the modules for which they are seeking exemption.
Bridging Module - (subject to validation)
For those students who require additional technical skills before commencing the programme, a bridging module will be offered to assist prospective students attain the required level.
Learning environment
MA Fashion is situated in the dedicated building for the School of Architecture and the Visual Arts on the Docklands Campus. The building is home to programmes in Fine Art, Architecture, Graphic Design, Photography, Animation and Illustration. The proximity of this diverse culture of art and design practices will be integral to the learning community and environment of this programme.
The programme is centred on your creative practice and students are expected to be highly motivated and committed to self-direction and learning. All students will be supported by tutorials at 1:1.
Critical Evaluations:
These happen at key points of the programme to ensure progression of the work. After these
tutor /s will feedback either verbally or in written form.
Group Forums/Peer Reviews:
Students present their work in a formal setting to other students on the programme and are asked to make a measured judgement on the achievement of the project and the ideas presented by their peers.
Seminars:
A seminar is an informal round table discussion with presentation of work and ideas. These seminars are capable of being held in situ or virtually. Students must be prepared for seminars bringing relevant material or having read preparatory texts.
Lectures:
Year group teaching takes place. This is usually around a particular topic delivered by one or more tutors
Interdisciplinary Workshops:
Practical demonstrations and hands on learning take place as well as facilitating your own self initiated projects. These are available in keeping with access and entitlement as well as satisfying Health and Safety requirements.
Facilities:
Fashion programmes have large open plan studios designed for a variety of needs and outcomes. There is a large garment manufacture workroom, Printed Textiles workroom, digital output laboratory, lazar cutting facility and large scale digital print laboratory. There are extensive wood and metal workshops, photographic darkrooms and computer suites. Dedicated technical associates support all these facilities.
E-Learning:
MA Fashion is supported by blended learning facilities in the form of the institutional virtual learning environment 'UELPLUS', web 2.0 social and professional networking sites and e-learning tools and technologies.
Study visits:
Scheduled field trips within the UK and to Europe will form an integral part of the contextual dialogue of this programme together with opportunities for International collaboration and workshops.
Assessment
Postgraduate programmes strictly adhere to the University regulations on assessment. All coursework for assessment is double marked; practical 3D work, seminar papers and presentations - essay assignments are supervised and double marked.
All work for assessment is monitored/moderated by external examiners.
All modules are assessed by portfolio and/or presentation at the end of the module.
Through out their studies, students will keep an ‘e-portfolio’ in the form of an online reflective journal of their ‘personal development’ that will detail research, critical thinking, contextualisation, concepts, technical and practical development, practice and realisation. The e-portfolio will be assessed in conjunction with the physical portfolio and/or presentation.
All modules contribute to the final award classification.
Relevance to work/profession
MA Fashion provides an opportunity for:
The aim of MA Fashion at UEL is to provide postgraduate level study within a highly creative environment that is designed to stimulate experimental and original thinking through practice.
It is aimed at those who are returning to education from industry, and who may wish to reassess their direction and provide new opportunities for experimentation and innovation.
It also aims to offer the recent graduate the opportunity to further advance their creative responses to fashion design.
We anticipate that students undertaking this programme will reassess their practice and emerge re-directed and renewed by the process.
Research/project work
Critical, cultural and contextual theory is integrated into the practice based modules on this programme, therefore the programme does not contain a thesis or dissertation.
Added value
This programme is delivered within the School of Architecture and the Visual Arts, a dedicated building for Art and Design on the Docklands Campus.
All Academic Staff and Technical Associate support staff working in the school are professionally engaged creative practitioners and are recognised nationally and internationally.
Within the School there is a wide ranging and vibrant research culture centred on discourse, practice and interdisciplinarity.
Field trips abroad and in the UK will form part of the curriculum.
Your future career
This programme will equip the graduates with a set of transferable skills suitable for work in the cultural industries, together with specific skills relating to the management, design and construction of fashion.
Job titles might be:
- Fashion Designer
- Fashion Entrepreneur
- Fashion Artist
- Design Director
- Fashion Forecaster
- Projects Manager
- Fashion Academic
How we support you
The university provides a comprehensive range of support services for students which include: residential/student finance advice/careers advice/study skills development/IT/learning resources. The programme provides strong personal tutor guidance and professional advice related to the practice. Visiting artists, designers and other professional practitioners regularly visit the programme and study trips to working environments are an important component.
Bonus factors
East London environment offers unrivalled access to the most important creative resources, as well as good transport links. There are also regular visits from important professionals who live and work locally.
The Fashion Textiles area at UEL has genuine links with all sectors of the creative industries in the UK and abroad, which have been built up over three decades that will provide the programme with relevant up to date information and support, internships and careers.
The School of Architecture and Visual Arts have established links with GAFA and Tsinghua (China), Legenda (Malaysia), Vantan Design Institute (Japan) and Tallin Institute Estonia, which offer opportunities for overseas exchange.
The School of AVA also provides a number of annual travel bursaries open to all subject areas enabling students to undertake research overseas.
Outcomes
Programme aims and learning outcomes
What is this programme designed to achieve?
This programme is designed to give you the opportunity to:
- Challenge conventional notions of Fashion Design
- Encourage ambition in creative practice
- Develop technical skills and processes for innovative design
- Facilitate experimentation and innovation in materials, concepts and processes
- Engage in critical analysis of the students practice and creative context
- Engender new professional contexts and career trajectories
What will you learn?
Knowledge
- Articulate knowledge and understanding of the fashion process
- Apply and consolidate a broad range of information to specific tasks in design, management and construction
- Extend learning in different contextual frameworks, to develop both visual and entrepreneurial ideas
- Synthesise research information from a range of sources
Thinking skills
- Analyse research undertaken in all areas of the discipline
- Interpret and develop 2D ideas to 3D forms
- Apply resourcefulness and entrepreneurial skills to support practice and the practice of others
Subject-Based Practical skills
- Generate ideas and concepts independently in response to set briefs
- Select and test an appropriate range of materials and processes
- Critically evaluate own work and work of others
- Formulate proposal, arguments, solutions in response to a range of tasks
- Situate your work in a professional context
- Work effectively in a team or independently
- Assimilate skills in planning, design and management commensurate with Fashion industry standards
Skills for life and work (general skills)
- Analyse a range of information and experiences
- Formulate independent judgements and articulate reasoned arguments through reflection, review and evaluation
- Identify personal strengths and needs
- Plan, manage and organise own time effectively
- Critically appraise own practice through refection and analysis
Structure
The programme structure
Introduction
All programmes are credit-rated to help you to understand the amount and level of study that is needed.
One credit is equal to 10 hours of directed study time (this includes everything you do e.g. lecture, seminar and private study).
Credits are assigned to one of 5 levels:
- 0 - equivalent in standard to GCE 'A' level and is intended to prepare students for year one of an undergraduate degree programme
- 1 - equivalent in standard to the first year of a full-time undergraduate degree programme
- 2 - equivalent in standard to the second year of a full-time undergraduate degree programme
- 3 - equivalent in standard to the third year of a full-time undergraduate degree programme
- M - equivalent in standard to a Masters degree
Credit rating
The overall credit-rating of this programme is 180 for MA Fashion, 60 for PGCert, 120 for PGDip.
Typical duration
The typical duration of this programme is one year full-time or two years part-time. It is possible to move from full-time to part-time study and vice-versa to accommodate any external factors such as financial constraints or domestic commitments. Many of our students make use of this flexibility and this may impact on the overall duration of their study period.
How the teaching year is divided
What you will study when
Semester A Start
| Semester A | Semester B | Semester C |
|---|---|---|
|
Creative Practice |
Negotiated Practice |
|
|
30 Credits |
Professional Engagement |
|
Semester B Start
Year 1
| Semester A | Semester B | Semester C |
|---|---|---|
|
- |
Creative Practice |
Negotiated Practice |
Year 2
| Semester A | Semester B | Semester C |
|---|---|---|
|
Professional Engagement |
- |
- |
|
30 Credits |
Part-time Semester A Start
Year 1
| Semester A | Semester B | Semester C |
|---|---|---|
|
Creative Practice |
- |
|
Year 2
| Semester A | Semester B | Semester C |
|---|---|---|
|
30 Credits |
Professional Engagement |
Negotiated Practice |
Option Modules
Options are currently available in Fashion and Textiles, with new options in Graphics, Photography, Fine Art and other University wide modules to be validated for 2010-11
| Level | UEL Module Code | Module Title | Credit | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
M |
- |
Creative Practice |
60 |
Core |
|
M |
- |
Professional Engagement |
30 |
Core |
|
M |
- |
Textiles Exploration and Practice |
30 |
Option |
|
M |
- |
University Wide Option |
30 |
Option |
|
M |
- |
Negotiated Project |
60 |
Core |
Requirements for gaining an award
In order to gain a Postgraduate Certificate, you will need to obtain 60 credits at Level M.
In order to gain a Postgraduate Diploma, you will need to obtain 120 credits at Level M.
In order to obtain a Masters, you will need to obtain 180 credits at Level M. These credits will include a 60 credit level M core module of advanced independent research.
Masters Award Classification
Where a student is eligible for an Masters award then the award classification is determined by calculating the arithmetic mean of all marks and applying the mark obtained as a percentage, with all decimals points rounded up to the nearest whole number, to the following classification
|
70% - 100% |
Distinction |
|
60% - 69% |
Merit |
|
50% - 59% |
Pass |
|
0% - 49% |
Not Passed |
Assessment
Teaching, learning and assessment
Teaching and learning
Knowledge is developed through
- Practically based design projects developing the key skills (research, design, recording information, exhibiting and presenting work
- Lectures, seminars and practical demonstrations
- Live client project work and visiting professionals
Thinking skills are developed through
- Research both primary and secondary, quantitative and qualitative
- Essays, reports and action plans
- Formulations of judgements with presentations and exhibitions
- Self directed study
Practical skills are developed through
- Working with academic, visiting and support staff
- New technologies, CAD digital media, digital fabric printing, photography and digital imagery
- Competitions, national and international
Skills for life and work (general skills) are developed through
- Presentations, individually and in groups
- Industrial placement, working with professionals as part of a team
- Working in teams and group situations in project and assignment work
Assessment
The criteria by which all modules are assessed in Fashion and Textiles are:
- Enquiry and use of sources
- Knowledge and understanding of subject matter
- Critical judgement and analytical ability
- Visual communication
- Written Communication
- Oral Communication
- Technical skills
- Creativity
- Team working
Knowledge is assessed by
- Essays
- Proposals
- Action plans
- Reports
Thinking skills are assessed by
- Research outcomes, qualitative and quantitative
- Research dossiers
- E-portfolios
- Assignments
Practical skills are assessed by
- Coursework
- E-portfolios
- Exhibitions and displays
Skills for life and work (general skills) are assessed by
- Presentations
- Group work
Quality
How we assure the quality of this programme
Before this programme started
Before this programme started, the following was checked:
- There would be enough qualified staff to teach the programme;
- Adequate resources would be in place;
- The overall aims and objectives were appropriate;
- The content of the programme met national benchmark requirements;
- The programme met any professional/statutory body requirements;
- The proposal met other internal quality criteria covering a range of issues such as admissions policy, teaching, learning and assessment strategy and student support mechanisms.
This is done through a process of programme approval which involves consulting academic experts including some subject specialists from other institutions.
How we monitor the quality of this programme
The quality of this programme is monitored each year through evaluating:
- external examiner reports (considering quality and standards)
- statistical information (considering issues such as the pass rate)
- student feedback
Drawing on this and other information, programme teams undertake the annual Review and Enhancement Process which is co-ordinated at School level and includes student participation. The process is monitored by the Quality and Standards Committee.
Once every six years an in-depth review of the whole field is undertaken by a panel that includes at least two external subject specialists. The panel considers documents, looks at student work, speaks to current and former students and speaks to staff before drawing its conclusions. The result is a report highlighting good practice and identifying areas where action is needed.
The role of the programme committee
This programme has a programme committee comprising all relevant teaching staff, student representatives and others who make a contribution towards the effective operation of the programme (e.g. library/technician staff). The committee has responsibilities for the quality of the programme. It provides input into the operation of the Review and Enhancement Process and proposes changes to improve quality. The programme committee plays a critical role in the quality assurance procedures.
The role of external examiners
The standard of this programme is monitored by at least one external examiner. External examiners have two primary responsibilities:
- To ensure the standard of the programme;
- To ensure that justice is done to individual students.
External examiners fulfil these responsibilities in a variety of ways including:
- Approving exam papers/assignments;
- Attending assessment boards;
- Reviewing samples of student work and moderating marks;
- Ensuring that regulations are followed;
- Providing feedback through an annual report that enables us to make improvements for the future.
Listening to the views of students
The following methods for gaining student feedback are used on this programme:
- Module evaluations
- Student representation on programme committees (meeting 6 times a year)
- Student/Staff consultative committee (meeting 3 times a year)
Students are notified of the action taken through:
- circulating the minutes of the programme committee
- providing details on the programme on UEL Plus
Listening to the views of others
The following methods are used for gaining the views of other interested parties:
- Annual student satisfaction questionnaire
- Professional Engagement Tutor
- Alumni events
Further Information
Where you can find further information
Further information about this programme is available from:
- MA Fashion @ UEL Facebook Group http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=74516724171&ref=ts
- The UEL web site (http://www.uel.ac.uk)
- The student handbook
- Module study guides
- UEL Manual of General Regulations and Policies http://www.uel.ac.uk/qa/
- UEL Quality Manual http://www.uel.ac.uk/qa/
- Regulations for the Academic Framework http://www.uel.ac.uk/academicframework/
- Visit our gallery of student work here: http://www.uel.ac.uk/adi/showcase/studentwork/
- Current External examiners
- External examiner reports (available from UEL virtual learning environment (UELPlus or Moodle))
