Fashion
Where innovation thrives
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Where innovation thrives
From education to career
Gain skills in digital printing, laser cutting, three-dimensional printing and computer-aided design – knowledge that will help you bridge the gap from education to your professional fashion career.
Explore postgraduate courses
About us
The reputation of our fashion students is very high. Our courses have gained national and international recognition through Graduate Fashion Week, London Fashion Week, Russian Fashion Week and other national design awards.
We've tailored our courses to fit today's fashion business, responding to its pace and the adaptability of its processes. So, our students from all fashion courses work together and learn from each other as they achieve their goals. This collaboration results in exceptional work.
Our team has a wealth of expertise in the creative and technical aspects of the business. Our design staff have designed for brands such as Adidas, Louis Vuitton, Puma and Kanye West.
Our facilities include dedicated manufacturing workrooms and screen printing and dyeing facilities, allowing you to master the handmade element of creativity. Fashion students studying business-related subjects will also have access to Mac lab to gain hands-on experience in Adobe programmes such as Photoshop, Illustration and InDesign.
Why choose UEL for a Fashion degree?
Our fashion courses at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels are highly industry-facing. You will embark on an innovative curriculum which balances theoretical constructs with practical, creative commercial solutions. Many modules are project-based, which will help you build an impressive professional fashion portfolio.
Our studio-based learning offers you a high level of contact time with both technicians and academics. We have a wide range of facilities including our Mac lab, sewing workshop, and large textile print workshop.
Our connections with the fashion industry are extremely vast and many of our teaching staff are industry active. With these great links, that our staff and the university have built, our work placement sandwich year will give you the opportunity to work at prestigious companies.
Over the years, fashion students have interned at ASOS, Paul Smith, Net a Porter, Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen and fashion groups such as Inditex and Arcadia. Additionally, with new embedded modules such as Mental Wealth: Professional Life, students are allowed to develop live projects with industry and build on their business and enterprise skills.
Our facilities
The Fashion and Textiles workshops provide materials and facilities for textile printing and embroidery, including an exposure unit and a transfer press. There are workshops for pattern cutting, machining, and fabricating garments. We also have a textile print workshop with large screen tables for fabric printing. Machine workrooms provide a full machining workshop, producing garments with a variety of construction techniques. In addition, we also have a historic archive of garments that students can borrow from to aid their understanding of design and construction and also offer collaborative opportunities with other departments such as photography, journalism, games and fine arts workshops. All our available resources ensure our students are getting the most out of what we offer and can further build on their personal, and professional development and skills.
Our libraries and learning services are at the very heart of the University. We have a superb range of resources and facilities to help you with your studies and we're committed to offering you a first-class student experience. Our Stratford library, opened at a cost of £14 million, is a state-of-the-art building which provides an inspirational environment for study and research. Overlooking the Royal Docks, our modern Docklands library is another fantastic space for learning, offering a wide range of resources as well as group and silent study facilities. You can also get extra help with your academic writing.
Both our libraries are open 24/7 during term time, giving you maximum flexibility about when you choose to study. As well as visiting our libraries in person, you can also take advantage of our growing collection of electronic resources, including e-books, e-journals and databases.
To ensure our students get the best possible support, we've opened brand-new Student Support hubs at our Docklands and Stratford campuses - at a cost of £3.1 million. These contain centralised helpdesks as well as comfortable areas to relax and socialise. The helpdesks provide a 'one-stop-shop' for every possible need, from course-related enquiries to personal issues such as health and money matters. They're designed to be your first port of call if you have an enquiry or problem.
To find out more and experience our facilities first-hand, visit us at an Open Day.
I enjoyed my time at UEL. I learned so much about the world of fashion from theories to practice during my industry experience. Our tutors were knowledgeable and approachable and had many connections which benefited our studies further. I had the opportunity to have my PR placement at Alexander McQueen and another one in New York. The tutors pushed us to work hard but it’s all worth it in the end."
Lucy Davies
BA (Hons) Fashion Marketing, graduate
UEL at London Fashion Week
We are incredibly proud of our talented student designers who showcased their final year work as part of London Fashion Week 2024.
What we're researching
Our academic team are dedicated to furthering the knowledge of creative practice and how it impacts on the fashion industry.
One of our research areas is sustainable design within fashion and textiles. In a collaborative project by UEL researchers; we've been analysing and identifying new materials and decorative methods. Our BA Fashion Design senior lecturer, Joe Hunter's environmental design ideology has been ongoing since the early '90s and is reinvigorated with a new soft sculpture, printed with trash and skinned with denim offcuts to create an oversized soft toy designed to initiate kids into environmental preservation.
Additionally, we're also looking at how new digital technology can transform the fashion shopping experience and further increase in-store customer experience. MA International Fashion Business programme leader, Kent Le, is conducting his PhD on the use of Augmented Reality in Fashion Promotion with his research being presented at international conferences such as the International Conference on Contemporary Marketing Issues.
Our Head of Department and Course Leader for BA Fashion Design, Beatrice Newman, is an entrepreneur and has launched her own brand, Korlekie, which specialises in unique made-to-order clothing that has been worn by the likes of Alesha Dixon, Rita Ora, Ellie Goulding and Tiwa Savage from Nigeria. Her specialist area of research surrounds building a sustainable fashion business with an emphasis towards the development and preservation of craftsmanship using heritage handcraft and digital technology.
Our staff
Find out more about our staff by visiting our School of Arts and Creative Industries (ACI) page.
Careers
Our courses will put you on track to securing a career in fashion. The quality of our fashion students' work is held in such high regard that a group of our undergraduates were commissioned to create costumes for hit moves and celebrities.
It's a very competitive industry, so we advise that students take up work experience at any given opportunity. If you choose to undertake an optional placement year, you'll have a wonderful opportunity to earn as you learn for a year at top fashion companies such as Diesel, ASOS or Marks & Spencer.
We are proud of the success that so many of our graduate fashion students have achieved. Our students go on to make their names as designers, design coordinators, pattern cutters, fashion technologists, product developers and retail managers. Our dedicated Centre for Student Success works closely with employers to provide up-to-date information about the skills and experience they're looking for. They will support you during your studies and after you graduate.
At UEL, you'll have access to:
- Employability skills training such as interview techniques and CV writing.
- Career Assessment, giving you the opportunity to learn about yourself and Career Coach will help you to discover career suggestions based on your interests.
- UEL Skills Academy, where external professionals deliver sessions on the competencies most prized by graduate employers.
- Internships, placements and volunteering opportunities from our work placements team.
- Professional mentoring scheme, matching students with staff from major companies.
- Networking opportunities and annual careers fair.
- Support with setting up your own business.
Our location in one of Europe's largest regeneration areas and our extensive links to local employers will also give you access to fantastic internships and placements. From heavy industry to high-tech, health and social care to the arts, there are so many opportunities right on our doorstep.
Work placements
Our undergraduate fashion students can choose to switch to the Industrial Placement (Sandwich Year) option and have the opportunity to take a full-year industry placement schedule between their second and third academic year. They gain first-hand experience in the industry and develop their understanding of professional practice. Each course has an extensive and varied list of contacts that we use to support our students' work placement opportunities.
Previous fashion students have worked with top companies such as:
- ASOS
- M&Co
- Marios Schwab
- Suzie Turner Couture
- Julien Macdonald
- Holly Fulton
- Markus Lupfer
- Another magazine
- Wallpaper magazine
- Hand & Lock
- Alexander McQueen
- Net a Porter
- Marks & Spencer
Career coach
Our online Career Coach shows you the different career paths that your chosen subject area can lead you to.
Get information on specific careers, job roles, potential wages and available jobs in the sector.
Or, take a quick quiz to find a career to match your personality type!
Fashion features
Our fashion students get to be hands-on at events like Graduate Fashion Week and London Fashion Week. See their work, and hear from our fashion lecturers who work in the front line of the fashion industry.
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Fashion students at UEL's Absolutely Fabulous fashion show, School of ACIImage 1 of x![]()
University of East London x London Fashion Week 2023Image 1 of x![]()
Jason Forrest spent over 2 decades in the fashion industry working as a Visual Merchandiser and now is UEL’s Course Leader for BA Fashion Marketing.Image 1 of x![]()
Head of Department for Fashion and Course Leader for BA Fashion Design, Beatrice Newman, is an entrepreneur and has conducted research in building a sustainable fashion business through her own brand, KorlekieImage 1 of x
- Fashion students at UEL's Absolutely Fabulous fashion show, School of ACIImage 1 of x
- University of East London x London Fashion Week 2023Image 1 of x
- Jason Forrest spent over 2 decades in the fashion industry working as a Visual Merchandiser and now is UEL’s Course Leader for BA Fashion Marketing.Image 1 of x
- Head of Department for Fashion and Course Leader for BA Fashion Design, Beatrice Newman, is an entrepreneur and has conducted research in building a sustainable fashion business through her own brand, KorlekieImage 1 of x
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