Is Fashion Education Selling Us A False Dream?

By Hannah Amundson

This article was originally written in 2015.

In May of last year, I graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Fashion Design and an exceptionally naive ideology. I believed that spending four years cultivating an extreme conceptual aesthetic made me original, and would separate me from my competition in a positive way. I had no doubt in my mind that right out of school I would step onto the (bottom) rung of the fashion industry ladder, get recognized for my unique vision, and immediately be put to use working towards a company's shared goals.

One professor, whom I now realize I should have probably paid more heed to, had once told me that my portfolio was "a little too out there" to show to my prospective employers. At the time I assumed she just didn't realize that my goal was to work for the kind of company that was making artistic and avant-garde pieces, and I really couldn't care less if the Gap didn't understand why I designed a whole outlandish collection of bridal gowns for shotgun Vegas weddings.

However after a year of enlightenment and reflection, I can see that maybe her advice was not about how I should "tone down" my apparel creations, but how I should re-evaluate why I was compelled to make clothes in the first place. And that I should decide if a sales-driven market was really the right place for my art-and-social-discourse-driven aesthetic. 

A recent article that was published by the Business of Fashion entitled, "Is Fashion Selling a False Dream?", featured several interviews with alumni of top-ranked fashion schools who expressed disappointment in their preparedness when entering the fashion industry. I agree with them in that I didn’t feel well prepared, but I can also empathize with how difficult it must be for schools to cram so much training and preparation into four years.

“The reality of working in the fashion industry that I wasn't prepared for is what it truly means to "design" someone else's vision, to fulfill the sales quota for the target customer that season”

That being said, my biggest concern seemed to have been glossed over - that fashion schools around the world are training thousands of graduates every year all to be "designers''. I believe this is a serious issue that leads to so much dissatisfaction from students who would have benefited greatly had they been given the opportunity for more specialized training. Rather than being told they should be a `’jack-of-all-trades”, I wonder how many would excel with more focus on areas such as: pattern making, CAD, sample development, wear/wash and fit testing, dying and surface applications, material sourcing, innovation in fabrics, technological innovation, construction techniques, sustainable materials, sustainable practices, consumer research, (and that doesn't even include all the avenues available in the sales/marketing/merchandising sectors).

Of course I had heard most of these terms while in school. But I had no idea that in the real-world industry they are formed into very specific, full-time roles. Even now after years in the industry I still feel I’m lacking the resources needed to discover and prepare to be hired for these specialized positions. Maybe that's a broader issue within the industry - with a quick scan of available jobs postings on LinkedIn, it becomes very apparent that the lack of diverse opportunities doesn’t reflect the actual inner workings of a fashion brand. Many people would be amazed by the wide variety of people doing tasks as specific as sourcing embroidery for 40+ hours every week.

“Because no aspiring student wants to pay an institution thousands of dollars just to tell them that the average consumer does not buy "avant-garde".

Looking back, the reality of my experience at fashion school is that I was prepared with the knowledge of how to design women's clothing to fulfill my own creative impulses and desires. But what I wasn’t prepared for once I reached the industry is what it truly means to "design" someone else's vision, or to fulfill the sales quota for the target customer that season.

My education taught me that fashion design is an intensely creative field, with the opportunity to bring to life beautiful things that make people feel happy, empowered, and confident. It's understandable why fashion schools teach that way. Because no aspiring student wants to pay an institution thousands of dollars just to tell them that the average consumer does not buy "avant-garde". But in the real world instead of the dream you’re sold, you’re faced with learning how to look at options for floral prints like it’s a directory of phone numbers. You also need to keep the integrity of the print but reduce it to three colors because "we can't afford six". And all of the calf-length lace pencil skirts you modeled off of some ‘depression-era’ photos need to be cut above-the-knee because the buyer complained that they were too matronly for the young demographic we're targeting. (These scenarios may seem familiar to many of you reading this).

“What if, after another year, we are still unhappy with only making what sells, not seeking more efficient solutions (because we're told re-training everyone is inconvenient) and not caring about how exploitative we are of the planet and people in the supply chain. ”

Many of my peers and predecessors have been forced to accept and adapt to the reality of this industry. But what about those of us who bought into the institutional marketing scheme of "genuinely improving people's lives", "innovating for the future" and "having a unique perspective as your greatest asset"? What if, after another year, we are still unhappy with only focusing on what does sell rather than what could sell?

Edited by Emma Golley

About The Author:

Hannah Amundson is a product developer, fit technician and supply chain manager. She studied at the Savannah College of Art and Design and later went on to work for the likes of Monique Lhuillier and Floravere. You can contact her via the link below.

Linkedin

You can share Hannah’s story on socials via the links below!

Like this article? Sign up to our new newsletter to get more articles like this delivered straight to your inbox once a month.