Hello footcdm-ga,
Many young women are interested in fashion related careers. Luckily,
there are lots of resources available to help her and you explore the
fashion industry and all the career possibilities available. I?ve
collected some general information about the occupations and jobs that
are included in this field and the links I?ve included will give you
some guidelines for evaluating the occupations outlook for each. To
help you get up-to-date information about real jobs I?ve also included
some job posting sites so that you can continue your explorations.
I?ve also collected a collection of links to help you identify schools
that offer degrees in fashion design and fashion merchandising. These
include both colleges and universities as well as trade schools. I
could not find any rankings of fashion design schools or programs but
I was able to find some ranking systems that might help you find
schools that have won acclaim.
I hope you will find this information useful. I wish great success for
your daughter in her quest for a design career.
~ czh ~
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FASHION DESIGN / MERCHANDISING -- CAREERS AND OCCUPATIONAL OUTLOOK
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http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos090.htm
Occupational Outlook -- Designers
NATURE OF THE WORK
Fashion designers design clothing and accessories. Some high-fashion
designers are self-employed and design for individual clients. Other
high-fashion designers cater to specialty stores or high-fashion
department stores. These designers create original garments, as well
as clothing that follows established fashion trends. Most fashion
designers, however, work for apparel manufacturers, creating designs
of men?s, women?s, and children?s fashions for the mass market.
Merchandise displayers and window dressers, or visual merchandisers,
plan and erect commercial displays, such as those in windows and
interiors of retail stores or at trade exhibitions. Those who work on
building exteriors erect major store decorations, including building
and window displays and lights. Those who design store interiors
outfit store departments, arrange table displays, and dress
mannequins. In large retail chains, store layouts typically are
designed corporately, through a central design department. To retain
the chain?s visual identity and ensure that a particular image or
theme is promoted in each store, designs are distributed to individual
stores by e-mail, downloaded to computers equipped with the
appropriate design software, and adapted to meet the size and
dimension requirements of each individual store.
EMPLOYMENT
Designers held about 532,000 jobs in 2002. Approximately one-third
were self-employed. Employment was distributed as follows:
Merchandise displayers and window trimmers 77,000
Fashion designers 15,000
Salaried designers worked in a number of different industries,
depending on their design specialty. ? Merchandise displayers and
window trimmers were dispersed across a variety of retailers and
wholesalers. ? Fashion designers generally worked in apparel
manufacturing or wholesale distribution of apparel, piece goods, and
notions.
In 2002, a large proportion of designers were self-employed and did
freelance work?full time or part time?in addition to holding a
salaried job in design or in another occupation.
TRAINING, OTHER QUALIFICATIONS, AND ADVANCEMENT
Creativity is crucial in all design occupations. People in this field
must have a strong sense of the esthetic?an eye for color and detail,
a sense of balance and proportion, and an appreciation for beauty.
Designers also need excellent communication and problem-solving
skills. Despite the advancement of computer-aided design, sketching
ability remains an important advantage in most types of design,
especially fashion design. A good portfolio?a collection of examples
of a person?s best work?often is the deciding factor in getting a job.
A bachelor?s degree is required for most entry-level design positions,
except for floral design and visual merchandising. Esthetic ability is
important in floral design and visual merchandising, but formal
preparation typically is not necessary. Many candidates in industrial
design pursue a master?s degree to increase their chances of selection
for open positions.
In fashion design, employers seek individuals with a 2- or 4-year
degree who are knowledgeable in the areas of textiles, fabrics, and
ornamentation, and about trends in the fashion world. Set and exhibit
designers typically have college degrees in design. A Master of Fine
Arts degree from an accredited university program further establishes
one?s design credentials.
Formal training for some design professions also is available in 2-
and 3-year professional schools that award certificates or associate
degrees in design. Graduates of 2-year programs normally qualify as
assistants to designers, or they may enter a formal bachelor?s degree
program. The Bachelor of Fine Arts degree is granted at 4-year
colleges and universities.
The National Association of Schools of Art and Design accredits more
than 200 postsecondary institutions with programs in art and design.
Most of these schools award a degree in art, and some award degrees in
industrial, interior, textile, graphic, or fashion design. Many
schools do not allow formal entry into a bachelor?s degree program
until a student has successfully finished a year of basic art and
design courses. Applicants may be required to submit sketches and
other examples of their artistic ability.
JOB OUTLOOK
Overall employment of designers is expected to grow about as fast as
the average for all occupations through the year 2012 as the economy
expands and consumers, businesses, and manufacturers continue to rely
on the services provided by designers. However, designers in most
fields?with the exception of floral design?are expected to face keen
competition for available positions.
EARNINGS (2002)
Median annual earnings for fashion designers were $51,290 in 2002. The
middle 50 percent earned between $35,550 and $75,970. The lowest 10
percent earned less than $25,350, and the highest 10 percent earned
more than $105,280.
Median annual earnings of merchandise displayers and window dressers
were $22,550 in 2002. The middle 50 percent earned between $18,320 and
$29,070. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $15,100, and the
highest 10 percent earned more than $40,020. Median annual earnings
were $22,130 in department stores.
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http://www.calmis.cahwnet.gov/file/occguide/FASHION.HTM
http://www.calmis.cahwnet.gov/file/occguide/FASHION.PDF
http://www.nycareerzone.org/graphic/profile.jsp?onetsoc=27-1022.00
FASHION DESIGNERS
California Occupational Guide Number 185
***** These occupational guides give you very detailed information
about the fashion design occupation and industry in California and New
York. If you live in some other state you can use this information as
a template for getting similar information from your state.
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http://cppnt.cpp.uga.edu/ccweb/multimedia/majors_handouts/Fashion%20Merchandising.pdf
What Can I Do with a Major in Fashion Merchandising?
http://smccd.net/accounts/skycounseling/Resource%20Pages/FashionMerchandising.htm
Student and Counselor Resource Page for Fashion Merchandising
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http://www.npr.org/features/feature.php?wfId=3894400
Esteban Cortazar: Young, Veteran Fashion Designer
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http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=308935
Q: Do I need a BA in Fashion Design to get a professional job in the field?
Sept. 8, 2004 -- At 20, designer Esteban Cortazar is already an old
hand of the fashion industry. The Colombia native, who grew up in
Miami, is presenting his fifth major show during New York City's
Fashion Week festivities.
***** See also the related articles for a fun perspective on current
fashion industry trends.
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http://www.fashionwiredaily.com/headlines.weml
Fashion Wire Daily is the world's leading newswire service devoted to
fashion and celebrity style. With a network of top fashion reporters
and photographers posted in NY, LA and three European bureaus,
covering the latest news and trends, FWD is in a unique position to
bring you breaking news and the scoops you need to be at the top of
your game.
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FASHION DESIGN / MERCHANDISING -- JOBS
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http://www.24seveninc.com/buzz.html
Fashion Recruitment ? Fashion
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http://www.fashioncareercenter.com/job_seekers.html
Fashion Career Center
Connecting Fashion Career Candidates with Employers and Recruiters
http://www.fashioncareercenter.com/db1/JobSearch.asp?action=search
Job Search
***** If you leave all options blank you will get a complete listing
of all positions posted. When I did the search I got a listing of 262
jobs and 110 jobs when I used the keyword ?designer?. The job postings
seem to be fairly current and it might be interesting for you to
browse the listings to explore the many different types of jobs that
are available in this industry.
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http://www.appareljobboard.com/jobseekers.htm
Apparel Jobs by Region
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http://www.crbapparel.com/
CRB Apparel Search services all professional positions including
Executives, Design, Merchandising, Technical Design, Production, etc.
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http://www.stylecareers.com/
StyleCareers.com
StyleCareers.com is the largest, fashion-only job listing site on the
Internet. Unlike the other, fashion-only job boards, StyleCareers.com
is not affiliated with a recruiting agency and does not collect
placement fees or provide temporary employment services. With no
reason to cherry-pick the best candidates for it's own use,
StyleCareers.com facilitates honest communication between fashion
industry employers and job seekers.
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FASHION DESIGN / MERCHANDISING -- SCHOOLS
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http://www.artschools.com/articles/ranking/
July 27, 2004 -- Resources for Ranking Art Schools and Colleges
There is no one best art school for everyone.
?And now (after your heavy sigh at reading another non-specific
response), to continue our discussion of this critical subject, we
would like to acknowledge that rankings of art schools and colleges do
provide an excellent starting point for those in the hunt for the best
art education and the best art degree that they can find.
Links to Rankings for Art Schools and Colleges
***** You can link to a collection of school rankings to continue your
explorations. Since none of the rankings are for specific Fashion
Design programs you will have to review the descriptions of what
majors and programs are available at each school to evaluate how the
Fashion Design major contributed to the school?s ranking.
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http://www.princetonreview.com/college/research/majors/majorBasics.asp?majorID=109
Major: Fashion Design
http://www.princetonreview.com/college/research/majors/Schools.asp?MajorID=109
Schools Offering Fashion Design
114 matching schools
***** This is a comprehensive list of schools. Be sure to check out
the ?Rankings? when available to get a better overview of the school?s
various capabilities and qualities. You should also note the schools
that show ?Most Popular? next to their name. This means that Fashion
Design is one of the three most popular majors at this school.
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http://www.fashion-degree.com/
Fashion Design ? Schools and Colleges
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http://www.af-competition.com/
Arts of Fashion Foundation
The Arts of Fashion Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated
to the world of Fashion and its myriad aspects ? The first event of
the Foundation is the revival of the AF-Competition in the United
States.
***** Qualifying in this competition is one way of identifying schools
that are outstanding in the fashion design field.
http://www.af-competition.com/schools%20&%20programs%202002.htm
Schools & Programs 2002
http://www.af-competition.com/Templates/schools%20&%20programs%202003.htm
Schools & Programs 2003
http://www.af-competition.com/newaf2004/listing%20School%20%202004.htm
Schools & Programs 2004
***** The listing of schools provides Web links so you can easily
continue your explorations.
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http://nasad.arts-accredit.org/index.jsp
National Association of Schools of Art and Design
NASAD, founded in 1944, is an organization of schools, colleges, and
universities. It has approximately 240 accredited institutional
members. It establishes national standards for undergraduate and
graduate degrees and other credentials.
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http://www.fashioncareercenter.com/fashion_colleges.html
Fashion Schools and Colleges
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http://nasad.arts-accredit.org/index.jsp?page=Statistical%20Information
Data Summaries
The Higher Education Arts Data Services (HEADS) Project is a joint
effort of the following organizations: National Association of Schools
of Music, National Association of Schools of Art and Design, National
Association of Schools of Theatre, and the National Association of
Schools of Dance. The HEADS Project is designed to provide
comprehensive management data on the arts in higher education.
The results of the HEADS survey of degree-granting art and design
programs in higher education are available in the form of published
Data Summaries. The Data Summaries provide statistics on enrollment,
faculty numbers and salaries, administrative processes, budget,
presentation information, and a series of ratios providing comparisons
in two or more of these areas. Most data are reported by size and type
of institution.
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http://www.fashioncareercenter.com/fashion_colleges.html
Fashion Schools and Colleges
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http://dir.yahoo.com/Arts/Design_Arts/Fashion_and_Beauty/Education/Schools/
Fashion and Beauty > Schools
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http://www.trade-school.org/fashion/fashion-design/index.htm
Fashion Design Schools
http://www.trade-school.org/fashion/fashion-merchandising/index.htm
Fashion Merchandising Schools & Colleges
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http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=208192
Q: Best fashion design schools in the world
http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=176621
Q: Directories for Fashion Schools
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SEARCH STRATEGY
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occupational outlook fashion design
fashion design careers
fashion design schools
best fashion design schools
ranked fashion design schools |
