Bachelor of Branded Fashion Design

The subject introduces business practices such as costing, time management, value engineering and general models of monetising and valuing output typical of a variety of design industries. Case study analyses’ of a typical design industry business practices, domestic and international, acquaint students with the differences and similarities that exist. Students learn about contractual agreements, and where appropriate become familiar with international shipping and distribution terms as well as an introduction to design copyright laws. Initial overview of time allocation practices and the creation and understanding costing terms such as: Bill Of Material (BOM) /Scope of Work / Deliverables used in typical projects is followed by application. Students plan a project from start to finish through to the development of an appropriate project management plan for their industry such as time management charts with typical dependencies highlighted and costed.

Assessment Tasks: Report, Presentation, Project Plan, Proposal

Delivery Mode: On Campus, Online, Intensive

Problem-based learning (PBL) builds students’ capacity to become increasingly proficient at addressing complex design problems with creative confidence. Students enhance their design thinking skills and mindsets to deal with the natural uncertainty of complex problems in this subject. They acquire the confidence to iteratively reframe these problems and take risks to create novel evidence-based solutions while preserving ambiguity throughout the process. Students acquire the necessary skills by engaging actively, independently and in collaborative multidisciplinary teams with complex social and meaningful problems. Learning happens by living the process, witnessing their peers’ progress and reflecting on their own experience while supported with academic learning resources.

Assessment Tasks: Report, Individual Reflection, Self and Peer Evaluation

Delivery Mode: On Campus, Online, Intensive

This subject introduces students to design thinking through the 'Double Diamond’ methodology, a collaborative process that facilitates the investigation of project challenges, synthesises appropriate concepts and delivers proposals that fulfil the needs of people, the possibilities of technology and the requirements for business success. It is a methodology that utilises both divergent and convergent thinking approaches to problem-solving. It is a method that focuses upon meanings instead of features and the quest for disruptive change, instead of incremental improvement. Students are emphatically encouraged to adopt a visionary approach. Divided into four distinct phases –Discover, Define, Develop and Deliver –the Double Diamond is a simple visual roadmap which helps students understand and frame their design-thinking to define problems, develop potential solutions and deliver meaningful outcomes.

Assessment Tasks: Proposal, Presentation, Blog, Report

Delivery Mode: On Campus, Online, Intensive

This subject develops students understanding of the complex inter-relationships that exist within International Fashion Systems and how brands develop their position within or across market classifications. Students examine the concept of fashion market classification through the analysis of international retail, design, production and technological system influences upon particular market segments. Students are also engaged in exploring emerging systems that will be the future of the industry. Students are exposed to case studies, cultural readings and analysis of contemporary fashion systems, designers and brands. Through this investigation, insight is provided into the roles that different consumer segment behaviours have in the development of brand positioning and design outcomes. Producing a series of design folios, students continue to advance their technical drawing, fashion illustration and software skills through the development of design outcomes relevant to defined market segments of the student’s choosing.

Pre-requisite: FA106A Fashion vs Clothing

Assessment Tasks: Report, Journal, Adaptation Folio

Delivery Mode: On Campus, Online

Digital Print Design and Print Theory provides students with the opportunity to develop both their textile knowledge and skills in manually and digitally generating original prints and colours for commercial print. Emphasis will be placed on the relationship between textile type, print design and surface, applying knowledge of fabric composition, properties and performance. Students develop their knowledge of colour theory and its relationship to fabric and fabric designs, integrating colour in the development of a range of print designs (placement and repeat). Students will use both analogue and digital processes to produce their work and develop a portfolio that demonstrates their understanding of the theory and application of colour and print design. Students have the opportunity to develop and print a fabric strike-off of their design. The brief will require students to undertake a small research project to forecast colours and patterns. Importantly this work will be carried out with ongoing reflection on issues of copyright and cultural appropriation and its application to commercial print design.

Assessment Tasks: Physical Samples, Report, Sketch Book

Delivery Mode: On Campus, Online

Technical (techs) and specification (specs) packs are essential communication tools for commercial fashion production. This core subject lays the foundation for students to develop and complete documentation required for garment production. These skills will be essential to their final collections and throughout their career. The emphasis of the subject is on accurately detailing and depicting the key details of fashion products in order to facilitate the sampling and manufacture of garments within a collection based on design, size specifications and product details. Students will also be introduced to the product costing process for commercial fashion design and production. Students design a capsule collection based on research into a brand of their choice and the outcome of this project is a portfolio and industry standard tech and spec pack typically used for onshore and offshore production.

Pre-requisite: FA110A Fashion Technical Drawing and CAD

Assessment Tasks: Design Project, Report

Delivery Mode: On Campus, Online

Enterprise Managements Systems provides a management framework that can be used by a design team to streamline and monitor the product development process from conception through to production and product delivery. Students develop their ability to plan seasonal projects and allocate jobs in a studio setting. Students:

• Critically analyse the typical production workflow and systems of commercial fashion enterprises
• Identify the tasks and functions undertaken by various fashion departments within a fashion enterprise
• Develop a Gantt chart to timetable and manage project workflow, including allocation of tasks and responsibilities
• Build budgets based on forecasts and evaluate performance

Students will engage with software that will enable them to develop cost sheets and a Bill of Materials (BoM) relevant to a commercial collection.

Assessment Tasks: Report, Online Test, Season Cost Workflow

Delivery Mode: Online

Advanced Drape and Sewing continues to develop the students’ understanding of garment construction to establish commercial design outcomes. The subject focuses on 3D shape and form and industry recognised technical skills. Through sewing exercises and the process of draping fabric on a dress form, students compile a catalogue of basic shape blocks and construction samples, alongside an industry standard technical pack. Students extend this practice of experimental fabric manipulation to create garments that reflect specific design solutions, developing these ideas into a series of technical drawings. At the conclusion of this design process, students develop and manufacture a sample look from the developed range with an emphasis on technical engineering, innovation, and design structure.

Pre-requisite: FA108A Fashion Studio Practice

Assessment Tasks: Physical Samples. Report, Patterns

Delivery Mode: On Campus, Online

Social Enterprise is an exciting theoretically-based subject that is driven by the desire to create positive change through entrepreneurial activities. These activities harness design thinking and problem-solving processes in the realisation of pragmatic, viable project proposals from initiation to client presentation. By providing students with a framework to understand business model generation and the skills to source, evaluate, and measure opportunities through systematic research and competitor analysis, Social Enterprise empowers students to conceptualise, develop and propose new ventures and products that focus primarily upon social change for good. In addition, this subject will help students understand and address the practical challenges of working within this environment; to analyse different entrepreneurial business strategies, to explore diverse funding strategies, as well as incorporate theoretical discussions on major trends and issues in the social economy. Social Enterprise enables students to appreciate the power of creativity in problem-solving and the importance of the designer’s role in making a difference and precipitating change.

Assessment Tasks: Report, Presentation

Delivery Mode: On Campus, Online, Intensive

This subject is designed to provide students with professional experience in an area related to their field of study or the career they are working towards. The aim of providing industry-specific opportunities is to enable students to develop skills that will enhance their prospects of gaining meaningful employment and building their career for the future.
Much of the benefit of work integrated learning comes from observation, practicing under supervision and reflection. Work Integrated Learning is an excellent way to broaden the students learning environment while they are studying. It allows them to see first-hand how what they are learning in their degree translates into practice, as well as how ‘real world’ practice relates to what they are learning at University.
This subject will develop work ready skills and boost students’ employability while they are studying.

There are two work integrated learning options available to students:
Option 1: Internship
Students are offered the opportunity to work within a professional design environment for an extended period of time. It encourages students to build long-term relationships with the design industry and exposes them to the rigour of applied design practice while building their confidence in adapting to new environments. It also provides a context in which to enhance their communication skills and work collaboratively in a professional arena. Students will undertake a series of research tasks, conducting interviews and gathering data in order to understand the key concepts in managing a professional design practice with emphasis placed on the operation of the professional design environment.

Option 2: Industry Live Brief 
This subject requires students to respond to criteria set within the context of an Industry Live Project. An understanding of research methodologies appropriate to professional practice and the documentation of personal creative investigation will be explored. Students will also further investigate and examine entrepreneurial and commercial opportunities through collaborative work practice. The subject is delivered from a cross discipline perspective and draws on both discipline specific and common design practices.
Students are required to work both independently or as part of a collaborative team in order to conduct research, analyse and define project parameters and deliver innovative solutions that expand the notion of an industry live brief.

Assessment Tasks: Internship, e-Journal

Delivery Mode: On Campus, Online

This subject provides students with the opportunity to demonstrate and apply their previous learning by designing a co-ordinated seasonal collection for a brand of their own creation. Students will be required to conduct research within a self-identified market of interest to determine needs and opportunities within that market to develop a branded solution. In response to the research findings emphasis is placed upon the relationships of individual pieces, their fabrication and manufacturing techniques and the relevance of the collection to the identified market segment. The subject is also designed to demonstrate the student’s ability to visually communicate the technical aspects of the garments they have designed to a production team. The culmination of this subject is a designed seasonal collection curated appropriately to typical industry standards. Students are expected to demonstrate their flexibility and creative problem-solving acumen to execute a minimum of one look from the collection and present it to a panel for critique and feedback. Collection Design is a precursor to the student’s final graduate collection.

Assessment Tasks: Physical and Digital Samples, Report, Presentation, Prototypes, Merchandise Folio

Delivery Mode: On Campus, Online

In this subject, students continue to develop their knowledge of digital applications used in the presentation of brand and product. Emphasis is given to the nature and purpose of fashion representation in an evolving digital landscape, including e-commerce and social media. Students will explore the most relevant and effective way to represent the brand that they have created. This will be based on their acquired knowledge of the different aspects of sales, promotional, marketing and technical information employed in the industry. The subject is designed from a professional perspective and addresses key industry requirements. It draws on the student’s ability to communicate their brand and designs impactfully in order to generate sales. Professional Folio Production is a precursor to the student’s final graduate collection.

Pre-requisite: FA301A Collection Design

Assessment Tasks: Merchandise Folio, Look Book, Digital Application Proposal, Report

Delivery Mode: On Campus, Online

Portfolio Range is part of a series of subjects that make up the student’s final year of study and presentation of their final graduate collection. The outcome of this subject is the development and production of a digitally produced marketing and merchandising brand pack. Students extend on their brand essence and rationale created in FA307A Branded Fashion Production by using photography, graphic design or digital media design to communicate their brand assets and product line. In addition, this subject prepares students for entry into the workforce by exploring a broader understanding of design portfolios and the presentation of creative works to present a cohesive and authentic personal narrative. Supported by self-directed research, students evaluate contemporary styles, methods, and formats of presentation to deliver a portfolio and suite of materials that can be used to initiate industry connections.

Assessment Tasks: Marketing and Merchandise Folio, Personal Portfolio, Digital Application, Report

Delivery Mode: Online

Technical Portfolio Production is part of a series of subjects that make up the student’s final year of study and presentation of their final graduate collection. In this subject, students are required to apply their digital design knowledge to produce a technical portfolio containing CADs, construction methods, size specifications and costings that facilitate communication between the designer and the production team in the manufacture of garments. The outcome is a manufactured collection and industry standard technical folio of the product range designed in the subject Branded Fashion Production. The document will provide evidence of the student’s understanding and familiarity with the principles and practices of the industry. Students will be required to manage their own work, including industry liaison, so that production and presentation deadlines can be met.

Assessment Tasks: Report

Delivery Mode: On Campus, Online

Branded Fashion Production is part of a series of subjects that make up the student’s final year of study and forms the basis of their final graduate collection. Students conduct in-depth research of their fashion market and target segment to further develop their brand and its products. As they design and develop a commercial collection, students will liaise with various sections of the industry relevant to their brand and product. This engagement provides real industry experience and further develops students’ problem solving and communication skills. From the collection, students will produce in the subject Technical Portfolio Production a small group of coordinated garments or products which will be manufactured either physically or in a digital format. At the culmination of this subject, each student will individually present their final collection to an industry panel for critique.

Assessment Tasks: Physical and Digital Samples, Report, Presentation

Delivery Mode: On Campus, Online

Fashion and Social Media requires students to collaborate online within a group to design and build a social media strategy for a fashion brand. Employing a problem based learning methodology, students critically review and analyse their understanding of social media and its applications. They identify and build on their understanding of the evolving social media landscape and its many features by demonstrating and applying the usage and benefits for fashion companies. Students develop an appreciation of the range and functionality of social media tools that currently exist and are used in the fashion industry, underpinning the sales, marketing and branding divisions of such businesses. In a simulated boardroom scenario, students identify and present a range of scenarios for the development of a social media strategy for a fashion brand and critically analyse the return on investment for their chosen approach.

Assessment Tasks: Social Media Project, Digital Applications, Report

Delivery Mode: Online

Fashion Marketing and Brand Development explores the roles and importance of market diagnosis, segmentation and targeting, strategy and brand positioning in successful brand development. Students investigate current trends in marketing and analyse how these are employed by fashion brands across the spectrum of market classifications. Through this investigation, students gain understanding of contemporary marketing theory in relation to evolving consumer behaviour. Students will also develop a case study investigating the marketing and brand development strategies of a selected brand, including the examination and analysis of that brand’s responses to their target audience, market category and intended position within their category. The subject culminates in a strategic marketing plan developed to address the challenge of launching a brand of the student’s own creation.

Assessment Tasks: Report, Marketing Plan

Delivery Mode: Online

Buying and Merchandise Planning is the cornerstone of successful retail operations. This subject requires students to work independently whilst planning, initiating and developing their own merchandise plan for a fashion enterprise. Students participate in a series of exercises where fashion companies’ practices and models are dissected and applied to realistic industry scenarios. The subject focuses on:

• Trend analysis and consumer understanding
• Retail classifications and the retail landscape
• Key retail terms and formulas
• Development of Open-to-Buy plans
• Sales forecasting and sales analysis
• Merchandise strategy

In addition, students apply the Open-to-Buy forecasting tool in different retail settings to determine the budget allocated for future deliverable merchandise. Students develop their independent decision making skills when analysing actual sales, inventory, and forecast sales to project the subsequent buying and merchandising plan.

Assessment Tasks: Excel Spreadsheet, Report

Delivery Mode: Online