BSc Fashion Technology / Course details

The Fashion Technology programme provides students with an exciting opportunity to develop keen business acumen, a critical awareness of current industry issues and a thorough understanding of the latest in wearable textiles and fashion technology. The course ensures that graduates are equipped with the breadth of knowledge and skills to help drive forward much-needed developments in industry practices to meet sustainability goals and consumer needs. With a strong focus on commercial context, students will explore textile technologies, technical textile performance and seek to apply cutting edge computer-aided design techniques to create body-worn products.

Fashion Technology requires an understanding of contemporary manufacturing approaches and the technical knowledge of the body and materials, to ensure garment engineering decisions are aligned with the performance requirements of a product. Fashion technology encompasses a comprehensive understanding of technical requirements for materials and manufacture, including hands on approaches to testing and manufacture which help build an understanding of product development and body to product interaction.

The course provides a platform to drive forward innovation and develop technically demanding engineered garments for both functional and fashion applications. Students are supported in exploring technology to enhance to become skilled fashion technologists with a keen understanding of how to engineer garments that meet both performance and wear requirements. Grounded in sustainable approaches and applying technological solutions, the course applies research-informed teaching to engage directly with technologies such as body scanning, parametric pattern creation, smart wearables and virtual fitting.

In our new Home of Engineering and Materials , we're ripping up the rule book to offer a truly innovative teaching and learning experience. You'll have access to world-leading sustainable research facilities and some of the most unique, industry-leading equipment and instrumentation in the sector to meet today's requirements and those of the future. 

Students may apply to extend this degree to four years, and spend their third year either on industrial experience or studying abroad. 

For study abroad, exchange partners are offered through the Erasmus Exchange scheme in Europe and the Worldwide Exchange scheme. Find out more about the Study Abroad Programme . 

Students wanting to take the Industrial placement pathway are responsible for finding their own placement. They will work closely with the careers office and both the placement tutor and administrator to find a suitable placement.  They also have access to former placement providers who often take students each year.

You will be taught by a variety of lecturers, many of whom conduct academic research in their specialist topic and have significant industry experience, which ensures our course content is up-to-date, and inspired by the latest discoveries of our research groups and the expertise of our staff.

You will have access to industrial scale sewing, weaving, knitting, dyeing and fabric printing equipment that will give you real insight into the links between the product development process, marketing and the external environment. Our facilities will also help you to develop sound technical knowledge and an understanding of all the processes involved in the manufacturing of fabrics and development of fashion products.

Assessment is normally by a mixture of traditional written examination and course work which includes reports and practical projects. A final year project allows you to specialise in an area of your choice, for example focusing on developing a broader corporate strategy for a fashion business. Alternatively you could opt to take the Business Project, which allows you to start up a live company.

If you choose to take the four-year pathway with industrial experience, your year in industry is assessed through a written report, appraisal by the host organisation and an oral presentation contributing 10% towards your final mark.

The Department of Materials is home to an extensive array of unique facilities and equipment, across both materials science and engineering, and fashion business and technology.

Our new Home of Engineering and Materials opened in 2022 and is a place like no other. This is where engineers, material scientists and fashion students collaborate, innovate and make their mark on the world. Unleash your potential in our creative, academic playground that signals the evolution of a proud history of innovation spanning almost 200 years.

In this very special place, we're ripping up the rule book, offering you a truly innovative teaching and learning experience. As well as our creative classrooms, you'll also have access to world-leading sustainable research facilities in our new buildings.

Our variety of spaces allows for greater collaboration for all our students, and it is the place to connect and tackle real-life challenges together. So, a chemical engineer could be sat alongside a materials scientist working on clean water, or bump into a fashion student developing their own sustainable brand, or an aerospace engineer sending a rocket into space. It is a place like no other for interactions and one of the biggest communities of engineers and materials scientists in any University in the world.

Dive into a world of possibilities, whether you are interested in aerospace, robotics, or sustainable fashion, there's a home for you here. Explore Our Home for Engineering and Material Science .

We are unique amongst UK Universities in that we have excellent facilities for manufacturing textiles, including Jacquard weaving, computerised flat-bed knitting, digital printing and nano-fibre manufacturing.

We also benefit from a dedicated CAD suite, a multi-media and digital printing centre, a fashion retail studio and our students have access to textile and clothing process laboratories which include knitting and weaving facilities.