Major: Clothing and Textiles Studies
Clothing and textiles studies involves more than just designing clothing -- although your creativity will get a workout if you choose this major. Students of clothing and textiles studies also learn how to create a product that consumers will buy. You’ll study not only how clothing is designed and made, but also how it is advertised and sold. And you’ll get a good behind-the-scenes look at clothing retailers like Macy’s and design firms like Ralph Lauren.
Students in this major study the design, manufacture, and marketing of clothing and other textile products. They also study the history, sociology, and economics of clothing and textiles.
Did You Know?
- If you like shopping for clothes, consider becoming a buyer. Buyers decide which merchandise customers see on the racks.
Are You Ready To...?
- Combine colors, fabrics, and shapes to create your own designs
- Work with new materials, such as microfibers
- Sketch and sew your own designs
- Study marketing and advertising
- Understand why styles go in and out of fashion
- Learn to forecast next season’s hot new trends
It Helps to Be...
Creative and interested in fashion. People who are natural leaders and good communicators often excel in this field.
College Checklist
- Do professors have practical experience in the fashion industry?
- In what ways are professors and students involved in the local fashion scene? Will you go on field trips?
- Will the department help you find an internship with a retail store, design house, textile factory, or museum where you can get hands-on experience?
- What are recent grads doing now?
Did You Know?
- Knowledge of a foreign language is helpful to students in this major because of the global nature of the fashion industry.
Course Spotlight
A big part of designing clothing is understanding how fabrics behave. A course in textile fundamentals will introduce you to the many kinds of fabrics available to designers. Through lab work, you’ll test fabrics to see how they respond to such processes as dyeing, washing, sewing, gluing, and other treatments. You’ll learn how to tell which fabrics are well made and how to choose the best fabric for each project.
