The courses you take when pursuing a masters in fashion can help you acquire the necessary skills to advance in the job market or launch your own business. In some cases, you may need to go outside the department to take elective courses that will enhance your degree.

Computer-Aided Drafting

Computer-aided drafting (CAD) is typically associated with engineering or related fields, but it is applicable to the fashion industry. Many designers use CAD software specifically geared toward the fashion industry to help during the design process. CAD software can assist in finding the right fabrics to create the structure of garments and minimize the need for live models to help with fit. Designers who use CAD sort-out the nuances of a garment well before they print a pattern or create their first mock-up. With more people advocating for companies to be more inclusive, it is easier for fashion lines to create more variety in their clothing to fit different sizes and body types when they can use CAD.

Business/Marketing

Both business and marketing courses can improve your chances of finding your dream job, but it also helps with developing your own line of clothing. You should understand what it takes to run a successful business, such as start-up costs and taxes. Marketing entails understanding your demographic and creating products specifically to meet their demands. If you have goals of running your own business, branding yourself — which can include networking, logo design, and running a website and social media accounts will be critical for your marketing. It helps to take courses about business statistics so you can either perform statistical analyses or at least understand how to read the results from different analyses and apply this information to your business.

Fashion History

Having a good understanding of fashion history will be useful for new designs and if you have goals of working with production companies to create costumes. Many current fashion trends are in some way related to previous fashion. For example, in the 90s, flared jeans became popular, which were a revival of bell-bottoms from the 70s. Even in current trends, you can see wide-leg pants, which give people a similar aesthetic. When you are contemplating the next design for clothing or accessories, looking back into historical fashion can give you an idea of pieces that may be part of the next trend.

Having an advanced degree in fashion design can give you a leg-up on other prospective employees in the industry. Beyond having the degree, the courses you take can also prepare you for different employment or business opportunities.