PROGRAMME SPECIFICATION
Please view the disclaimer. /
AWARD and COURSE TITLE / BA (Hons) Fashion Design
INTERMEDIATE AWARDS / Ordinary Degree in Fashion Design
Diploma HE in Fashion Design
Cert HE in Fashion Design
Mode(s) of Attendance
(eg. FT/PT/SW/DL) / FT/PT
Name of Teaching Institution / Sheffield Hallam University
Location of Delivery / Sheffield Hallam University
Faculty / ACES
Department / Art and Design
UCAS CODE
Professional/Statutory/Regulatory Body Recognising this Programme / NA
QAA Subject Benchmark Statement or other relevant external reference point / Art and Design
Date of Approval / 22 October 2012

1PROGRAMME AIMS

Fashion Design at Sheffield Hallam University promotes conceptual, innovative fashion through visionary thinking, critical interpretation and analysis. Student -centred experiences encourage risk taking, helping you devise new concepts and generate new ways of working through collaborative practice whilst developing your personal design philosophy.

The philosophy and ethos of the course is to help you grow as an individual, giving you the confidence to become an innovative, forward thinking creative designer whilst challenging you to develop an aesthetic style relevant to contemporary Womenswear or Menswear design, for existing and expanding national and international fashion markets and related disciplines.

The underlying focus of the programme is on creative practice in the demanding vocation of fashion design. The curriculum is designed to enable you to understand and meet differing design challenges offering students who wish to pursue careers as conceptual and innovative designers a clear understanding and experience of generating, developing and realising a wide variety of creative ideas to a professional standard.

Throughout the programme of study, emphasis is placed on professionalism, innovation, creativity and collaborative endeavour, which will enable you to develop and realise your design skills in a constantly evolving manner. The diversity of the contemporary and future fashion industry will be widened and enhanced through targeted projects and the guidance of full time and associate lecturers who are specialists in these areas of design.

By the end of the course you will have all the appropriate skills and expertise to engage with a wide range of complex fashion design problems. As a student on the programme, you will be encouraged to develop the means of staying abreast of these issues and understand the importance of continual professional development beyond university and into employment.

2PROGRAMME LEARNING OUTCOMES

The course has been mapped against the nationally accepted requirements for a course in Art & Design as specified in the QAA Subject Benchmark Statement.

2.1Knowledge and understanding covered within the Programme. By the end of the programme you will be able to demonstrate: -

  • a critical awareness of the historical and contemporary context of Fashion Design
  • a systematic understanding of design methodologies and an ability to apply them in new and unfamiliar situations
  • a sound understanding of ways in which design reflects and influences the social, ethical, legal and commercial environment of the time
  • an extensive knowledge of the ways in which materials / production technologies have influenced and will influence fashion design
  • a thorough understanding and awareness of the ways in which new and emerging technologies offer fresh opportunities for fashion design
  • a sound understanding of the importance and increasing relevance of interdisciplinary approaches to contemporary practice in design
  • insight and understanding of the designer's relationship with audiences, clients, markets, users, consumers, participants, co-workers and co-creators

2.2 Intellectual/Subject/Professional/Key skills covered within the Programme: by the end of the programme you will be able to

Intellectual Skills

  • synthesise ideas/ information and generate insights, concepts, proposals and solutions in response to problems or opportunities
  • consolidate and extend your learning in different contextual frameworks and situations, both within and beyond the field of art and design.
  • employ both convergent and divergent thinking in the processes of observation, investigation, speculative enquiry, visualisation and/or making
  • analyse information and experiences, formulate independent judgements, and articulate reasoned arguments through reflection, review and evaluation
  • engage in constructive criticism, formulate reasoned responses to the critical judgements of others and implement appropriate action

Subject or Professional Skills

  • show considered, sophisticated visual judgement and discrimination when developing your own work and commenting upon that of others
  • understand the value of risk and set yourself appropriate but challenging tasks and solve design problems
  • apply appropriate research strategies and to provide an extensive and considered foundation for creative design work
  • develop ideas through the production of material or virtual outcomes to a completed body of professional standard work
  • articulate ideas and information comprehensibly in visual, oral and written forms and show sensitivity in the communication and presentation of design proposals using appropriate media and techniques to specific audiences
  • apply resourcefulness and professional skills to support and manage your own practice and apply an entrepreneurial approach to design

Key Skills

  • operate effectively as an independent learner, working in flexible / creative ways, demonstrating enthusiasm, time management and organisational skills, in supervised and self-directed projects
  • anticipate and accommodate change and work within contexts of ambiguity, uncertainty, and unfamiliarity
  • interact effectively with others, for example through collaboration, collective endeavour and negotiation, demonstrating abilities to listen, contribute and lead when required

3LEARNING, TEACHING AND ASSESSMENT

3.1The approach to Learning and Teaching within the Programme

Studio-based project work forms a major part of the Fashion Design degree and runs continuously throughout the programme as a series of separate but developmental exercises. These design projects will provide you with high quality, vibrant learning experiences, setting specific challenges that will enable you to incorporate contextual understanding into your design practice. Lectures and seminars provide a substantial theoretical underpinning for this design practice and project group tutorials provide an open forum for the discussion and development of your knowledge and understanding of the issues relating to these projects.

The ability to discuss, critically debate, communicate and present your work are essential professional skills within design and you will be supported /challenged to develop these as the course progresses. At level 4 & 5 we teach you the skills required to plan, structure and deliver a presentation and there are opportunities in most modules to practice this within the supportive framework of small group tutorials. Then progressively throughout levels 5 & 6 the level of challenge increases so that you are using a range of media to present to larger groups and to more diverse audiences. Our intention is that by the completion of level 6 you will have developed, through practice, the confidence and skills to present and critically debate your work with fellow professionals and all relevant target audiences.

Design Projects

As the focus of the course, Design Projects are the vehicle through which you will demonstrate and achieve the Learning Outcomes associated with both modules and the programme as a whole. Each project begins with a comprehensive briefing from one or more members of staff. Project briefings typically consist of a short lecture and open discussion to accompany a written briefing document. This document sets out the particular challenge facing you, gives some contextual background to the challenge and includes clearly stated aims, learning outcomes, timescales, submission requirements and assessment criteria. As you progress through the programme you gradually take more responsibility for the development and direction of your own projects, culminating in the final year of the programme when you carry out research to provide the basis for a self-directed programme of design projects.

Skills Development and Workshops

The programme encompasses a broad range of skills designed to underpin your capability as an intelligent maker. These will include ICT and workshop skills, and also communication skills such as drawing and verbal presentations. Support for the development and refinement of these skills is provided in the form of taught classes and group workshop activities. These take place throughout the programme, but are especially concentrated during the first year.

Tutorial support

Tutorial support is a central aspect of the teaching method of this programme and is key in developing reflective and evaluative practitioners. You will meet with tutors and other students regularly in small group tutorials – normally this will happen on a weekly basis. During tutorials, the group discusses the project work of each student. This discussion focuses around the progress of the individual projects and encourages comparison, cross learning, critical reflection and culminates in a focus for further work to advance the project, (formative feedback). During these sessions you will be expected to make an appropriate record to support your further work. Staff notes are used as a means of checking and recording the development of each individual as they progress through the programme. Your own notes should reflect the potential areas for further investigation and development within your design projects.

Critiques

Critiques are an established and fundamental aspect of art and design education. They take place at the conclusion of a design project and generally take the form of a presentation of the completed project work by the individual students to a group of students and staff. These presentations may be a formal 'stand up' presentation or a formal discussion around a table within a smaller group. Where appropriate, you may also deliver an interim presentation of your progress and direction to a group of staff and students. These critiques and interim presentations form a very important aspect of the learning and teaching methods, as they provide important formative feedback on your work, promote self-assessment, and provide a further platform for critical review, evaluation and reflection.

Live Projects

During Level 5 of the programme some of the design projects are 'live projects’, mirroring the experience of design employment in which you undertake project work as a direct response to a brief set by an industrial 'client'. Typically you will visit the client’s design or manufacturing facilities and receive a briefing from them to set the context and scope of the project. During the project you may make interim presentations to the client and the project will culminate in a final presentation and feedback from both the industrial sponsor and the staff running the project. These live projects help to develop your understanding of the business context of their design work and develop the ability to respond to the financial, project management and market restrictions of professional design work.

Lecture and Seminar Programme

Design projects are normally accompanied by a continuous series of lectures and seminars that provide direct and indirect theoretical underpinning and help to develop contextual knowledge and understanding. Lectures and seminars are both staff and student led, with delivery from both university and external experts within the relevant field being discussed. These theoretical aspects of the programme focus on wide ranging issues from business and marketing factors to technological influences and opportunities. The knowledge and understanding gained through these sessions inform the design project work and establish means by which you are able to develop your approach to research and development, drawing upon wider social, theoretical and technological issues.

Field Trips and Industrial Visits

During Levels 4 & 5 there are staff and student-led visits to design consultancies, industrial facilities, museums and exhibitions. These visits contribute to the development of a deeper contextual understanding of Fashion Design. Sometimes they have a direct link with studio based project work or theoretical studies. For example, in the level 4 module Design for Production there is a visit which forms a mandatory part of the course. Where students are unable to attend, the related learning outcomes are supported by alternative forms of context based teaching and learning. Examples of this may include directed research and/or staff, student or video presentations relative to the visit.

There is normally an international field trip during Level 5, which constitutes a visit to an international cultural centre (destinations for previous visits have included Milan, New York, Barcelona). During these international field trips, you will typically visit design consultancies, industrial facilities, museums and exhibitions. Students who, for financial or other reasons, are not able to take part in the field study are set an alternative programme of study in the UK in order to meet the same learning outcomes.

Self Directed Study

Directed reading is aimed at supporting your studies and promoting knowledge of current trends and practices in design. You are also encouraged to be generally aware of your environment during day to day life, and alert to the problems and issues that may influence and offer opportunity to the designer. You are expected to work with increasing independence as the course progresses, and encouraged to extend your skills and knowledge through reading, research and design practice during independent study time.

BlackBoard

‘BlackBoard’ is the university Virtual Leaning Environment (VLE) and you will be introduced to this ‘online’ facility at the beginning of the course. Staff use BlackBoard to communicate with students, to record marks achieved for specific assignments, to publish notices and to update course / module information. Consequently, you will need to refer to it on a daily basis to make sure that you are up to date with the latest news. Your SHU e-mail account is also linked to BlackBoard and from time to time staff will use this to communicate with you personally to provide immediate guidance pertaining recent opportunities or developments that will affect your studies. Again it is important that you monitor your SHU e-mail account on a daily basis.

3.2The approach to Assessment and Feedback within the Programme

The details of assessment and the requirements for progression through the course will be explained to you in course and module briefings and this process is continually reinforced via group and individual tutorials. At the beginning of each module a ‘handbook’ or ‘briefing document’ is published, which includes the proformas and detailed guidance notes that staff use to assess your work.

Formative and summative* assessments are regarded as positive learning tools, and feedback from assessment provides you with clear guidance with regard to future development. Assessment strategies support your understanding of your learning processes and are designed to foster a deep approach to learning. These strategies also help to promote autonomous learning and self-evaluation as vital elements within the overall learning process. Each assessment task will be accompanied by range and performance criteria, which will be used during assessments to help you to understand how effectively your skills, knowledge and understanding, are developing. These are designed to take full account of the speculative enquiry inherent in contemporary design practice.

*Formative assessment is used by tutors to give you some idea of how your work is progressing at an interim stage of the project. Summative assessment is the final mark awarded at the end of the project.

Formal summative assessment is applied via a presentation of your work at the end of each project. As appropriate you will have the opportunity to contextualise your work verbally and engage in critical discourse with staff. This form of assessment aids your presentation skills. Regular group and individual tutorials and critiques provide for continuous informal tutor, self and peer assessment.

In critical theory the most common form of assessment is the essay or project report, where you are expected to pursue and express original thoughts and ideas, to engage critically with received opinion and to show skills of research, analysis and interpretation. You should also present coherent reasoned and supported arguments. Written feedback is given with returned essays. You will receive immediate verbal feedback from seminars, which in some cases may be later reinforced by written feedback.

Feedback strategy

Feedback on assessed work is a fundamental element of your learning. Throughout the course, regular tutorials are organised to discuss progress. Individual and group tutorials ensure that you are encouraged to audit and reflect on your own learning/development, and that you are supported in setting targets for progression. Both of these methods will centre on the integration of teaching and learning materials into your own design practice.

Comprehensive feedback on practical work will be given regularly in the form of constructive comments and guidance during tutorials and critiques. Written elements of the work will be marked and returned to you with feedback attached. Feedback will normally be recorded at the end of each project/module to address significant issues and to point the way forward.

3.3How Student Employability is supported within the Programme

Skills

This course has a strong vocational focus and you will develop a comprehensive range of personal and professional skills / expertise that will prepare you for the transition into your future career. We will prepare you for your chosen career, though your design education provides an effective grounding for many different career opportunities and as you progress through the course your understanding of the wider opportunities will unfold as you engage in the diverse experiences contained in the various modules.

By the end of the course you will have developed the expertise and skills required for professional practice. However, creative design practice also requires that you develop important transferable skills, which can lead to employment beyond the confines of the subject specialism that initially brought you to university. Team working, communication, leadership, negotiation, enterprise, independence and project management are just a few examples of the employability skills that are intrinsic to a design education. They are embedded in every module throughout your course.