Anyone went to a normal college but now work in fashion industry?

[serenade_ingenue]

I'd like to hear some career advices from those who now work in fashion industry but did not go to schools like FIT or Parsons.

I go to Wellesley, it's a liberal arts college, and Career Development Center here doesn't help me much since most people here are going into IB or Med school after graduation.

So I'd like to know what sort of skills are helpful in fashion industry? What should I emphasize on my resume or cover letters?

thanks so much

 

[pinksatin]

I am still a student as well so this is just from what I've heard but... I have some friends who have graduated from normal colleges and now work in the fashion industry. One girl who is an accessories assistant at W graduated from Notre Dame with a degree in architecture and Italian. A guy graduated from Tulane with French and Internatioal relations and is doing fashion PR (formerly Yigal Azrouel, now some luxury perfume brand). Both are young though and only graduated in the past year or two. It would be nice to hear from more people who are working in the industry and have more experience. I'm curious too!

From what I hear, unless you want to be a designer where you need all those specific skills, getting a job in fashion is a lot more about networking and getting in the door and on-the-field experience (internships) than it is about what you did in school.

there are so many types of jobs in fashion though so I think the skills you need would depend on what type of career you're thinking of.

I'm thinking a common thread no matter what you want to do is having people skills and working under pressure.

I am an art student right now majoring in Visual Com. and I totally sympathize with your career center dilemma. I tried talking to my advisor about internships, etc. and she basically told me that I can't do an internship until my sr. year and only in a local design firm. So basically I'm on my own and my school has no clue about the fashion industry and will not be of any help. Thank g-d for tFS!

 

[aya_k]

I know for a fact that there are many peoplw working in fashion who graduated from regular colleges. unless you are going into patternmaking, design or production you can pretty much learn as you go. I would suggest getting an internship to gain some experience and familiarize yourself with the industry.

In your resume you should emphasize transferrable skills such as being organized, quick to learn, computer savvy etc. and do some research, see if it's really for you and try to focus on aspects that you can see yourself woking in. Goo luck :-)

pinksatin - do not listen to those school career advisors!! I was told the same thing when i was in 1st semesters and instead applied for an internship by myself. trust me if you are not qualified you won't get it but don't wait - do it yourself!

 

[sakina]

this thread makes me feel a little better. a fashion related career is the only career i've actually ever wanted but my parents would laugh me out of the house if i asked them to fork over 45k for 'fashion school' so now it's fashion or law

 

[Cicciolina]

I think the majority or at least a definite number of people in the fashion industry come from non-fashion specific colleges. In fact I'm a little suspicious as the benefits of doing a fashion specific degree or going to those colleges unless you're studying design, but anyway, I digress.

I also go to a university (in Australia) where it's a lot more academic - everyone I know (I study Commerce and Arts) wants to be academics or investment bankers, and the careers department I've found haven't been exactly helpful in looking at other areas of interest.

 

[smartarse]

this was a topic and discussion in one of the threads before, anyhoo... members already answered your question. however, i'll add mine as well, FYI:

• you can graduate from any accredited 4 year university/college
• good grades/GPA
• its best if you have prior experience in fashion
• must have at least some knowledge of fashion

*please note this is just a general overview of what is expected of a candidate applying for a position in a fashion company that is not for a designer/patternmaker and the like.

 

[BetteT]

Me ... I studied business. And now I'm a freelance fashion stylist ... almost unrelated. Until you realize that what I do is run my own business ... so all that accounting, marketing and business classes sure came in handy.

 

[Eclat]

I think it's just fine to revisit the topic, even if it has been asked before...new members, new perspecitives, new information, new insight.

As for the question at hand, I work in the fashion industry, now as a fashion editor...and I did not go to an Ivy League (???...they're not expecting that at all), nor did I got to a fashion school, unless you count high school and a semester spent as a continuing ed fine arts student at FIT.

I initially began working as a designer, with my own accessories line and found distribution in Paris. I began writing on the side about my experiences, insight, fun stories, and eventually, I landed a position as a fashion publicist...then as a fashion editor...parlaying my experience as a designer and publicist into writing. It helps to be innovative and not just follow the same advice/BS you'll find in many of the threads. Hence, my reason for saying that it's a great idea to restart the thread and revisit the question.

EVERYONE is going to take the same conventional route to enter the industry...but what can you do to set YOURSELF apart from the rest? It's a creative industry and if you want to stand out from the rest, you'll have to be creative in setting yourself apart. I hope this is helpful...

 

[kathleen fasanel]

I'd like to hear some career advices from those who now work in fashion industry but did not go to schools like FIT or Parsons.

I didn't go to FIT or Parsons. I did 3 semesters at El Centro College in Dallas TX for pattern making. I also studied at UT Austin as an economics major. I worked as a pattern maker for many years. For the past 12 years, I've been working with entrepreneurs starting their own companies. Most of the successful ones (and I do mean *most*) have degrees other than in fashion. People with backgrounds in sciences, engineering and business seem to do the best with it. Design per se isn't their strong suit or even a joy. It's more like a task. Many hire that function out to freelancers.

 

[gius]

I just met someone who didn't go to school at all, but attended a few workshops on textiles, patternmaking, etc. and also learned quite a lot on her own-- she has been working in the industry now since a couple of years and operates at 2 studios
You just have to have the interest and drive, I guess and well she already had the talent to begin with

 

[iximisspiggyixi]

I went to UVM for 1 year and studied psychology, before getting a summer internship and then a full-time job at an agency.

Like others have said, unless you're doing design, going to school at a primarily fashion-based school isn't necessary. Of course, if you want to work at a magazine, you should study journalism, and so on...but it doesn't have to be at FIT or anything.

At the agency I work at, none of the bookers went to school FOR fashion. They all did things that are considered quite "broad" topics...marketing, communications, business.

It really is about your knowledge of the industry as a whole, and your persistance...it's hard to get a job in fashion. It's all about networking! Internships are KEY.

 

[aya_k]

I was recently interviewing with an accessories company, and the owner said to me "we did not all graduate with a college degree in neckties", meaning that people come from different academin and proffessional backgrounds. It really is all about the quality of the work. i really encourage anyone with an interest i fashion to give it a try and bot be discouraged. ;-0

 

[LoveLetter]

There are two sides of work in fashion industry, creative and business. If you graduate from a normal college, you can consider entering the business side of the industry. LVMH and other luxury groups have campus recruits in Ivy leagues. That pretty answers your question.

 

[kathleen fasanel]

There are two sides of work in fashion industry, creative and business.

I'd amend this by adding a third side, namely Technical (engineering) iow, Manufacturing.

Neither creative nor business focus on manufacturing as a process. They nudge into it a tad but manufacturing is a whole other side to the industry. It's process, materials and industrial engineering to a large extent, both of which are given short shrift in creative/business...speaking as someone who worked and studied both business/creativity but ended up working in apparel engineering. I realize it sounds boring and unfun but I've made a long rewarding career of it. I think it is the most challenging because it's one thing to come up with great ideas, not all of them are possible to make. My challenge is in making those great ideas a reality. Creative is actually a part of business because you can't become successful with really cute designs that can't be constructed.

Were I forced to describe the industry with only three parameters, I'd go with the traditional industry breakdown. Business is more often paired with the creative end (in real life, not fashion magazines). Then comes sales/marketing. Third is manufacturing. The entire industry is organized around these three functions. Actually, any kind of product making is.

 

[FashionMaven]

I went to NYU business school and have worked in the fashion industry for the past 5 years. I certainly don't think that a fashion school degree is required to get into the fashion industry unless you are applying for design/product development/merchandising/technical positions. These are the only areas that I can see a required fashion degree.
Good luck!

 

[SpookyGirl]

Besides internships, there aren't a lot of options right...?
I would like to do an internship on a magazine but their offices are located a bit far from the place where I live...

 

[kathleen fasanel]

Besides internships, there aren't a lot of options right...?

Again this comes up. I wrote about it before, I think it got buried. There is a post on my blog recently about it. You might want to read the comments because my visitors are business owners, the very people who need to hire staff.

This is my *personal* opinion on interns. I don't want to hire any interns anymore (I pay an hourly wage). The reason is, the very nature of internships are temporary. At this point, I can't afford to train someone to get up to par, to do something useful, and have them pick up and go when it's over. I can't afford to train them and have them go off and work for someone else. I don't have any grunt work that people "earning their stripes" can do. Besides, I think it's degrading -on both parties. I would only take on someone I respected. I'd compensate them. If interns aren't being paid, a business owner has no investment in them, no incentive to do well by them. It's kind of a double edged sword. I would prefer to take someone on provided they had some skills I could use now and train them over time to do other work, for which I'd increase their pay of course.

For grunt work, I have a child, that's what child labor is for. *kidding*!

I was surprised to learn how many other business owners don't want interns for the same reason. They will hire them tho, if the applicant is looking for a longer term job.

 

[thesiren]

i can echo everyone who is saying you don't have to go to a fashion/art school to later work in fashion. the bulk of high fashion is a business world, not a creative one, so don't be fooled.

i went to a normal school...public university that is not insanely expensive by U.S. university standards. i have two undergrad degrees: one in journalism, and one in art history, both which have helped me tremendously. i work as a freelance writer and stylist, so as bette said, it doesn't hurt to know how to market yourself/your skills.

 

[gius]

hey, as opposed to what a lot of people here seem to be saying...
getting into the 'creative' side of fashion is really just as equal in opportunities to the business side Just make sure you really want it and have the skill

 

[jiji7]

i went to a normal university and just landed a fashion editorial internship at a top fashion mag.

I had been working at my mom's law office for many years now and the experience i got there as an assistant got me the job.

You could easily build a resume with strengths important for the starting positions

Good luck