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Postgraduate

MA Fashion Design Technology (Menswear)

Four male models seated in loose black clothing
MA Fashion Design Technology Menswear, photography by Francisco Rosas Rangel
College
London College of Fashion
Start date
September 2024
Course length
15 months

As an internationally recognised masters, this menswear course challenges the conventions of fashion design, producing some of the industry's most progressive designers and labels.

Applying for more than 1 course

You can apply for more than 1 postgraduate course at UAL but we recommend that you apply for no more than 3. Find out more in the Apply Now section.

Why choose this course at London College of Fashion

  • Career opportunities: this course equips students for a range of roles within fashion. Career opportunities include building your own brand, working for a brand, or working in a different area such as trend prediction or styling.
  • Tailoring methodologies: this course delivers both progressive and historical British tailoring methodologies from a team of recognised practitioners.
  • Research staff: this course benefits from an allocated member of research staff to nurture new thinking.

Course overview

MA Fashion Design Technology (Menswear) is guided by experienced staff and resourced with industry standard equipment. The course nurtures enquiry and develops professionals who will influence the future of the industry.

The course is one of five which make-up the Fashion Programme. The other four courses are:

  • MA Fashion Design Technology (Womenswear);
  • Graduate Diploma Fashion Design Technology;
  • BA (Hons) Fashion Design Technology: Womenswear;
  • BA (Hons) Fashion Design Technology: Menswear.

What to expect:

  • The course helps students to develop the ability to master complex and speculative areas of knowledge through advanced research skills relative to fashion.
  • Students will expand their intellectual and creative skills through the synthesis of theoretical and practical approaches to design, and the synergy between craft and technology.
  • Students will engage with the complexities of the current fashion market; with consideration of the environmental and human impact of the industry.

MA Fashion Design Technology (Menswear) offers the scope to develop a broad range of innovative design methods through studio practice involving specific levels of manufacture appropriate to fabrication. The course is designed for graduates with a fashion/textile background and also welcomes womenswear graduates who wish to diversify their practice by applying transferable skills to menswear in an expanding industry/market context.

The course offers a particular insight into traditional men’s tailoring and construction but also offers insights into how to balance this with contemporary concepts and technologies. 

Students will develop their work, both conceptually and technically, through investigative research and can access specialist facilities for hand crafted and digitized manufacturing processes. In addition to the in-house facilities students will have the opportunity to collaborate with their peers and industry partners to further their knowledge beyond design in areas such as sourcing, manufacture, project management, media and marketing.

Students are supported in developing collaborations with industry specialists and international fabric suppliers, a process that builds important contacts for the future. Students have the potential to incorporate collaborations with textile and production professionals throughout the course. 

Design & Technology

LCF students have access to the Digital Anthropology Lab and Digital Learning Lab. Researchers from the Digital Labs work with specialist technicians to advise and guide students to innovate in the area of integrated 3D Digital Design. Using diverse production techniques, from couture craftsmanship to experimentation with developing technologies, students are able to explore their own perspectives to form the basis of their Masters collection. 

Work experience and opportunities

Some students undertake work experience during the course and can access LCF Graduate Futures’ expertise to help prepare successful applications.  LCF graduate futures can also support entrepreneurship and business planning.

Attendance

The emphasis at postgraduate level is on independent study.  In addition to taught sessions you will be expected to engage in extensive self-directed research and experimentation and to utilise the library and open access facilities. Details of the contact hours for your course are available via Myarts – http://mycontacthours.arts.local/.

Full schemes of work are published on Moodle.

Each unit will be completed over a period of 15 weeks.

Credit Framework

The credit framework conforms to the University of the Arts London framework in which the unit of credit is 20 credits (equivalent to 200 hours of student study time). All credits on the MA programme are at postgraduate level 7.

Organisation of the Curriculum

The Course is divided into three 15 week blocks. The first block is 60 credits and students who successfully complete this block are eligible for the award of a PG Cert. The second block is a further 60 credits and students who complete blocks 1 and 2 are eligible for the award of PGDip. The third and final block is the Masters Project, this is a 60 credit unit and students who successfully complete this block are eligible for the award of an MA. The final award grading is based upon the MA project only.

Climate, Social and Racial Justice

We are committed to ensuring that your skills are set within an ethical framework and are working to embed UAL’s Principles for Climate, Social and Racial Justice into the course.

Course units

Creative and Technical Innovation

The unit is designed to establish and develop your creative thinking and expand on your practical level of skills. Work will develop individually in response to the workshop sessions and introductions to supporting facilities and equipment.

You will evaluate and expand on your existing technical and practical skills by exploring innovative manufacturing and pattern cutting methods that can be applied to future practices.  You will explore alternative research methods to strengthen and expand your knowledge and understanding of creative research and technical processes.

Collaborative Challenge

This unit is your opportunity to innovate and explore developmental processes and engage with collaborative working practices. You will develop your professional negotiation, teamwork and networking skills that are essential in the cultural, entrepreneurial and creative industries. The emphasis of this unit is on cross-disciplinary student-led collaboration. You can conceive of your own project or engage with industry and college-based briefs.

Technical Analysis and Development 

The unit is designed to support the planning and development of your Master’s Project, in order for you to achieve a coherent and original body of work by the end of the course.  The unit concentrates on the development of your studio practice, its analysis and development. Your work will be underpinned by in-depth research and critical reflection on current industry practice and debates. You are required to develop your practice, to analyse, review, and revise your focus in line with your expanding theories within the context of your proposed market. The unit culminates in an oral presentation in line with your Research Proposal outcomes.

Research Proposal

Developing effective approaches to research is crucial for success in your Masters project and in your wider career. In this unit you will explore approaches for theoretically interrogating your practice and your discipline. Throughout this unit you will uncover your research philosophy, defining how you look at the world and your work. You will build and extend your core research capabilities, developing a robust theoretically justified research proposal that you will complete in your Master’s project.

In the process of developing your research proposal you will explore a range of research methodologies, methods and approaches, describing how you will utilise primary and secondary research tools in your Master’s project. You will build a theoretical framework to test your ideas in order to bring you to an understanding of the relationship between theory and practice. Using this framework you will develop research questions for your topic and ensure that the aims of your study are achievable, ethical and sufficiently critical. You will be supported in developing disciplinary specific approaches to your research, discovering opportunities for interdisciplinary exploration in the process.

Masters Project

The Masters Project is the final stage of your Masters’ course and is the culmination of your studies providing you with a space to synthesise all the knowledge and skills you have gained on the course so far. Your project will be self-directed and you will negotiate the shape and direction of your project at the outset with your supervisor. This important final phase of your studies is where you will effectively communicate your work along with your ability to critically interrogate your practice with robust approaches to research and theoretical analysis. Upon completion of your project, you will have generated a high-level Masters’ quality piece of work that will showcase your practice, academic literacy and the professional standards that will act as a platform for your future career and professional development.

Learning and teaching methods

The following teaching and learning methods are employed to support the integrated achievement of the course outcomes using a blended learning mode of delivery:

  • Academic skills, design thinking 
  • Online briefings, tutorials and feedback 
  • Online collaborative group project work 
  • Online Lectures and seminars
  • Online and physical Library and workshop inductions
  • Museum, gallery and other visits
  • Online and physical presentations 
  • Research methods 
  • Online and physical Peer Learning 
  • Studio teaching

UAL Showcase

Explore work by our recent students on the UAL Showcase

  • GHOSTING
    GHOSTING, Jie Ni, 2024 MA Fashion Design Technology (Menswear), London College of Fashion, UAL
  • INNER BEAST
    INNER BEAST, SHUWEN ZHAO, 2024 MA Fashion Design Technology (Menswear), London College of Fashion, UAL
  • Howdy
    Howdy, Saule Gradeckaite, 2024 MA Fashion Design Technology (Menswear), London College of Fashion, UAL
  • Beyond Binary
    Beyond Binary, Ziming Wang, 2024 MA Fashion Design Technology (Menswear), London College of Fashion, UAL
  • FLORAMAN
    FLORAMAN, Yuqi Zeng, 2024 MA Fashion Design Technology (Menswear), London College of Fashion, UAL

Student and graduate work

  • MA-Menswear-37.jpg
  • MA-Menswear-62.jpg
  • ZHENHAO-Guo.jpg

LCF MA22 Catwalk

Live from London Fashion Week

MA21 School of Design and Technology

Digital Showcase

Latest news from this course

Staff

Darren Cabon

Darren Cabon, course director, studied for his diploma at Boston Technical College, degree at Nottingham Trent University and masters at Royal College of Art. He then formed a partnership with Dennic Lo leading to a 20 year collaboration with their label LO and CABON that developed the philosophy of pattern cutting as design. From 1994, he was designer at Issey Miyake Design Studio, Gianni Versace and LVMH for Kenzo and from the late nineties, taught BA in Nottingham, Brighton, Liverpool and Winchester. In 2003, he started directing masters courses at London College of Fashion with 6 courses across Fashion Design and Technology, Footwear and Accessories.

In 2007, Darren worked with composer Phillip Neil Martin, to create fusion between music and fashion culminating in performances featuring student’s collections at Merchant Taylors Courtyard during the City of London festival, St Petersburg in conjunction with the British Council and with LCF at the Royal Academy of Art. He has also illustrated for exhibitions and shows including Drawing Towards Fashion and Fashion Meets Photograph and London College of Fashion MA shows at the V&A Raphael Gallery.

Matteo Molinari

Matteo Molinari is research methods and collaborative unit consultant and an Italian menswear designer and doctor in Philosophy. After gaining his MA in Philosophy of the Languages and Semiotic in Bologna, supervised by a former Umberto Eco collaborator, he worked as a freelance designer for companies such as Borbonese and Redwall (accessory), OMP (sport apparel), Mihara Yushiko (prêt a porter) and the Futurenet Group (Raf Simon’s former manufacturer).

From 2010 he studied MA Fashion Design and Technology at LCF, and was awarded as Best Collection of the Year, and then progressed into PhD thanks to the Artscom Progressive Bursary awarded by LCF. Matteo’s academic research is focused on menswear and tailoring, traditional handmade crafts and material culture applied to the study of textile artefacts of both Italian and British traditions. As well as visiting practitioner and teaching assistant, Matteo is currently freelancing as menswear/accessories designer and producing a line of eyewear manufactured in Italy.

Changwook Jay

Changwook Jay is senior lecturer, Creative Pattern Design MA Menswear.

Jay Kang

Jay Kang is a pattern cutter, tailor, designer and technician. He has highly specialised knowledge of menswear pattern cutting and production based on varied experience of working as a cutter in higher education and industry. With his great interest of industrial machinery, he provides manufacturing consultancy for students who need support in a studio environment. Jay also produces beautifully handmade tailored suits and he is an excellent fencer too.

Michiel Meewis

Michiel Meewis is visiting practitioner to MA Menswear. Michiel  is a Dutch photographer who lives and works in London. As an alumnus of London College of Fashion, with a masters in Fashion Photography, Michiel was awarded the first place in the category ‘Fashion’ by the International Photography Awards Competition. His photographic series have been featured on record covers and numerous publications including Wallpaper*, Fucking Young! Magazine, Port and l’Officiel amongst others.

Michiel’s practice as a photographer, mainly exploring the changing perception of masculinity within menswear fashion over time, has resulted in his work being exhibited nationally and internationally. He also works closely with companies such as Lacoste, Viktor & Rolf, Heineken, United Nude, Bikker Shoes, Bazar Coffee and Agi & Sam, developing and building relationships to support the student experience in every way. He obtained his BFT (Bachelor Film and Television) at the Netherlands Film and Television Academy with his exam film ‘About Roses’, which was nominated for a Student Oscar® by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in the category of ‘Best Foreign Film’.

Sylvia Smith-Fuller

Sylvia Smith Fuller is a specialist technician for Fashion Design Technology Menswear.

Fees and funding

Home fee

£13,330

This fee is correct for 2024/25 entry and is subject to change for 2025/26 entry.

Tuition fees may increase in future years for new and continuing students on courses lasting more than one year. For this course, you can pay tuition fees in instalments.

Students from countries outside of the UK will generally be charged international fees. The rules are complex so read more about tuition fees and determining your fee status.

International fee

£28,570

This fee is correct for 2024/25 entry and is subject to change for 2025/26 entry.

Tuition fees may increase in future years for new and continuing students on courses lasting more than one year. For this course, you can pay tuition fees in instalments.

Students from countries outside of the UK will generally be charged international fees. The rules are complex so read more about tuition fees and determining your fee status.

Scholarship search

Entry requirements

The standard entry requirements for this course are as follows:

  • An Honours degree at 2.1 or above in a related discipline. Applicants with a degree in another subject may be considered, depending on the strength of the application;
  • OR equivalent qualifications;

APEL (Accreditation of Prior (Experiential) Learning)

Applicants who do not meet these course entry requirements may still be considered in exceptional cases. The course team will consider each application that demonstrates additional strengths and alternative evidence. This might, for example, be demonstrated by:

  • Related academic or work experience (minimum of three years)
  • The quality of the personal statement
  • A strong academic or other professional reference
  • OR a combination of these factors

Each application will be considered on its own merit but we cannot guarantee an offer in each case.

English Language Requirements

IELTS level 6.5 with a minimum of 6.0 in reading, writing, listening and speaking. Please check our main English Language Requirements.

Selection criteria

The course seeks to recruit students from diverse socio-economic and cultural backgrounds, and welcomes applications from mature students.

The course seeks to recruit students who can demonstrate:

  • a strong commitment towards innovation and research in an aspect of the fashion industry and the motivation towards a career in the industry;
  • an awareness of current fashion and relevant experience in the fashion arena;
  • appropriate knowledge and skills commensurate with the course, including the ability to develop complex concepts, design, pattern-cut and manufacture clothing. 

Apply now

Application deadline

Deadline

Round 1:

13 December 2023 at 1pm (UK time)

Round 2:

3 April 2024 at 1pm (UK time)

Digital portfolio and video task deadline

Round 1:

16 January 2024

Round 2:

16 April 2024

Decision outcome

Round 1:

End of March 2024

Round 2:

End of June 2024

Round 1
Round 2
Deadline
13 December 2023 at 1pm (UK time)
3 April 2024 at 1pm (UK time)
Digital portfolio and video task deadline
16 January 2024
16 April 2024
Decision outcome
End of March 2024
End of June 2024

All applications received by 3 April will be treated equally. If there are places available after this date, the course will remain open to applications until places have been filled.

Read more about deadlines

Apply now

Application deadline

Deadline

Round 1:

13 December 2023 at 1pm (UK time)

Round 2:

3 April 2024 at 1pm (UK time)

Digital portfolio and video task deadline

Round 1:

16 January 2024

Round 2:

16 April 2024

Decision outcome

Round 1:

End of March 2024

Round 2:

End of June 2024

Round 1
Round 2
Deadline
13 December 2023 at 1pm (UK time)
3 April 2024 at 1pm (UK time)
Digital portfolio and video task deadline
16 January 2024
16 April 2024
Decision outcome
End of March 2024
End of June 2024

All applications received by 3 April will be treated equally. If there are places available after this date, the course will remain open to applications until places have been filled.

Read more about deadlines

Apply to UAL

Start your application
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Based across the world, our local UAL representatives can support you with your application from your home country. Check to see if there is a representative available in your country currently.

Find your representative

How to apply

Follow this step-by-step guide to apply for this course

Step 1: Initial application

You will need to submit an initial application including your personal statement, CV and study proposal.

Personal statement advice

Your personal statement should be maximum 500 words and include:

  • your reasons for choosing the course
  • your current creative practice and how this course will help you achieve your future plans
  • any relevant education and experience, especially if you do not have any formal academic qualifications.

Visit our personal statement page for more advice.

CV advice

Please provide a CV detailing your education, qualifications and any relevant work or voluntary experience. If you have any web projects or other media that you would like to share, please include links in your CV. If English is not your first language, please also include your most recent English language test score.

Study proposal advice

Please provide a summary of your study proposal (750 words).

It should:

  • provide a research question
  • include a literature review.  Discuss relevant texts and images to support your proposal.
  • demonstrate your knowledge of the historical and contemporary context of your proposal
  • highlight ideas and theories that underpin your research
  • set out the project aims and methods
  • include a bibliography. This is not included in the word count.

Please note, your proposal is essential to the application process, and we understand that your ideas will inevitably develop and change throughout your studies.

Step 2: Video task and digital portfolio

We will review your initial application. If you have met the standard entry requirements, we will ask you to submit a video task and a digital portfolio.

You’ll need to submit these via PebblePad, our online portfolio tool. Please submit your video task on the first page followed by your portfolio.

Video task advice

We’d like you to submit a 2-3 minute video to help us learn more about you. When recording your task, please face the camera and speak in English.

What to include in your video task

  • Introduce your research question and tell us why you want to explore this subject matter.

Read our guidance for how to submit your video task and which file types we accept.

Digital portfolio advice

Your portfolio should consist of recent work that reflects your creative strengths.

It should:

  • be maximum 30 pages, including your video task
  • include clear concepts and edited design journeys
  • include clear photographs of your garments
  • include concept development and experimental work
  • demonstrate your knowledge and understanding of the importance of fabric and material selection
  • highlight your technical competence in garment construction, and ability to think and work in 3D
  • demonstrate your skills in drawing, research and visual communication
  • include annotations with dates and captions to clearly explain the purpose, scope and scale of your work.

For more support, see our Portfolio advice and PebblePad advice.

Step 3: Interview

You may be invited to an interview following our review of your application. All interviews are held online and last 15 to 20 minutes.

For top tips, see our Interview advice.

You also need to know

Communicating with you

Once you have submitted your initial application, we will email you with your login details for our Applicant portal.

Requests for supplementary documents like qualifications and English language tests will be made through the applicant portal. You can also use it to ask questions regarding your application. Visit our After you apply page for more information.

Applying to more than 1 course

You can apply for more than 1 postgraduate course at UAL but we recommend that you apply for no more than 3 courses. You need to tailor your application, supporting documents and portfolio to each course, so applying for many different courses could risk the overall quality of your application. If you receive offers for multiple courses, you'll only be able to accept 1 offer. UAL doesn't accept repeat applications to the same course in the same academic year.

Visas and immigration history check

All non-UK nationals must complete an immigration history check. Your application may be considered by our course teams before this check takes place. This means that we may request your portfolio and/or video task before we identify any issues arising from your immigration history check. Sometimes your history may mean that we are not able to continue considering your application. Visit our Immigration and visas advice page for more information.

External student transfer policy

UAL accepts transfers from other institutions on a case-by-case basis. Read our Student transfer policy for more information.

Alternative offers

If your application is really strong, but we believe your strengths and skillset are better suited to a different course, we may make you an alternative offer. This means you will be offered a place on a different course or at a different UAL College.

Deferring your place

We do not accept any deferral requests for our postgraduate courses. This means that you must apply in the year that you plan to start your course and you will not be able to defer your place to start at a later date.

Application deadlines

For postgraduate courses at UAL there are 2 equal consideration deadlines to ensure fairness for all our applicants. If you apply ahead of either of these deadlines, your application will be considered on an equal basis with all other applications in that round. If there are places available after the second deadline, the course will remain open to applications until places have been filled.

Careers

All our postgraduate courses offer career development, so that you become a creative thinker, making effective contributions to your relevant sector of the fashion industry.

LCF offers students the opportunity to develop Personal and Professional Development (PPD) skills while studying through:

* Access to to speaker programmes and events featuring alumni and industry.

* Access to careers activities, such as CV clinics and one-to-one advice sessions.

* Access to a graduate careers service

* Access to a live jobsboard for all years.

* Advice on setting up your own brand or company.

Career paths

Masters graduates have an acknowledged advantage in the employment market, obtaining work in a wide range of vocational and academic fields related to fashion. The course provides the industry with graduates who will have the capability to work as part of a creative team as a colleague and an individual. Graduates will have transferable skills for the creative industries including an understanding of high levels of design, time and project management, production and technical knowledge of types of manufacture supported by an aesthetic awareness and academic underpinning.

The course in the past has benefited from constant contact with the industry. External assessors and tutors, leading buying and merchandising teams, stylists and photographers, journalists and editors, entrepreneurs and business consultants show an increasing interest in the emerging talent the course generates. International employers include Alberta Ferretti, Alexander McQueen, Zac Posen, Chloe, Loewe, Pringle, Hussein Chalayan, Roland Mouret, Hugo Boss, Levi's, Givenchy, Gieves and Hawkes, DKNY, Browns Focus, Harvey Nichols, Topman and Savile Row tailors.

Graduates from the current MA Fashion Design and Technology have gained employment as innovators within the broad field of fashion design and technology or have identified a fashion house, large corporate company or alternatively choose to build their own identity through the launch of their own design label. Further employment of graduates has included trend prediction, stylist, illustrator, freelance designer or broad aspects of the creative industries.

Further employment opportunities include trend prediction, stylist, illustrator, freelance designer or broad aspects of the creative industries. The MA also provides an excellent preparation for higher level research degrees (MPhil or PhD), with an increasing number of graduates undertaking research in fashion related subjects.