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Postgraduate

MA Strategic Fashion Marketing

Photo of installation by Fashion Innovation Agency
Fashion Means Business 19 by Fashion Innovation Agency at Spitalfields Market
College
London College of Fashion
Start date
September 2024
Course length
12 months

This specialist fashion marketing and management course has a global reputation in launching successful fashion management and marketing careers.

Re-approval

Please note that this course is undergoing re-approval. This is the process by which we ensure the course continues to provide a high quality academic experience. During re-approval there may be some changes to the course content displayed on this page. Please contact us if you have any questions about the course.

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 options: graduates enter careers within marketing, PR, communications, brand management, digital marketing management and international business development.
  • International links: the course has a strong international business and marketing focus due to industry collaboration projects a well as cooperation with renowned international schools in the field.
  • Industry links: students will benefit from a regular industry speaker programme to inform new thinking and expertise in this sector.

Course overview

MA Strategic Fashion Marketing is a programme specifically developed for fashion with a global reputation for success in launching fashion industry careers. It is a well-established and renowned course in the sector with a record of recruiting high calibre international and home/EU students leading to a very good track record of student’s employability. 

Graduates traditionally enter careers within marketing, PR, communications, brand management, digital marketing management and international business development as well as pursuing to higher level research degrees. The course attracts over 20 nationalities who wish to develop a dynamic career in strategic marketing and management in a fast moving vibrant industry. 

The MA Strategic Fashion Marketing provides a learning environment in which business graduates can develop both creative and strategic skills in fashion marketing and management. 

Students develop knowledge and skills in areas such as marketing strategy, business development, brand strategy, consumer insights, digital as well as marketing communications. We also offer an in-depth into innovative and industry specific fields such as luxury, international strategy, sustainability and innovation and technology.

The course will challenge you to rethink the status quo of the industry and develop innovative and holistic approaches to problem solving, preparing you to successfully navigate this dynamic industry.

The university also offers a regular industry speaker programme to inform new thinking and expertise in the sector, providing students with multiple changes to networks and develop their professional skills.

What to expect

The course team uses a range of different pedagogic practices that develop deeper understanding of specific business problems and challenges related to the course specialisms:

  • Lectures, seminars and workshops in a blended format 
  • Case studies, problem solving and role play
  • Peer to peer learning
  • Feed-forward (formative assessment) sessions 
  • Brainstorming sessions
  • Individual and group presentations
  • Online forum discussions and other forms of digital communication tools through Moodle
  • Peer and tutor led discussions
  • Collaborative group projects and team activities using blogs and cloud technologies to capture the team working activities
  • Tutorials and feedback sessions 
  • Interactive workshops
  • Industry and alumni speaker sessions 
  • Competitions
  • Self-directed study
  • Field work
  • Reflective statements and self-evaluation
  • Guided research 
  • Experiential learning (learning by doing)

Work experience and opportunities 

Students will have multiple opportunities to connect with industry throughout their studies. This course contains several live projects which work with industry clients, as well as having great links with renowned international schools. Students will be able to benefit from a regular industry speaker programme to support their development.  

Mode of study 

MA Strategic Fashion Marketing is in Full Time mode which runs for 45 weeks over 12 months.

Climate, Social and Racial Justice

We are committed to developing ethical Fashion Business practices. To achieve this, we are working to embed UAL’s Principles for Climate, Social and Racial Justice into the course.

Course units

Mode of Attendance

Students start the course in October and normally have taught sessions over two days per week. The emphasis at post graduate level is on independent study and in addition to taught sessions students are expected to engage in extensive self-directed research and experimentation and to utilise the library and open access facilities.

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 Masters programme are at postgraduate level 7.

Organisation of the Curriculum 

The Course is divided into three 15 week blocks (full-time), which are each 60 credits. Students who successfully complete 60 credits are eligible for the award of a PG Cert, while students who successfully complete 120 credits are eligible for the award of PGDip. The third and final stage is the Masters Project; this is a 60 credit unit and students who successfully complete this stage are eligible for the award of a Masters. The final award grading is based upon the Masters Project only.

Learning and teaching methods

The following teaching and learning methods are employed to support the integrated achievement of the course outcomes: 

  • Lectures, seminars and workshops in a blended format
  • Case studies, problem solving and role play
  • Peer to peer learning
  • Feed-forward (formative assessment) sessions 
  • Brainstorming sessions
  • Individual and group presentations
  • Online forum discussions and other forms of digital communication tools through Moodle
  • Peer and tutor led discussions
  • Collaborative group projects and team activities using blogs and cloud technologies to capture the team working activities
  • Tutorials and feedback sessions 
  • Interactive workshops
  • Industry and alumni speaker sessions 
  • Competitions

Nina Van Volkinburg | Course leader | MA Strategic Fashion Marketing

Postgraduate Mentoring Network

MA Strategic Fashion Marketing | Student reel

LCF x Microsoft: The Future of Fashion

Future of Ethics, Tech and Sustainability in the World of Fashion

In partnership with USC Alumni London, Dr. Nina Van Volkinburg (LCF) speaks with Negin Baradari (Fashion Lawyer), Nina Brener- Hellmund (Cult Mia) and Daniella Loftus (This Outfit Does Not Exist) on the future of fashion.

Student work

Latest news from this course

Staff

Dr Nina Van Volkinburg: Dr Nina Van Volkinburg is the course leader for MA Strategic Fashion Marketing. She is passionate about circular economy and fashion’s transformation towards sustainable strategies through emerging technologies. She is an ethnographer by training with her research focusing on value co-creation and service ecosystems and has written multiple published case studies. Additionally, Nina has consulted for various organisations focused on sustainable practice including The Sustainable Angle and Fashion4Development (amongst others). She regularly comments on the wider fashion industry for platforms including BBC World News, as well as fashion-focused press including Elle, Showstudio, Achtung, and Wardrobe Crisis. Her work within fashion sustainability has been featured in Vogue, Textilwirtschaft, Tank Magazine, and The Telegraph. Moreover, Nina is the co-founder of the world’s first B2C fashion upcycling platform, RETURE, which grew a global community of fashion designers to revive and transform customers’ garments from old to new. Within 1 year of launching, the company welcomed over 60 designers to the platform, collaborated with sustainable organisations including Fashion Revolution, and were invited to take part in in-person pop-ups including Selfridges & Co. and Westfield.  She holds a BA and PhD in Marketing from the University of Exeter, as well as a MA in Strategic Fashion Marketing from London College of Fashion.

Dr Shahpar Abdollahi holds a Ph.D. in Management Science from King’s College London. Her Doctoral research focused on innovation and the role of networks in the success of new product development. She holds a M.Sc. in International Business from the University of Groningen, with a specialisation in International Marketing. Before joining LCF, Shahpar held research, lecturing and supervisory positions at King’s College London, Cranfield Business School, University of Essex, London College of Fashion (LCF) and Instituto Marangoni. Given her professional background, Shahpar is particularly interested in Luxury Branding, Fashion Marketing and Fashion Management.

Dr Bethan Alexander is the course leader for MA Fashion Retail Management. Bethan is a passionate spokesperson, senior lecturer and researcher with an expert lens on fashion business strategy, omnichannel retailing, retail futures and fashion brand management. Having spent 18 years working internationally in senior management roles with fashion brands including Converse, Elle, Kangol and establishing her own consultancy business, Brand Baker, Bethan brings the same verve to her academic role. Within Higher Education, Bethan has held senior lecturing positions at London College of Fashion, University of East London and has guest lectured at more than 15 global HE institutions. Bethan is a published author, international conference presenter and active researcher. Her research spans Multi-Sensory Fashion Retailing, Customer Brand Experiences Online and Offline and Innovative Retail Formats. Bethan holds a first-class Bachelor of Science degree in Fashion Product Management, a Master of Science degree with distinction in Fashion Marketing & Distribution and a PG Certificate in Teaching & Learning for Higher Education. Bethan is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. She successfully achieved a UAL Teaching Scholars Award in 2018 and was recognised in 2015, 2016 and 2018 by students for a Teaching Excellence Award. Read Bethan Alexander's full profile here.

Dr Francesca Bonetti: Dr Francesca Bonetti is a Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Marketing at the London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London, London, UK, and a Visiting Lecturer at universities across Europe, the USA and Asia. She is currently a Visiting Scholar at USC Marshall School of Business, conducting a research project on technological innovation in the fashion and creative industries across the USA West Coasts (Los Angeles area), UK (London area) and Europe. 
Her research interests focus on business technological innovation across cultures in the fashion and creative industries, and the digital transformation of retailing. Her PhD (University of Manchester, UK, 2020) explored the adoption of consumer-facing technologies in fashion retail settings from a managerial perspective. Her interests also include luxury fashion retailing in China and the consumption of fashion goods by Asian consumers. Her work is published in academic journals such as the Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services and the International Journal of Technology Marketing, among others, and in a number of books. She has international industry experience in marketing communications and retail and business development in the fashion and apparel sector. She currently consult for fashion brands, retailers and startup companies on distribution strategies, communications strategies and the use of consumer-facing technology.

Ruth Jacob is a Lecturer in Fashion Marketing, Digital & International Marketing Strategy.  Her experience of teaching extends over 15 years and has covered work in Higher Education Institutions such as: the University of East London, London South Bank University and the University of Law, as well as teaching in FE institutions, including the Fashion Retail Academy and also in earlier years of education.  Alongside her work as an educator, Ruth is also a practitioner, having founded her BIGGER BOY menswear line in 2013.  Her industry experience involves working with UAL design alumni, with fashion editorials, communications, marketing and PR agencies and with brands such as: Celine, Givenchy, Valentino, Craig Green, David Koma, & Other Stories, Arket and LOVE Magazine; and with media organisations such as: Sky News, ITV, City AM and the Geneva-based UN Conference for Trade & Development.  She is also present in the area of research having produced work for the Fashion Marketing in Emerging Markets publication and also appearing as a panelist for LCF’s Fashion Business Research Centre and for fashion industry organisations in Rwanda.  Ruth holds qualifications in BA (Hons) in Journalism with Economics, MA Broadcast Journalism, MA Fashion, PGCE in Post Compulsory Education and is a Senior Fellow of the HEA.

Dr. Cigdem Gogus is an experienced academic, marketing practitioner and researcher, with a background in sales, business development and entrepreneurship. She has an MBA in e-business (City University Business School, London) and a PhD in ConsumerBehaviour - Marketing (Henley Business School). Her expertise lies in consumer behaviour, e-commerce, digital marketing, and start-up’s. Cigdem has taught across a wide range of marketing topics at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. She has overseen countless Master’s dissertations. She has in-depth knowledge of marketing theory, research methods as well as broader theoretical knowledge of social sciences and business management. Her work experience includes; market research, merchandising, sales and business development, starting and running a successful e-commerce business. Cigdem regularly attends academic and business conferences run by: The Association for Consumer Research, Market Research Society,Association for Qualitative Research and ESOMAR.

Dr Shuyu Lin’s expertise lies in value creation and appropriation in the fashion ecosystem. Her research aims to extend the application of network-based strategic management and social capital theories to the discipline of aesthetic innovation. Exploring both structural and relational mechanism in open innovation has been at the centre of her research interest. Following a BA in Journalism, Shuyu pursued her career in the fashion industry as a PR consultant and fashion editor. She then received the degree of MSc in Management with Marketing and PhD in Management from the University of Bath.

Dr Paul Marsden: Paul is a consultant consumer psychologist. He helps brands understand what consumers want, using psychological techniques to surface consumers’ unspoken needs and hidden motivations. Paul is chartered by the British Psychological Society and has two decades experience working with the global communications group WPP and the innovation consultancy Brand Genetics. Notable clients include LVMH, TK Maxx, Fitbit, Edmiston, Google, and Porsche. He has authored several marketing books, including Connected Marketing, and The Social Commerce Handbook. Following his PhD, Paul co-founded System1 Group PLC, a tech company that uses Artificial Intelligence to mine psychological insight from online content. Paul appears on TV and radio discussing consumer trends and consumer psychology, and recently appeared as himself in the 2021 movie ‘I am Gen Z’ about teens and tech. Paul has a particular interest in virtual influencers, digital fashion, and the ethics of AI in marketing. Paul blogs at digitalwellbeing.org, sharing tips on how to have a healthier tech-life balance.

Julie Dennison is a senior lecturer and academic, having extensive experience of teaching and curriculum development at undergraduate and postgraduate level since joining UAL in 2007. Julie currently holds the role of Senior Lecturer in Fashion Business Research Methods, focusing on developing specialist research methodologies with students to enable them to complete diverse advanced level research outputs at postgraduate level. Prior to her teaching career, Julie worked for over a decade in product design and development as a Senior Fashion Buyer, specialising in CMT operations for major UK High Street brands such as River Island and Arcadia. Her published research focuses on consumer behaviour in digital environments. She holds a BA (Hons) in Textiles and Fashion, a Masters in Strategic Fashion Marketing, a PG Cert in Academic Practice and is a Fellow of the HEA.

Edward Stammers is the Programme Director for the Fashion Business Programme and and Creative Director for the Fashion Business School.  Edward has an MA in Fashion Merchandise Management and a PG Cert in Education. He is a fellow of the British Display Society and has worked in the visual merchandising industry for twenty-five years, managing global visual merchandising and marketing campaigns as design and project manager for Rootstein Display Mannequins. His research interests centre on the function and perception of the mannequin form and the challenges to the mannequin that are developing from the increased use of digital technology within the fashion retail environment.

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 

English Language Requirements 

IELTS level 7.0 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 team seeks to recruit students who can demonstrate: 

  • the potential to develop their practical and critical abilities through academic study; 
  • critical knowledge of a subject area; 
  • a capacity for intellectual enquiry and reflective thought; 
  • an openness to new ideas and a willingness to participate actively in their own intellectual development; 
  • initiative with a developed and mature attitude to independent study. 

Apply now

Application deadline

Deadline

Round 1:

13 December 2023 at 1pm (UK time)

Round 2:

3 April 2024 at 1pm (UK time)

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)
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)

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)
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

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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 (500 words).

It should:

  • state the background for your proposal, including a working title
  • determine the precise area of study
  • set out the aims and objects for your proposal within the course structure
  • refer to critical discourses that may underpin your practice and how your work may contribute to these
  • outline your intended methodology including how you intend to conduct your project and who you intend to address
  • include any research sources as well as details or any libraries, exhibitions museums etc. that you have visited as part of your research
  • include a bibliography using Harvard referencing and an appendix for any additional material if necessary. This will not be included in the word count.

Please note, your proposal serves to inform your application and we understand that your ideas will develop and change throughout your studies.

Step 2: Video task

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

You’ll need to submit this via PebblePad, our online portfolio tool.

Video task advice

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

What to include in your video task

  • Tell us why you have applied to MA Strategic Fashion Marketing and how it will help you achieve your career ambitions.

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

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, including working as a Marketing Executive, Brand Manager, Marketing Communications Manager.

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, in practice or theory or entering into education as lecturers.