Aberdeen Business School Undergraduate course guide 2014
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Fashion Management What and when: course overview ... and course detail Placements Study abroad How will I be taught? Key facts What next?
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Choosing a course isn’t straightforward. There’s lots of detail you need to know. Where will I study? What topics are covered? How will I be assessed? You also want to gain a ‘feel’ for things – directly from some current students and graduates. In this brochure we’ve combined hard facts about the degree with real views of students and graduates. Our aim is to give you a quick, genuine and useful insight into our degrees. If there’s anything more you’d like to know, please don’t hesitate to get in contact. Simply call us on 01224 262728, email: UGOffice@rgu.ac.uk.
the fashion place. Blog: http://thefashionplaceblog.com/ Facebook: RGU Fashion Management Instagram: http://instagram.com/fashionplace_rgu# Pinterest: pinterest.com/fashplace 1
le t wit ’s do h s it t yl e
The BA (Hons) Fashion Management has been developed in response to industry demand for creative people with entrepreneurial and marketing skills, and a ‘passion’, for the product. This highly-vocational course helps you develop all those qualities. You’ll gain the skills and knowledge to open doors to all kinds of careers:
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> Fashion marketing > Merchandising > Fashion buying > Retail > Product sourcing > Fashion journalism > Market and brand management > Product development > Styling > Fashion forecasting > Events management > Public relations
Julie Brander BA (Hons) Fashion Management
“As part of my 3rd year of studying Fashion Management I completed a six week placement in New York. During my time in New York I worked within McCann, a global leading advertising agency based within Manhattan. The agency delivers advertising, marketing and communication solutions to a variety of companies including Microsoft, Coca Cola and Mastercard. I was given the opportunity to work with the clients such as Maybelline and L’Oreal due to my interest being within fashion and beauty. My role was as assistant account executive and this involved managing the communication between the agency and the client. I had the privilege to attend a NY fashion week photoshoot where I was able to meet numerous editors and photographers.” Julie is now an Account Executive for PR Company Weber Shandwick
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FASHION MANAGEMENT BA (Hons) UCAS WN22
“This is my first year at university and I absolutely love it! Coming to class is always a pleasure and the lecturers make such an effort to make it enjoyable for us and have lots of interesting experience from previous jobs.� Sophie Louise Kelman BA (Hons) Fashion Management
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“A highlight of the course for me is the Fashion Communication module. I loved working with the photographer and we were given the freedom to choose our own theme.�
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FLAIR CAREERS WITH
“The course is a balanced mix of fashion specific subjects and transferable management and marketing skills, providing students with a broad knowledge of what is a fascinating, fast-moving and everchanging global industry.� Karen Cross Fashion Management Course Leader
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FASHION MANAGEMENT BA (Hons) UCAS WN22
key SKILLS You’ll gain an understanding of: >> The nature and scale of the fashion industry and its management
WHAT COURSE& WHEN : OVERVIEW ...
>> The methods by which fashion goods are promoted and marketed >> The importance of effective communication to fashion (especially fashion writing and photography) >> Retail methods, visual merchandising and store design >> The design process itself
FOUNDATION SKILLS Some core modules in first year, for example Marketing, are delivered across Aberdeen Business School. This gives you an opportunity to engage with students on a variety of courses. The tutorials in these modules are taught to small groups (typically no more than 20 students) and provide an opportunity to deliver subjectspecific case studies and examples. 8
SPECIALISMS
INDUSTRY EXPOSURE
PROJECT WORK
Subjects such as The Fashion Business, Fashion Retail, Fashion Design Concepts and Communication, Financial Merchandising for Fashion, and many others, are delivered to only the BA (Hons) Fashion Management students.
At every stage of the course, you regularly get the chance to engage with industry professionals, through field trips, a programme of guest speakers and live client projects.
In Year 3 you work towards our annual fashion show.
This enables you to engage individually with members of staff, and discuss and study the subject area in more depth. Year 4 is very much student-led and is your opportunity to undertake an extended piece of work, the dissertation. A dedicated member of staff will act as your supervisor.
There are other activities in which you’re expected to participate: for example, visits to fashion show events (including London Fashion Weekend). Collaboration with Gray’s School of Art will allow you to liaise with their Fashion Design students, for example, in marketing and promoting some of the capsule collections they’re involved in.
This includes all the planning, event management, styling, press and publicity, print design, market research and evaluation aspects integral to such an event. We recognise the benefit of gaining a practical awareness of fashion catwalk events. In particular, this helps you understand their role and impact on fashion careers. It also helps you appreciate how shows are used to promote ranges to the general public and enhance retailer branding. It is intended that such practical elements, along with the placement in Year 3, will enhance your employability, by incorporating and combining both management and creative skills.
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FASHION MANAGEMENT BA (Hons) UCAS WN22
year 1 SEMESTER ONE >> Fashion Design Concepts and Communication (30 credits) >> Fashion Retail >> The Fashion Business
SEMESTER TWO >> Fashion Construction and Technology >> Managing in the Creative Industries >> Marketing >> Store Design and Visual Merchandising If you left now, you’d have... Certificate of Higher Education Fashion Management
Please note that the course structure is reviewed each year and may be subject to change. 10
...& co urse detai l year 2
year 3
year 4
SEMESTER ONE
SEMESTER ONE
SEMESTER ONE
>> Advertising Communication >> Fashion Communication (30 credits) >> Fashion Logistics
>> Fashion Branding >> Financial Merchandising for Fashion >> Ethics and the Consumer >> Events Management
>> Fashion Buying and Forecasting >> Research Methods >> Fashion Project
SEMESTER TWO
Or study abroad at an overseas university
>> Consumer Behaviour >> Design for Client (30 credits) >> Public Relations If you left now, you’d have... Diploma of Higher Education Fashion Management
SEMESTER TWO >> Fashion Show Project >> 6 week placement (Professional Route) or >> Creative Industries Theory and Practice (Academic Route) or >> Business Start Up in the Creative Industries (Entrepreneurial Route) or >> 12 Week Placement Note: Students can also do a year-long placement instead of attending stage 3 modules.
Plus one option from: >> Applied Consumer Psychology >> Postmodern Culture >> Women and the Media >> Business Creativity
SEMESTER TWO >> Dissertation (30 credits) >> Retail Strategy and Internationalisation Plus ONE option from: >> Celebrity Culture >> Digital Marketing (E-Business) >> International Marketing If you left now, you’d have... BA (Hons) Fashion Management
Or study abroad at an overseas university If you left now, you’d have... BA Fashion Management
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FASHION MANAGEMENT BA (Hons) UCAS WN22
FASHION IN THE REAL WORLD
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Hannah Fuller BA (Hons) Fashion Management
“In my third year, I was lucky enough to complete internships with reputable companies Escada, John Lewis, and Alexander McQueen. Gaining this hands-on experience really granted my CV with an invaluable point of differentiation - essential for a career within many of today’s industries, particularly fashion. With RGU offering such placement opportunities throughout a number of courses, their incredibly high graduate employment rates come as no surprise. Indeed, after recently completing my final year, I have been offered the opportunity to return to Alexander McQueen. Whilst delighted to have landed my “dream-job”, I have to admit I am really going to miss my student days at RGU.”
pl ac em en
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Placements Nothing beats real experience. It brings your studies to life and helps you get an idea of what you might like to do after graduating. On this course, you have several opportunities to experience fashion as it operates in the real world. You’ll be involved in every aspect of putting together catwalk shows. You’ll get to visit major events like London Fashion Weekend. And you’ll have the chance to collaborate with Gray’s School of Art students on live projects. In addition, you get the opportunity of a 6 or 12 week work placement in the 3rd year of the course.
“I would not hesitate in recommending fellow business owners/ employers to offer placement opportunities via the RGU placement scheme. Our business has benefitted from the hard work, enthusiasm and creativity offered by our recent BA (Hons) Fashion Management placement students who worked tirelessly to produce excellent work over the 6 week period and as a small business we are grateful to the commitment they showed to their projects.” Melanie Thom Director of Boutique26.com
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SPREAD YOUR WINGS. ENJOY NEW HORIZONS. What could possibly be better than studying at Robert Gordon University? Good question! How about studying here – but also getting a chance to spend some time studying abroad! Well that’s entirely possible. Most undergraduate programmes at Aberdeen Business School include the opportunity for a period of study abroad with one of our carefully chosen international partners – both in Europe and beyond. Our Study Abroad programmes offer additional educational and cultural experiences – but all as part of your accredited qualification with RGU. Many employers like to have graduates with some international experience, so it’s your chance to enhance your CV and widen your employment opportunities.
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Fashion Management students studied in Denmark, The Netherlands and Canada in 2012/13.
BYE, AU REVOIR, CIAO AND SEE YOU SOON
ABROAD STUDY
Going abroad to study or work could be one of the most exciting and rewarding aspects of your course. The experience, new friends, a different country, climate, culture and language: these, and many other factors, make it an unforgettable time – wherever you go! And where you go will depend on the course you study. Each participating course has its own partner institutions in different countries. Most of the courses have more than one partner institution, so you can choose which institution or country is most suitable for you. So if we say that you might need a phrase book and sunglasses when you come to Aberdeen, we are being serious!
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GREAT PLACEMENT PROSPECTS
Wide open spaces
ABERDEEN PERFECT A great Scottish location and brilliant career opportunities; Robert Gordon University gives you lots to smile about... Named “best UK university for employment” (HESA, 2013), Robert Gordon University is the ideal place to start your career. What’s more, “residents in Aberdeenshire enjoy the best quality of life in Scotland” (Bank of Scotland Quality of Life League, 2012). So it’s time to get yourself up north, where things will be good for you too!
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, THE LOCATION We consider our riverside campus, based on the banks of the beautiful River Dee, to be one of the most attractive campuses in the UK and one of Europe’s finest. The river itself is home to otters, heron, salmon and other wildlife. Our campus has beautiful woodland walkways and parkland, connecting our modern, stylish buildings.
97.7% Gra
SUNNY SCOTL
SKI CENTRAL
RGU
BEST UK UNIVERSITY FOR EMPLOYMENT
Mountaineering mecca
raduate employment
Y LAND
Scotland at its best. Aye, that’s right! Aberdeen is pretty unique in the UK with its cosmopolitan culture, rich heritage and fantastic scenery. It’s got everything you’d expect from a major city – pubs, clubs, restaurants, cinemas, theatres and art galleries – but there’s lots more than that! Like the miles of beach boulevard – loved by skaters and surfers – and the wild mountains right on the doorstep: Aberdeen is a great location for skiing and snowboarding with dry ski slopes nearby the campus and during the winter Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Moray takes on a whole new lease of life with many challenging ski runs, plus some of the best hillwalking in Scotland and loads of great places for canoeing, kayaking and sailing!
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HOW WI LL I BE TAUGHT ?
You’ll learn in a dynamic variety of ways: lectures, tutorials, seminars, IT lab work… Everything’s interactive, and aims to build up knowledge as you apply theory to practice and consider a range of problems, issues and case studies, including live client projects. As your skills and ability develop, the course changes to allow you to lead your own learning and work in teams – both on project work, and individually with tutors on your fourth year dissertation.
How much work is there? Typical contact hours are 3–4 per module per week, though this varies between modules. You’re expected to devote 150 hours of study to each module – this includes classroom time, reading and research, time in labs, plus studying for assessments. This course is intensive, yet highly enjoyable and engaging, and most students become highly motivated to develop their skills and knowledge abilities to a high level. You’ll need to attend regularly and engage with every part of the course to achieve a satisfactory level of performance.
Outside the classroom Part of this is extending your learning into wider reading, research and self-directed study. You’re expected to use all available resources, and become increasingly self-motivated and self-supporting – taking greater control of your studies, and setting personal objectives. You’ll also be encouraged to reflect critically on your learning, and form a view of your progress and development. This may become the basis of tutorial guidance with staff. 18
The thesis This is the main vehicle for independent learning. We’ll train and instruct you in: >> The nature of research >> Writing a research proposal >> Sourcing relevant information >> Data collection, analysis and synthesis >> Research ethics >> Writing up your work
Other activities Part of the course links with the Fashion Design students at Gray’s School of Art. Joint projects are designed to help you develop an understanding of the design process. Trips to prominent fashion events such as London Fashion Weekend are also an important part of the programme.
What support is available? A range of Learner Support Systems: >> Personal tutors >> Course tutors for academic and professional support (including regular ‘surgeries’ in each module) >> Study Support Centre
KEY FACTS
ALTERNATIVE QUALIFICATIONS Equivalent overseas qualifications and some access programmes will be considered. Entry to year 3 with relevant HND qualifications may be considered.
STUDY OPTIONS Full-time: 4 years
PLACEMENT You will get the opportunity of a 6 or 12 week work placement in the 3rd year of the course. Placements could be local, national or international.
STUDY ABROAD In Year 2 and 3, you have the opportunity to study abroad at one of our partner institutions in Europe (as part of the Erasmus programme).
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what
nex t ?
This course guide is intended as a guide for applicants for courses delivered by Robert Gordon University. In compiling it the University has taken every care to be as accurate as possible, and the information in this course guide is correct at the time of going to print, but the course guide must be read as subject to change at any time and without notice. The University undertakes to make every reasonable effort to provide the teaching and academic facilities necessary for applicants’ programmes of study. However the University reserves the right, if such action is considered to be necessary, to make variations to fees and/or to vary the content or delivery method of any course at any time. In addition, the University may, at its sole discretion, discontinue or amalgamate any course(s). In these rare cases the University will notify applicants as soon as possible and reasonable steps will be taken to provide a suitable alternative to a discontinued course.
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The next thing to do is talk to us. We can answer any questions you may have. Simply call us on 01224 262728 or email UGOffice@rgu.ac.uk We also provide a range of opportunities for you to visit us – so you can see what we can offer you first hand. Open Day
Applicants’ Day
We organise two annual open days in October and November each year. It’s a perfect opportunity to visit us, meet the academic staff, experience the first-class facilities and talk to current students.
When you apply for any course at ABS, you’ll be invited to one of our course-specific Applicants’ Days.
For full details of dates and times, and to see a full programme please see www.rgu.ac.uk/openday Open Days 2 October 2013 2 November 2013
We realise there’s a lot involved in making your final choice, so we hope to give you all the insight and information you need. For full details of dates and times, and to see a full programme please see www.rgu.ac.uk/absapplicantsday Visit Afternoons We hold monthly Visit Afternoons. The visit includes a talk by an Education Liaison Officer, a tour of the facilities and a chance to speak to a lecturer about the course you’re interested in. www.rgu.ac.uk/visitafternoons
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Aberdeen Business School Robert Gordon University Garthdee Road Aberdeen AB10 7QE
Talk to us. We can answer any questions or queries you may have. Simply call us on 01224 262728, email: UGOffice@rgu.ac.uk or visit us at www.rgu.ac.uk Karen Cross Course Leader Email: k.a.cross@rgu.ac.uk Tel: 01224 263854
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