Overview
This course is designed to be a challenging, fast-paced and stimulating MBA course, which aims to offer the industry-specific business and management skills you need to build a successful career in international fashion management, upon successful completion.
This course aims to offer a comprehensive understanding of the business of fashion, rather than teaching you to be a designer or producer, so that you may build a potential career in management or leadership, upon successful completion. It focuses on the global and technological shifts which have characterised the industry in recent years; the management of fashion design and product development; and international fashion manufacturing and retailing strategies.
You may have recently completed your undergraduate degree, in fashion or any other discipline. Alternatively, you may have been working for some time and want to accelerate your career progression in fashion, or to make a move into fashion for the first time.
In addition to gaining academic skills and knowledge, MBA students have the opportunity to undertake a professional development programme designed to develop career plans, improve professional skills, and increase employability. Please note that the professional development programme is subject to competitive application, availability, meeting any applicable visa requirements and additional fees may apply.
Why Coventry University London?
We believe that there is no better place to learn about business than to study in the heart of one of the most successful business and financial centres in the world. Launched in 2010 and located in the City of London, we are minutes away from the Bank of England and the London Stock Exchange, and are surrounded by several blue chip companies.
COVID-19
The University may deliver certain contact hours and assessments via emerging online technologies and methods across all courses. In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, we are prepared for courses due to start in or after the 2020/2021 academic year to be delivered in a variety of forms. The form of delivery will be determined in accordance with Government and Public Health guidance. Whether on campus or online, our key priority is staff and student safety.
Due to the ongoing restrictions relating to Covid-19, some facilities (including some teaching and learning spaces) and some non-academic offerings (particularly in relation to international experiences), may vary from those advertised and may have reduced availability or restrictions on their use.
Global ready
An international outlook, with global opportunitiesEmployability
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All the support you need, in a top student cityHeart of the City
Minutes from the Bank of England and Stock ExchangeCourse information
The MBA International Fashion Management course is designed to address the needs of the next generation of fashion industry professionals, by aiming to provide a challenging and stimulating course that combines the highest quality of academic and professional discipline, built on current research and advanced scholarship, with direct input from and exposure to the fashion industry.
The learning and assessment on the MBA International Fashion Management course is structured around active, participative and individual learning, while focusing on systematic understanding of knowledge and critical awareness of current trends and/ or new insights, much of what is at, or informed by, the forefront of academic discipline, field of study and an area of professional practice.
The opportunity to take part in teamwork, business simulations and real-industry fashion projects with fashion industry clients and professionals (subject to availability and who have previously included clients like London Hat Week, Sarah Haran, Endrime, Laura Lee Jewellery among others), all of which are underpinned by academic analysis and synthesis, and offer students an opportunity to apply their academic knowledge and skills in professional practice.
Course Specification
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Modules
In more detail...
The MBA International Fashion Management Course is designed to address the needs of the next generation of fashion industry professionals by aiming to provide a challenging and stimulating course that combines the highest quality of academic and professional discipline, built on current research and advanced scholarship, with direct input from and exposure to the fashion industry.
The learning and assessment on the MBA International Fashion Management course is structured around active, participative and individual learning, while focusing on systematic understanding of knowledge and critical awareness of current trends and/ or new insights, much of what is at, or informed by, the forefront of academic discipline, field of study and an area of professional practice.
The opportunity to take part in teamwork, business simulations and real-industry fashion projects with fashion industry clients and professionals (subject to availability and which has previously included clients like London Hat Week, Sarah Haran, Endrime, Laura Lee Jewellery among others), all of which are underpinned by academic analysis and synthesis, and offer students an opportunity to apply their academic knowledge and skills in professional practice.
- Make the most of a range of work experience and networking possibilities
- Be taught by superb tutors with fascinating business and professional experience
- Enjoy a truly multi-cultural experience, studying alongside people from over 50 countries
- Study in our new fashion studio, equipped with Apple Macs with the latest design software
- Access business start-up advice and support if you’re interested in starting your own business when you graduate
- Take the opportunity to obtain the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) Level 7 Certificate in Strategic Management and Leadership
- Study in the heart of London, close to vibrant street markets as well as the West End and Oxford Street, where you’ll find the flagship stores of major global brands
- There are opportunities for field trips within the UK (for example, to factories, ateliers, museums, stores and exhibitions) as well as overseas, such as Copenhagen or the Première Vision trade show in Paris
Your main study themes are:
- Identifying trends – Leaders must respond to the change which is inherent in fashion. The ability to identify and react to rapid shifts in consumer appetites and designer tastes is critical to sustainable success.
- Change – Those shifting micro trends, coupled with rapidly changing macro issues (global economics, resource availability, environmental concerns and geo-politics), require fashion leaders to accept and manage the inevitability of change and to be agile in their approach.
- Profiling consumers – Fashion spans every possible socio-demographic and every culture. Leaders must identify, understand and communicate with the right customers for their brands in a two-way conversation involving both listening and informing.
- Sustainability – Fashion is the second biggest industrial polluter, after oil. Leaders in fashion must therefore find solutions to protect the environment, resources, people and even the industry itself.
You can expect to benefit from excellent tuition here at our London campus, since Coventry University was awarded ‘Gold’ in the UK’s recent Teaching Excellence Framework (2017). Your current tutors have superb fashion management experience across a range of disciplines, and can use their ‘little black books’ of contacts to create maximum learning opportunities for students. Please note that staff are subject to change.
Although your studies are designed to be underpinned by solid academic theory, this course provides students with the opportunity to apply what you should have learnt to the real business context, both on and off campus. You should learn by doing, with the chance to undertake a range of business-oriented projects in the classroom. You’ll also have the option to do work experience, an internship or a live consultancy project for a real client, plus a realistic business simulation (subject to availability).
You’ll have the opportunity to learn through exposure to industry through opportunities for field trips, tours, guest lectures (subject to availability) and visits to businesses and ateliers in the UK and overseas. Your final major project will aim to challenge your skills in international fashion management, asking you to apply them to contemporary fashion industry issues.
You’ll also be expected to become a highly motivated independent learner. You’ll be encouraged to make the most of all the opportunities afforded by the streets of London. You could take advantage of tours, store visits, museums, exhibitions and conferences. Since this is an intensive programme, a significant proportion of your time should be dedicated to personal study, a lifelong skill which should serve you well throughout your career, upon successful completion.
Teaching methods may include lectures, seminars, textbooks, workshops, debates, case studies, consultancy projects, simulations, business plans, and online collaborations.
Please note that we are unable to guarantee any work experience/internship, placement, study abroad, field trips, tours, UK/overseas visits or museum/exhibition/conference, opportunities and that any such opportunities referred to on this webpage may be subject to additional costs (e.g. travel, visas and accommodation etc.), competitive application, availability and/or meeting any applicable visa requirements. To ensure that you fully understand the requirements in this regard, please contact the International Office for further details if you are an EU or International student.
The University may deliver certain contact hours and assessments via emerging online technologies and methods across all courses. In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, we are prepared for courses due to start in or after the 2020/2021 academic year to be delivered in a variety of forms. The form of delivery will be determined in accordance with Government and Public Health guidance. Whether on campus or online, our key priority is staff and student safety.
Due to the ongoing restrictions relating to Covid-19, some facilities (including some teaching and learning spaces) and some non-academic offerings (particularly in relation to international experiences), may vary from those advertised and may have reduced availability or restrictions on their use.
Teaching methods may include lectures, seminars, textbooks, workshops, debates, case studies, consultancy projects, simulations, business plans, online collaborations.
You will be assessed regularly so that both you and your tutors can identify your strengths as well as any areas where you may need additional support. Assessments reflect workplace activities, and will therefore focus on team work, business simulations and real-world projects. You’ll be expected to work under pressure to produce work which is fit for purpose in the contemporary business environment.
Through a blend of seminars, workshops, debates, presentations and written assignments, you might be assessed on your research journal, trend book and range book, and the development and presentation of board papers, executive summaries, and creative pitches
As examples, you might be asked to develop a brand-new independent fashion boutique or concept store, or to develop a fashion brand’s marketing audit report or a strategic, operational and financial plan. You might create a trend prediction portfolio, a fashion design and product development portfolio, a buying and merchandising portfolio, or a feasibility report for assessing an opportunity. You might do a financial analysis of a business, coming up with a cash budget or cash flow analysis.
The Coventry University Group assessment strategy ensures that our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards the achieving the intended learning outcomes. Assessments may include exams, individual assignments or group work elements.
- Articulate the complex dynamics of factors impacting on fashion organisations, including legal systems; ethical, economic, environmental, social and technological change issues; international fashion developments; and corporate governance
- Describe the markets for fashion resources, goods and services, and profile different consumer groups within those markets
- Understand the concepts, processes and institutions in the production and marketing of fashion goods and services, and the management of resources and operations
- Recognise the key financing mechanisms for fashion businesses and understand accounting for managerial and financial reporting
- Understand organisation theory, workplace behaviour, industrial relations, human resource management and change management
- Competently use information systems and technologies relevant to fashion
- Develop effective business policies and strategies within a changing fashion context in order to meet stakeholder interests.
Students will typically receive around 6 hours of contact teaching per week. The contact hours may be made up of a combination of face-to-face teaching, individual and group sessions, and online classes. Students will also be expected to spend a significant amount of time conducting independent study.
As an innovative and enterprising institution, the University may seek to utilise emerging technologies within the student experience. For all courses (whether on-campus, blended, or distance learning), the University may deliver certain contact hours and assessments via online technologies and methods.
The University may deliver certain contact hours and assessments via emerging online technologies and methods across all courses. In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, we are prepared for courses due to start in or after the 2020/2021 academic year to be delivered in a variety of forms. The form of delivery will be determined in accordance with Government and Public Health guidance. Whether on campus or online, our key priority is staff and student safety.
Due to the ongoing restrictions relating to Covid-19, some facilities (including some teaching and learning spaces) and some non-academic offerings (particularly in relation to international experiences), may vary from those advertised and may have reduced availability or restrictions on their use.
As reflected in the course title, this programme explores the world of fashion management from a truly global perspective. Every aspect of your learning will be set within an international context, whether you’re exploring ethics and sustainability, accounting standards, logistics and the supply chain, or the globalisation of fashion.
You’ll have the opportunity for an overseas field trip, and you could arrange to do your internship or consultancy project outside of the UK. You will also study as part of an international cohort of students from all over the world. Such students always offer rich perspectives on fashion and management in their home countries, and team projects with them will significantly enhance your skills in cross-cultural working.
Please note that we are unable to guarantee any work experience/internship, placement, study abroad, field trips, and consultancy or UK/overseas visits and that any such opportunities referred to on this webpage may be subject to additional costs (e.g. travel, visas and accommodation etc.), competitive application, availability and/or meeting any applicable visa requirements. To ensure that you fully understand the requirements in this regard, please contact the International Office for further details if you are an EU or International student.
Entry Requirements
Flying Start
Included in the fees:
- Specified core textbooks
- Any mandatory UK residential field trips
- Any mandatory UK site visits and trips
- 1,000 sides of black and white laser prints
Additional costs not included in the fees:
You may have the opportunity to participate in non-mandatory field trips in the UK and abroad. These visits are not included in the programme fee and prices will vary depending on the location of the field trip. There may also be fees for other course materials, such as printing range books, magazines, etc. as part of course work
Career prospects
Graduate Immigration Route visa
Based on current information from the UK Government, international students whose study extends beyond summer 2021 may be eligible for a visa under the UK Government’s Graduate Immigration Route, which will enable students to stay and work, or look for work, in the UK at any skill level for up to two (2) years. Check the most up to date guidance available to check your eligibility and any updates from the UK Government before making an application or enrolment decision.
Fashion is a huge, highly competitive and growing industry, which means that strong business leaders are always in high demand. Upon graduation, you should be able take your place among a new generation of business leaders, being able to respond effectively to the demands of an unknowable future.
You will explore in-depth how the international fashion business operates and where its opportunities and challenges lie. Your global perspective should deliver a strong foundation in cross-cultural communication and international business. The course offers a springboard, upon successful completion, to a potential career culminating in senior management roles and should accelerate your promotion to rewarding leadership positions.
Where our graduates work
Previous graduates from this course have well-developed powers of analysis, strategic thinking and communication, and are well-equipped to meet the leadership challenges of today and tomorrow.
The internships on this course are of a very high standard, and quite a few have previously led to permanent positions on graduation. Past students have gone on to exciting careers for leading brands in Europe, Japan and China. Please note that internship opportunities are subject to competitive application, availability, meeting any applicable visa requirements and additional fees may apply.
You could develop a successful career, upon graduation, in a range of disciplines within fashion, including garment production, the supply chain, buying, advertising, fashion retailing, retail management, finance, brand management, visual merchandising, marketing, PR, publishing, journalism, IT, event production or consultancy. You might choose to be employed or to start your own business.
Disclaimer
By accepting your offer of a place and enrolling with us, a Student Contract will be formed between you and the university. A copy of the 2021/22 Contract can be found here. The Contract details your rights and the obligations you will be bound by during your time as a student and contains the obligations that the university will owe to you. You should read the Contract before you accept an offer of a place and before you enrol at the university.
The tuition fee for the course that is stated on the course webpage and in the prospectus for the first year of study will apply. We will review our tuition fees each year. For UK and EU students, if Parliament permit an increase in tuition fees, we may increase fees for each subsequent year of study in line with any such changes. Note that any increase is expected to be in line with inflation. Following the UK’s exit from the European Union, EU students should be aware that there may be a change to UK laws following the UK’s exit, this may change their student status, their eligibility to study part time, and/or their eligibility for student finance. We will act in accordance with the UK’s laws in force in relation to student tuition fees and finance from time to time.
For International students the tuition fee that is stated on the course webpage and in the prospectus for the first year of study will apply. We will review our tuition fees each year. For international students, we may increase fees for each subsequent year of study but such increases will be no more than 5% above inflation.
