Degree Programs

Bachelor of Arts Fashion Merchandising Degree

The Bachelor of Arts degree program in Fashion Merchandising at the Academy helps to prepare students for exciting career opportunities and is designed to provide the skills needed to be successful in merchandising, marketing, buying, sales, management, negotiation, customer relations and creative technologies. The program allows students to partner their interest in the world of fashion with the development of key business competencies critical to employment in today's global marketplace. Students also have the opportunity to explore the evolution of fashion, fashion trend forecasting, fashion media, and fashion promotion. The program requires integration of conceptual and creative abilities with business practices.

If you are ready to take the first step to a rewarding career full of challenges and opportunities, pursue your Fashion Merchandising Degree here. In addition to comprehensive coursework and professional instruction, students will have the opportunity to participate in a real world internship to help prepare them for the competitive fashion world.

Fashion Merchandising Degree Program

Your Fashion Merchandising training includes the following courses:

  • Introduction to Business
  • Marketing Communication
  • Merchandising Principles and Practices
  • Visual Merchandising
  • Retail Management
  • Principles of Accounting
  • Electronic Marketing
  • Principles of Finance
  • Business Law
  • Pricing Strategies
  • Merchandise Planning and Inventory Control
  • Buying
  • Salesmanship
  • Fashion Marketing and Consumer Behavior
  • International Business
  • Business Professionalism
  • Project Management in Merchandising
  • Global Sourcing and Product Development
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Introduction to Fashion
  • Fashion Sketching I
  • Evolution of Fashion
  • Textiles for Fashion
  • Computer Graphics for Fashion Design
  • Trend Forecasting
  • Fashion Product Development
  • Fashion Media
  • Fashion Publicity and Promotion
  • Fashion Merchandising Internship or Fashion Merchandising Capstone
  • Senior Fashion Merchandising Portfolio

* Fashion Merchandising curriculum subject to change.

What You Can Learn in the Fashion Merchandising Degree Program

Successful graduates of the Bachelor of Arts degree in Fashion Merchandising will have had the opportunity to:
  • Execute basic drawing fundamentals and explain how fashion flats are used by designers, manufacturers, retailers and merchandisers;
  • Differentiate among the historical eras of fashion as a basis for understanding contemporary design and merchandising and the factors that influence them;
  • Demonstrate knowledge of properties, use, and care of textiles;
  • Design, conduct, and analyze market research;
  • Employ merchandising principles to the planning, procurement, and selling of fashion goods;
  • Evaluate and select appropriate vendors to source and produce products;
  • Examine principles involved in the planning, pricing, promotion, and distribution of products and services within the fashion industry;
  • Integrate basic computer graphic skills into the completion of visual boards for presentation;
  • Create visual merchandise displays, demonstrating knowledge of the effects of color and lighting on consumer behavior;
  • Plan and control inventories, assess store designs and locations, and exercise basic principles of finance and accounting;
  • Explain consumer attitudes, beliefs, and buying habits, and how they contribute to the formation of marketing decisions;
  • Design editorial, promotional, and marketing material used in the fashion industry; and
  • Recommend store layout and merchandise presentation as a function of buying.

Career Opportunities for Those with a Bachelor's Degree in Fashion Merchandising

Earn your Fashion Merchandising Degree to prepare yourself for employment opportunities that may include:
  • Visual Merchandiser
  • Assistant Fashion Buyer
  • Merchandiser
  • Fashion Merchandiser
  • Account Manager
  • Assistant Retail Sales Manager
  • Associate Merchandise Planner

Additional training and/or education may be required for certain positions.

Contact us today to receive more information about our Fashion Merchandising degree!