Anyone went to a normal college but now work in fashion industry?

[fashionismydrug]

^just graduated from Northeastern!! I want to work at a magazine in NY soooo bad, but I haven't heard back from anyone, so I'm starting my own. I feel like the best way to get a job in fashion is to make one myself.

 

[gius]

that's the spirit^ i'm to doing the same, but not magazine
we can make our own successes

 

[EvaIntl]

I agree, knightley. Those ineffable, unteachable talents and natural abilities are what actually make people get ahead in the world. A degree is important - maybe vital to some careers - but what you can actually DO ON YOUR OWN RECOGNIZANCE is what really counts. A degree helps get your foot in the door, but from there it's all you & your own initiative that will allow you to sink or swim. Also, fashion is one of the few industries left where there's a lot of 'backdoor entry' (sounds so wrong!); meaning, simply, there's a lot of unconventional ways in that the gatekeepers to other 'ordinary' careers have simply shut out. Thank god for creative industries!

you nailed it. + a fashion-related degree doesn't automatically guarantee you a fashion-related job either, right?

 

[kathleen fasanel]

Having a degree of some kind helps. A lot. Not so much for the content of what you learn but that it shows you have stick-to-it-tive-ness. It also rounds you out socially, you become acclimated to appropriate ways of conducting yourself professionally (some people have to learn that).

I have a year of fashion school but ended up majoring in economics (I didn't graduate). I suppose I came in through the back door but then I have solid technical skills working in the not-glamorous end of fashion. Hard skills are always in critically short supply. Most of the successful designers (own their own company) I work with don't have fashion degrees either. Hardly any of them do. But they do have degrees in something, if not advanced degrees.

You can get in the back door but you have to have something to prop the door open with. There's so much to learn even if you have a degree that people are reluctant to take you on. For example, I provide fee based training. You'd think that I'd take anyone who can pay but I don't. Even in this economy, there's people who have more money than sense so one has to pick from the best candidates so the sessions go better for the other students.

Still, it'd probably surprise you who is likely to be a good candidate (whether for training, an internship or a job). #1 issue is attitude, meaning, check yours at the door if you've got more than your one allotted carry on bag . Positive, upbeat can-do attitude and willingness to try, persevere and practice beats out those who are relying on their degrees to get them in the door. Be willing to sweep floors and take out the trash. If I'm scrubbing the toilet, I expect everyone else to clean their space and share the duties of common areas.

 

[PinkPrincess113]

Awesome advice again kathleen ^^ (as well as in the fashion law thread)

Anyway I have a 4 year bachelors degree in business and I want to get into retail management.. has anyone here started off as a manager? It seems as though you need 4-5 years management experience as well as retail experience. Would I have to start as a sales rep? I want to move out of my house but can't see myself doing a job I could have gotten in high school.

 

[BetteT]

Moving this conversation to the Retail thread ... where it is on topic.

 

[fashionandstyle1]

I would like to know anyone's opinions on some good choices for majors at a non-fashion school. I really don't have a specific career in mind yet, but something at a fashion magazine would be amazing, including writing. Merchandising, marketing, buying, PR, etc are also options.

I'm still an undeclared major, but I am thinking about a Communications major plus a Visual Culture minor. I would like to know anyone's opinions on how useful this might be for me in the fashion world. The visual culture minor is described as: "especially relevant for those whose fields employ visual images to convey ideas as well as information."--fashion seems to fit the bill here. Other majors available at my school include Journalism, English, History, International Relations, and pretty much anything you can think of. Please give me your opinions!

 

[gius]

For journalism, there is very good and realistic advice on schooling in this other thread:
Fashion Journalism


Where I studied, Visual Culture studies were right alongside Art History courses.. You could take either or to fulfill the requirements. There's also a thread on that
Art History - where can you go from here?

 

[carlacarstens]

I would like to know anyone's opinions on some good choices for majors at a non-fashion school. I really don't have a specific career in mind yet, but something at a fashion magazine would be amazing, including writing. Merchandising, marketing, buying, PR, etc are also options.

I'm still an undeclared major, but I am thinking about a Communications major plus a Visual Culture minor. I would like to know anyone's opinions on how useful this might be for me in the fashion world. The visual culture minor is described as: "especially relevant for those whose fields employ visual images to convey ideas as well as information."--fashion seems to fit the bill here. Other majors available at my school include Journalism, English, History, International Relations, and pretty much anything you can think of. Please give me your opinions!

Communications is a solid choice, particularly if you want to get into marketing or pr. If you want to do editorial at a magazine, it would only make sense to be an english, literature or journalism major. As far as working in a fashion closet at a magazine, any major would work as long as you have great internships with a fashion magazine's fashion department.

-Carla
www.freefashioninternships.com

 

[fashionandstyle1]

^thanks gius and carlacarstens!

 

[KhaoticKharma]

I just feel the need to point out that Vera Wang holds a degree in English from Sarah Lawrence College... and whilst she may be using those skills now, especially in communication, it certainly isn't her main focus.

A tip I have, even though I've only been attending a state university for approximately a week, is to take advantage of fashion opportunities both extracurricular and in the classroom; at the moment, I'm applying to basically intern at our Theatre Department's wardrobe/costume shop for my Intro to Theatre lab credit. If I get it, I'll get to spend some time helping costume the upcoming productions- which, hopefully, will prove beneficial for possible fashion endavors in the future.

 

[Fashtastic]

I have worked as a fashion editor and stylist since graduating from High school. I live in Sweden though and things are a bit different here (maybe?) I basically climbed to where I am today, starting out as a web editor at two magazines and then just proving myself. Showing my interest in fashion and then there happened to be an opening for a fashion editor. From there I have gone on to work at other magazines and do other fashion related things. I know that a lot of the jobs I have had or applied for have looked a lot at work experience, more than education actually. That's not to say that education is something negative, but work experience is a big plus.

After working in the fashion industry for a couple of years now I'm starting higher studies. Not sure yet exactly what I will be focusing on so for now I'm just studying some courses in fashion and ethnology. I might do a journalism program. I know that studies will be a strong compliment to my resumé, and I'm happy I already have a good amount of work experience. I will also continue to work as a freelance fashion editor and stylist during the time I am studying, and it's probably one of the best things you can do - try to get freelance work as a fashion assistant or anything in fashion while you're studying.