Fashion Designing Syllabus & Subjects 2025: Semester-wise List, Top Colleges Syllabus PDF

Pattern Making and Garment Construction

In this subject, students will learn how to make the blueprints of different garments, also called patterns. In the fashion industry, patterns are made to cut the fabric pieces to create garments. There are three types of pattern making - drafting, draping and flat paper pattern making.

Fashion Illustration and Design

This subject explains how to communicate different fashion ideas in a visual form with the help of illustration, sketching or drawing. Students will also learn about the Principles of Design, which are,

• Balance

• Gradation

• Repetition

• Contrast

• Harmony

• Emphasis

• Unity

Fashion and Art Design

Fashion and Art form a bridge that links the two together, and in this subject, students learn about the influence of art in the world of fashion and the artistic way of expressing personalities.

CAD (computer-aided design)

This essential subject in fashion design teaches students about creating models based on geometric designs. This computer-aided design is usually depicted in 2D or 3D models and is essential for designers to quickly design and bring the product out to the market.

Fashion Ornamentation

Fashion designing also teaches the students how to decorate textiles and garments to give an aesthetic look. In this subject, attendants are taught different types of embroidery and decorative work on fabric.

Fashion Technology

Technology plays a crucial role in the fashion world, and students are taught how to make the best out of it. This subject focuses on working with Artificial Intelligence (AI) and other designing software to enhance production, quality and efficiency and help maintain standardisation.

Textile Wet Processing

This subject is mainly focused on treating textile and garments with colourant and/or chemicals. Textile wet processing is divided into four parts - pretreatment, dyeing, printing and finishing.

Fashion Marketing

It is the branch of the fashion industry that deals with advertising campaigns and promotional events for clothing and accessories. In this subject, students learn about managing the flow of merchandise, from production to retail customers, while maintaining profits.

I & II

Elements of Fashion Design

Elements of Fashion Design

In the first two semesters of the fashion designing course, students are introduced to basic concepts of design. The subject is mainly focused on the foundation and fundamentals of various clothing and textile. Students are also introduced to Pattern Making and Garment Construction and Embroidery and Surface Orientation.

III & IV

Pattern Making and Garment Construction

Pattern Making and Garment Construction

This subject is the expansion of Elements of Fashion Design with more detailed information. Students are taught more about applied aspects of the industry as well as ethics and aesthetics. Some of the topics that this subject covers are,

• Apparel Marketing

• Pattern Making and Construction

• Design Process

• Traditional Textiles and Embroidery

• Technical Fashion Sketching

• Application of Fashion Art

V & VI

Fashion Marketing

Fashion Marketing

This subject gives the finishing touch to the third-year students in order to be successful in this industry. The meticulous subject covers topics such as,

• Promotional Product Development

• Retail Marketing and Visual Merchandising

• Art Portfolio and Design Concepts

• Apparel Manufacturing

• Care Renovation and Finish of Textile

• Pattern Making, Grading and Draping

Graphic Design

• Typography

• Images and Graphics

• Utilising Design Process

• Research and Sketches

• Current Graphics Software for Print

This specialisation is designed for students who have a knack for graphics in the fashion industry. It provides students with the basic knowledge of graphics and illustrations in the fashion industry. Students specialising in this course also get handy with the latest computer software, illustration, and production techniques.

Visual Merchandising

• Fundamentals of Visual Merchandising

• Elements and Principles of Design

• Colour Psychology

• Display Error Management

• Trend Analysis and Forecasting

• Vendor Management

• Importance of Shopping Management

• Exterior and Interior Presentation

• Consumer Behaviour

• CAD

• Visual Principles and Systems

Visual merchandising is the art of presentation and plays an important role in the retail business of the fashion industry. Students learn about presenting products in a visually and creatively appealing manner to the client. They also learn the best practices in communicating and collaborating with outlets and boutiques across the country to boost sales. There are five types of Visual Merchandising.

• POP (Point-of Purchase)

• Table Displays

• Gondola

• Peg Boards

• Grid Walls

Fashion Photography

• History of Fashion

• Overview of Production

• Fashion/Model Headshots

• Working with Models and Figure Fashion

• Catalogue Fashion and Fashion in Advertising

• Fashion Still Life

• Image Retouching and Colour Correction

This genre of photography in fashion designing focuses on clothing and showcasing it along with accessories. This specialised subject helps both amateur and professional fashion photography aspirants to build the necessary skills required in the field of fashion photography.

Fashion Journalism

• Fashion News Writing

• Media Analysis

• Fashion and Contemporary Culture

• Interviewing, Photography and Styling

• Fashion Criticism

• Feature and Fashion Writing

• Production of Publication

• Design History

• Cultural and Gender Studies

This course assists students in developing communication skills and understanding the nitty-gritty of fashion media. Students are taught about photoshoots, the art of interviewing, blogging, presentation, etc. along with the history of fashion and current trends.

Fashion PR

• Analysing and Researching Customers

• Marketing and PR Campaigns

• Mastering Digital Tools and Language

This course is designed for students who are interested in the public relations aspect of fashion design. The course provides insights into how fashion is evolving into lifestyle communities and how businesses can build loyal customers ensuring consistent sales.

History of Fashion

The End of Fashion

Teri Agins

Teri Agins does an amazing job in penning down the history of fashion. This book speaks about the transition of fashion from elitists to the masses. Students prefer this book to understand the history and psychology of fashion.

CAD

Fashion Design: Process, Innovation and Practice (2nd Edition)

Kathryn McKelvey and Janine Munslow

The two authors from Northumbria University wrote this book to analyse the logical processes to determine success in the fashion industry. The book contains high-quality illustrations and a strong design concept.

Design and Illustration

Colours for Modern Fashion (CFMF)

Nancy Reigelman

This book discusses interesting and innovative ideas on drawing, sketching, colour and photo sequences. Aspiring fashion designers can refer to this book for in-depth knowledge of colour and design theory as well as concept illustrations used in modern fashion.

Drawing

Fashion Sketchbook

Bina Bling

All beginners can opt for this book for a clear interpretation of ideas and easy-to-follow drawing steps. This book focuses on accessory sketches, detail of garments, figure poses, etc.

Language

The Little Dictionary of Fashion

Christian Dior

This handy book is self-explanatory in its title. This is not a regular book; Christian Dior wrote this book in order to familiarise lay people with terminologies used in this industry, and it is recommended to every aspiring Fashion Designer.

1.

National Institute of Fashion Designing

2.

Pearl Academy

3.

NIFT, Hyderabad

4.

NIFT, Delhi

5.

NIFT, Mumbai

6.

NIFT, Bangalore

7.

Symbiosis Institute of Design

8.

Army Institute of Fashion and Design

9.

JD Institute of Fashion and Technology

10.

Vogue Institute of Art and Design