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Fashion Merchandising

Fashion Merchandising

Design Your Future: Start With South Carolina State University’s Fashion Merchandising Major

Prepare to become the next leader in the fashion industry and join a career with bountiful growth opportunities around the globe. At South Carolina State University, our fashion merchandising degree prepares you to learn every aspect of the industry—from development and production to sales and purchasing.

In our immersive, hands-on Fashion Merchandising major, you’ll start off by gaining a greater understanding of fashion, history, trends, and its impact on our daily lives. Your foundational coursework will prove beneficial as you dig deeper and learn how to work with designers on planning, developing, and executing product lines in numerous industries.

When you complete SC State’s fashion merchandising degree, you’ll be ready to explore career paths in various areas of fashion and apparel merchandising, including in coordinating, managing, promoting, purchasing, and more.

Pursue an accredited, leading clothing merchandising degree

SC State’s fashion and apparel merchandising programs are accredited by the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences and are known as some of the best in both South Carolina and among historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs).

Method of Instruction

  • In person
  • Some courses offered online

Fashion Merchandising Degree Program Highlights

At SC State, you’ll gain the knowledge and skills to prepare you for success in the apparel merchandising and fashion management industry. What makes our fashion merchandising degree stand out from other programs is the fact that you will:

Gain hands-on experience through an internship

Every SC State Fashion Merchandising major takes part in an internship. These are strong opportunities for you to put your knowledge and skills to work while gaining vital experience in the textiles and apparel merchandising industry. For many of our students, an internship has given them a competitive edge as they’re applying for careers as commercial merchandisers and beyond.

Learn from experts in the industry

Your faculty members at SC State have all worked in the clothing merchandising sector or as commercial merchandisers, and they will be there to mentor and guide you to your own successful career in the field. For instance, Lena Pinkston, who is an assistant professor and fashion merchandising program coordinator, has worked as an editor, researcher, teacher, and consultant in the fashion and business industry for more than a decade.

Get involved beyond your studies

Many of our fashion merchandising degree students are involved with the Fashion Merchandising Association and the American Association of Family & Consumer Sciences. These are great opportunities to connect and network with other Fashion Merchandising majors, as well as industry-leading professionals here in the Palmetto State and beyond.

Groups
14:1
Student-to-faculty ratio in fashion merchandising degree courses
Apparel
1
Only HBCU in South Carolina to offer a Fashion Merchandising major
School
4
Years to complete fashion and clothing merchandising program

What Can You Do With a Fashion Merchandising Degree?

Did you know that the global fashion market is valued at nearly $1.5 trillion, according to Statista—and is only expected to grow? That means, as an SC State graduate, you will be able to unearth careers as diverse as the burgeoning fashion industry.

At SC State, our fashion and clothing merchandising graduates are prepared to shake up the industry and pursue inventive new ways to sell products, promote diversity, and emphasize sustainable practices.

Fashion merchandising careers

Our graduates are ripe for entry-level clothing merchandising positions or as commercial merchandisers, as well as social brand managers. You can find some of our graduates working at:

  • Apiece Apart
  • Atlanta Falcons
  • Coach
  • Kohl’s
  • Lord & Taylor
  • ShopHQ

Some of our Fashion Merchandising majors also pursue SC State’s MBA program to gain added business expertise.

What You Will Study in Fashion Merchandising

At SC State, we help you pursue your passions—whether it’s building your own fashion brands, leading in creative director roles, or pursuing jobs as commercial merchandisers. Our immersive, hands-on curriculum helps you get there.

While you can build a program that works for you, you can expect to take courses such as:

  • Apparel Construction and Analysis
  • Apparel Merchandising Quantitative Analysis
  • Contemporary Aspects of Clothing
  • Essentials of Textiles
  • Merchandising Management


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