The FdA Hair and Make-up for Fashion course is situated in the School of Media and Communication, and prepares you for a career as a practitioner in fashion hair and make-up design for the editorial image. You will learn about this sector of the industry and the position of the make-up artist and hair designer within it. The importance of teamwork will be explored through the work based learning collaborative projects that you will undertake, and you also work independently to develop your skills and personal style in preparation for the industry. You will acquire the practical skills of make-up and hair design, together with broader academic studies which give you a contemporary and historical understanding of your creative discipline within the wider perspectives of fashion, society and the environment. This will integrate the practical and theoretical aspects of your learning. You will also learn research skills, both visual and academic, which will underpin your creative practice and develop your analytical skills and critical awareness. High-achieving graduates from this course have the opportunity to do a third year of specialist studies to gain a BA Honours degree.

FdA Hair and Make-up for Fashion is based is based at Lime Grove in Shepherd’s Bush, just west of Holland Park and Notting Hill. The area, which is rich in cultural influences from across the world, is home to Shepherd’s Bush Market and the many fabric shops lining the Goldhawk Road. There are numerous restaurants, cafes, delis and food stores, as well as the market, which reflect the many cultures of the people living there. Nearby is the Shepherd’s Bush Empire, an excellent venue for live bands, and the Westfield Shopping Centre, one of the largest retail complexes in Europe that caters for the luxury market as well as the high street. Holland Park with its Orangery and Leighton House Museum are both worth visiting.

Course Units

Year One     Stage One     Level 4     120 credits

Term One: Introduction to Study in Higher Education (20 credits); Design, Technique and Process (20 credits);

Term Two: Introduction to Cultural and Historical Studies (20 credits); Design, Technique and Practice (20 credits);

Term Three: Industry Practice for Hair and Make-up for Fashion (40 credits)

Year Two     Stage Two     Level 5     120 credits

Term One: Cultural and Historical Studies (20 credits); Fashion Image Development (20 credits);

Term Two: Collaborative Production for Hair and Make-up for Fashion (20 credits); Professional Portfolio and Practice (20 credits)

Term Three: Independent Production (40 credits);

Course Outline

In the first term you will study two units.

Introduction to Study in Higher Education gives you an understanding of your personal and professional development at university, with three core purposes: to introduce you to the necessary learning skills for undergraduate study; to show you where you are situated within the College and the University; and to help you understand what you will learn on your course and how you will develop your skills.

The Design, Technique and Process unit introduces you to the various professional processes of fashion hair and make-up required within industry. Specific emphasis will be placed on technical applications that underpin how fashion hair and make-up operates as a design process. You will have the opportunity to develop materials, products and technical skills in creating final outcomes that show both investigation and innovation. You will be encouraged to use visual research strategies, which will inform and enrich your design solutions and give you a broader understanding of the creative environment.

In the second term you will study two units.

Introduction to Cultural and Historical Studies introduces you to key concepts and ways of thinking about fashion and its context in society and culture. You will attend lectures, seminars and workshops, and do a significant amount of reading of academic texts in order to complete a formal academic essay for assessment.  Completion of this unit will allow you to make an informed choice of subject for study in the second year Cultural and Historical Studies unit.

Design, Technique and Practice gives you the opportunity to further develop your knowledge and skills in fashion hair and make-up. You will learn more skills and show how you can integrate these into your creative and technical practice. Visual research will inform your exploration and experimentation with materials, products and techniques, and you will take your work through the design process from concept to final outcome.

In the third term you will do the Industrial Practice for Hair and Make-up for Fashion unit, which introduces you to the industry through providing you with a work-based learning (WBL) experience. You will work in a project team collaborating on an assignment that reflects professional practice in the industry. By integrating styling, photography, and hair and make-up design, all aspects of the production of the styled image will be explored. You will learn the key skills of team working and time management, and become familiar with budgets, business processes and production methods.

Year Two

In the first term you will be able to study a Cultural and Historical Studies unit of your choice that will broaden or deepen your learning of areas relating to your interests in your chosen field. You will have the opportunity to participate in lectures, seminars and workshops with students from other courses within your School, and will read relevant academic texts and complete a formal academic essay for assessment.

Also studied in the first term, the Fashion Image Development unit gives you the opportunity to explore and develop your technical and creative skills within the production of fashion image styling. You will begin to initiate and identify an individual approach and start to define your signature style. Hairstyling and make-up will be underpinned by research and you will be responsible for both the concept and the art direction in response to the project brief. Your visual, analytical and critical skills will be enhanced through experimentation and the realisation of your final design solution.

In the second term you will do two units.      

Collaborative Production for Hair and Make-up for Fashion gives you the chance to work collaboratively through a work-based learning project. Emphasis is placed on your ability to work effectively as a team member in responding to the brief. You will learn the principles of professional process and practice through undertaking a variety of roles within your group. This will further develop your understanding of the collaborative nature of hair and make-up design and realisation. You will focus on creative problem-solving, and presentation skills, as well as the development of advanced make-up skills and how they can be used within the industry.

Also in the second term, you will do the Professional Portfolio and Practice unit. This will allow you to look at a range of practices and formats used in the presentation of work in the context of the construction of your own portfolio. You will also explore your own career aspirations and look at initiatives needed to obtain employment as a freelance practitioner. Portfolio methodologies and protocol in the critical choices of edit, sequence, design and layout will be considered in both commercial and academic contexts. You will learn how to write a CV appropriate for the industry, and you will be encouraged to present your portfolio showing your personal style appropriate for the industry that you plan to enter.

In the third term the Independent Production unit gives you the opportunity to produce a specialised project that reflects your experiences to date, your ability to challenge yourself creatively in your final term, and your personal and professional aspirations for your future. You will negotiate and agree your project with your tutor or project supervisor. This project can be client-led or self-directed, and you will be expected to collaborate with individuals from the related disciplines of fashion styling and photography. Your ability in casting, organisational skills, art direction and project management will be assessed against your agreed proposal. You will be required to work independently and execute informed and appropriate choices in your work dependent upon your career plans.

Future Careers and Graduate Prospects

High-achieving graduates from this course have the opportunity to do a third year of specialist studies to gain a BA Honours degree.

Many graduates prefer to seek employment as soon as they have completed their undergraduate studies. Recent graduates from this course are working as freelancers in hair and make-up design and for a number of companies in the fashion image industry, including MAC Cosmetics and Bobbi Brown Cosmetics. hion gives you the chance to work collaboratively through a work-based learning project. Emphasis is placed on your ability to work effectively as a team member in responding to the brief. You will learn the principles of professional process and practice through undertaking a variety of roles within your group. This will further develop your understanding of the collaborative nature of hair and make-up design and realisation. You will focus on creative problem-solving, and presentation skills, as well as the development of advanced make-up skills and how they can be used within the industry.

Also in the second term, you will do the Professional Portfolio and Practice unit. This will allow you to look at a range of practices and formats used in the presentation of work in the context of the construction of your own portfolio. You will also explore your own career aspirations and look at initiatives needed to obtain employment as a freelance practitioner. Portfolio methodologies and protocol in the critical choices of edit, sequence, design and layout will be considered in both commercial and academic contexts. You will learn how to write a CV appropriate for the industry, and you will be encouraged to present your portfolio showing your personal style appropriate for the industry that you plan to enter.

In the third term the Independent Production unit gives you the opportunity to produce a specialised project that reflects your experiences to date, your ability to challenge yourself creatively in your final term, and your personal and professional aspirations for your future. You will negotiate and agree your project with your tutor or project supervisor. This project can be client-led or self-directed, and you will be expected to collaborate with individuals from the related disciplines of fashion styling and photography. Your ability in casting, organisational skills, art direction and project management will be assessed against your agreed proposal. You will be required to work independently and execute informed and appropriate choices in your work dependent upon your career plans.

Developing your skills

All our undergraduate courses are concerned with the development of your personal and professional skills. On your course you will evolve from learning basic skills in your discipline through to a position where you are an independent creative thinker capable of making an effective contribution to the relevant sector of the fashion industry. PPD (Personal and Professional Development) skills are embedded in all units on every course. Speaker programmes with contributions from alumni, members of industry and others are a part of many courses, as are work placement opportunities in industry. Where relevant, students have the chance to attend trade fairs, enter industry competitions, visit exhibitions and go on field trips and visits. The central position of our John Prince’s Street site in the West End affords students easy access to all sectors of the fashion retail market. In addition, our position as a constituent College in the University of the Arts London means that our students have access to the wide range of activities and events that occur in all the Colleges and at the University’s centre. Last but not least, being in London gives every student opportunities to explore and be inspired by the cultural, intellectual and social life of one of the great capital cities of the world.

Resources                            

Our excellent resources for educating our students are two-fold: people and premises. People includes everyone at the College who contributes directly in some way to your education, whether as a subject tutor, a technician, an Open Access Officer, a librarian or a study support tutor. Premises include the buildings and the facilities contained in them, such as specialist machinery, design studios and workshops, lecture and seminar rooms, and the library.

The well equipped photographic studios, make-up rooms, visual studies studios and Mac suites at Lime Grove offer students a contemporary space where you can realise your creativity and maximise experimentation and individuality. You have the opportunity to work with students from the various disciplines that are within the fashion image programme in a creative environment.

Fiona Minors is the Course Leader and her particular interest lies in the relationship between theory and practice. Her recent curation of the exhibition ‘Hair’ in the Fashion Space Gallery was part of the LCF year long celebration of the many facets of hair and its place in fashion and culture. The exhibition skilfully blended artefact with history through well chosen imagery and text, recorded interviews and occasional live presentations.

Details are currently being updated for the Programme Director for this course, FdA Fashion Styling and Photography, BA Fashion Illustration and BA Fashion Photography. Updated information will be available on the LCF website as soon as possible.

Tony Glenville is the Creative Director for the School of Media and Communication, and has done many jobs in fashion during his varied career. He has worked as a journalist on a number of publications, including Paris Vogue, the Financial Times, The Independent, the Evening Standard and Urban Junkies. He has styled Kate Winslet, is a familiar figure at the catwalk shows in the fashion capitals of the world, and has written Top to Toe: the Modern Man’s Guide to Grooming. His broadcast career has included the South Bank Show on John Galliano, and most recently was seen on television commenting on the fashions at the Royal Wedding of Prince William to Catherine Middleton.

Showing your Work              

All final year students are given the opportunity to profile their work online using the Showtime section of the University and College websites. London College of Fashion can make no guarantee that your work (either in sum or in part) will be shown, exhibited or profiled in any way as part of your course. All student work appearing in College organised events, catwalk shows, exhibitions and other forms of showcase, is selected by a panel of senior staff and, in some instances, external industry judges.

Course Entry Requirements

This course requires portfolio evidence.

Opportunities for All

We are committed to making university education an achievable option for a wider range of people and seek to recruit students from diverse socio-economic, cultural and educational backgrounds. We are committed to supporting all our students in achieving their potential both during and after their courses.

Student Selection Criteria

Entry to this course is highly competitive: applicants are expected to achieve, or already have, the course entry requirements detailed below.

One ‘A’ level pass (80 UCAS tariff points required) PLUS three GCSE passes in other subjects at grade C or above

OR

BTEC National Diploma in a relevant subject

OR

NVQ level 3 in a relevant subject

OR

A one year Foundation Diploma in Art and Design

OR

Access course in a related subject

OR

Equivalent awards. For International qualifications see the International Qualifications Guide  [PDF - 1.9mb]

Preferred subjects include Art, Design, Fashion, Media Studies and Photography.

This course requires a minimum 80 UCAS tariff points.

Exceptionally, applicants who do not meet these course entry requirements may still be considered if the course team judges the application demonstrates additional strengths and alternative evidence. This might, for example, be demonstrated by: related academic or work experience; the quality of the personal statement; a strong academic or other professional reference; or a combination of these factors.

English Language Requirements

All classes are conducted in English. The level required by the University for this course is IELTS 5.5 with a minimum of 4.5 in each skill.

For more information, read the University's English Language requirements page.  

What We Look For

The course team seeks to recruit students who can demonstrate:

• An interest in make-up design
• An enthusiasm for visual communication

This might, for example, be demonstrated by: related academic or work experience; the quality of the personal statement, a strong academic or other professional reference; or a combination of these factors.

Portfolio and Interview Advice

For this course your portfolio should show evidence of: technical ability; understanding of balance, proportion and composition; understanding of visual communication principles; exploration and creativity; and technical knowledge.

Applicants will be expected to demonstrate the following at interview: an interest in hair and make-up for fashion; a cultural awareness of fashion and fashion media; visual awareness evidenced through portfolio work; a motivation for working in the industry; and a motivation to succeed on the course.

Home/EU Applicants

You apply online through the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service.  

Go to ‘Apply’ from the UCAS home page, where you will be able to register and create a password that gives you unique access as you complete your application form.

The University code is U65.

The UCAS code for this course is W295.

The deadline for equal consideration of your application is 15 January.

If you have a question, you can contact our Enquiries Office by calling +44 (0)20 7514 7563 / 7344 or by completing our Online Enquiry Form.  

International Applicants

For specific details on how to apply as an international applicant please visit our international student pages 

The International Recruitment Office at the London College of Fashion will help to guide you through the application process and answer any specific questions that you may have regarding our courses. This may include portfolio advice, the application process and fee advice. We offer a ‘drop-in’ facility for applicants who may be in London and wish to obtain further course and admissions information. Please contact us for further information on this facility. We can also arrange a tour of our facilities if we are given prior notice.

If you have a question, you can contact our International Recruitment Office by calling +44 (0)20 7514 7656 / 7678 / 7629 or completing our Online Enquiry Form.                    

Deferred Entry

Deferred Entry is normally only allowed in exceptional circumstances. Please contact us before you submit your application if you are considering applying for deferred entry.

What Happens Next?

All application forms, personal statements and references are read and considered by the course team against the selection criteria listed under What We Look For. Depending on the quality of your application, you may be asked to submit copies of a small number of pieces of your existing work (not more than ten pieces). If the course team wish to consider your application further you will be invited to a portfolio review / interview where the course team will look at your work during your interview. If you are successful at the interview stage you will be offered a place. Applicants are not guaranteed a portfolio review or an interview.

Please note that if you are unable to attend the College may not be able to re-schedule.

If you applied through UCAS the result of your application will be communicated to you via UCAS through ucastrack. You will only receive further communication directly from the College if your application has been successful. This will be in the form of a full offer pack including details of accommodation, fees, and other important information.   

Additional Costs

Some courses charge a fee for the bulk purchase of materials and/or equipment used on the course. Further details will be supplied at a later date.