The course aims to develop confident and experimental practitioners who will push the boundaries of the subject of costume beyond its established traditional role. Taught largely on a one to one basis, by international practitioners, experienced teachers and senior researchers, this MA will nuture your creative ideas about costume and performance.

You will design, realise and experiment with costume based performance ideas that enable you to define your individual voice in relation to contemporary culture and practice, while responding visually to the relevant performance context.

Beyond the understanding of performance and the role of character creation through costume, the study of Costume Design at MA level allows you to locate your practice within the wider realms of contemporary culture and art, as well as within the relevant dramatic, social and philological contexts.

The relationship between drawing, practical realisation and performance, is central to the way design is approached: ideas are developed on paper and through movement, as well as through pattern cutting, textile printing, dyeing and surface manipulation. Practical experimentation is achieved through access to the extensive technical facilities available within the college, expanding knowledge of the uses of CAD, tailoring, print, knit and embroidery within costume. The costume studio in John Princes Street is well equiped to enable students to develop their ideas into realisation, and expert technical support is provided for students on a weekly basis.

For further information see MA Costume Design in Detail.

Course Structure

Full Time mode

Part Time Mode

Year One

Year Two

Outline of the course

Master’s Project Proposal

This unit supports the development of your project proposal. You will be able to work on your initial ideas discussed at interview, through reviewing and revising your focus in line with developing interests synthesised from your work within the specialist units of your MA course. A staged process of development and review culminates in the presentation of the proposal for assessment. Individual and original results must be underpinned by sound research methodologies, and you will be expected to consult a wide range of specialist resources. You will be introduced to a broad range of research methodologies and skills, including presentations, workshops and practitioner case studies. This unit will support you in the completion of your coursework assignments and will prepare you for the development of your Master’s Project.

Contextual Studies

The contemporary fashion and creative industries require multi-skilled and flexible individuals who understand the complexities of the global fashion industry. This unit enables you to appreciate the perspectives of both your own and other disciplines at work in fashion today, and to understand and analyse the complex economic, technical, ethical and business issues that affect the future of the creative industries. The unit is a focal point for all MA students, both full and part time, from all courses. It underpins your specialist studies by providing a common forum for debate on issues arising from the study of fashion. Aspects of design, technology, communication, marketing and the cultural industries are explored, and a programme of visiting speakers from industry and leading researchers supports the unit.

The Performer in Time and Space

This unit explores costume as central to time-based dramatic narrative and in relation to the performer used within a performance space. Considering theatre in its broadest sense, it examines costuming the body within contrasting frameworks of performance creation. While generating conceptual costume-based approaches to performance, you will be able to situate your practice within theory and in relation to key practitioners. In this way you will connect your design work to current cultural debates which are rooted in contemporary performance practice.

Costume on Film

This unit focuses on costume for performance viewed through the camera lens, and contextualises the practice of costume design for film and television within a broad cultural and artistic perspective. The presentation of character on screen is explored in depth through both conceptual development and final realised design images for a selected script, whilst working with a writer or director. You will develop a practical understanding of professional constraints and opportunities, through collaborative work on set and through the input of external speakers such as specialist film makers, script writers, cameramen and designers. You will be expected to situate your practice within theory and in relation to key practitioners.

Creative and Technical Exploration

This unit establishes and develops your level of skill, as the group will have varied levels of experience in the practical aspects of design development, practical experimentation and realisation for costume. You will develop your work on an individual basis in response to your particular focus, whilst workshop sessions will introduce you to the full range of available supporting facilities. You have the opportunity to expand your knowledge of the uses of cut, tailoring, print, embroidery and millinery within costume. You will be expected to develop solutions through experimentation, and demonstrate initiative in researching the professional context while building a network of contacts.

Master’s Project

This unit is the culmination of your work on the course and offers you the opportunity to create collaborative work either within the UK or with international partners. The role of costume in performance is central to the creative process you propose and negotiate. Your project can take a number of forms but must include a collaborative process with performers, whether as a starting point or as a culmination of the process. You can choose whether you wish to specialise in film or theatre, and you will create links within and outside the College to realise your ideas. You will develop a portfolio of speculative, experimental, realised and performance-based work which demonstrates a strong sense of self direction and originality, and a detailed knowledge and understanding of costume design. This will place you at the forefront of your academic discipline and professional field.

MA Costume for Performance graduates have begin to practice as designers in both devised and text based performance, sometimes taking the collaborative performance work initiated during the course further. As a result their work has been seen not only in London and on tour, but in major national and international festivals, including Prague Quadrennial, Spill Festival and Edinburgh Fringe.

Graduates have also found employment as assistant designers and costume supervisors, whilst others, whose technical dexterity has proven a particular strength, have began to forge a path for themselves as experts in specific technical areas of costume, such as, pattern cutting, surface textiles, print and dye or fabricated, sculptural costumes.

The course also prepares students for work with contemporary visual artists. Graduates have found work with artists, whose work borders on performance, such as Lucy Orta, or involves textile and surface manipulation, like Tracy Emin.

Master's graduates have an acknowledged advantage in the employment market, obtaining work in a wide range of vocational and academic fields related to costume. Graduates will be in a position to gain employment as innovators within the fields of costume design. The MA also provides an excellent preparation for higher level research degrees (MPhil or PhD), with an increasing number of graduates undertaking research in fashion related subjects, in practice or theory.

Showing your work

All final year students are given the opportunity to profile their work online via Showtime. 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.

For details of the wide range of careers support provided for students, please visit our Careers Support page.

Student Selection Criteria

The course seeks to recruit students from diverse socio-economic and cultural backgrounds, and welcomes applications from mature students.

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

Course Entry Requirements

Selection for interview will be made on the basis of your application, including the personal statement, the reference, the supporting written statement, and examples of relevant work.

If you are selected for interview you will be asked to bring a portfolio of previous work,

What We Look For

The course seeks to recruit students who can demonstrate:

• The potential to develop their practical and critical abilities through academic study
• Critical knowledge of a subject area
• A capacity for intellectual enquiry and reflective thought
• An openness to new ideas and a willingness to participate actively in their own intellectual development
• Initiative and a developed and mature attitude to independent study

English language requirements

All classes are conducted in English. The level required by the University for this course is IELTS 6.5 with a minimum of 5.5 in any one skill. 

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

International Applicants

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.

Our contact details are: London College of Fashion, International Office, 20 John Prince's Street, London W1G 0BJ.            

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.  

To find out more about studying in London, please visit the International students section of the London College of Fashion website.

Home/EU Applicants

Applications to study for a Postgraduate course should be made directly to the College using the Graduate School Application Form, accompanied by two references (one of which should be academic) and a copy of your highest qualification to date.

Most postgraduate courses require you to submit a detailed study proposal and / or essay. Please read the specific guidance notes before applying to this course.

• Download Graduate School Application Form [PDF - 502kb]
• Download Graduate School Application Form [Word doc - 152kb]
• Download MA Costume Design for Performance Guidance Notes [PDF - 64kb]

Alternatively, you can request an application form by calling +44 (0)20 7514 7563 / 7582 / 7344. If you have a question, you can ask us through our Course enquiry form. 

Please send your completed application form to the following address:

International Applicants

Please apply directly to the College using the International Application Form, accompanied by contact details of two referees (one of which should be academic) and a copy of your highest qualification to date. We will write to your referees and obtain your references. You must also complete and send the Tier 4 Student Visa: UK Immigration History Form Guidance Notes for Students to the LCF International Recruitment Office with your portfolio  (if required) and supporting documents.

Most graduate courses require you to submit a detailed study proposal and / or essay. Please read the specific guidance notes before applying to the course.

• Download Postgraduate International Application Form  [PDF - 200Kb] 
• Download Postgraduate International Application Form [Word Doc - 234kb] 
• Download MA Costume Design for Performance Guidance Notes [PDF - 64kb] 
• Download Tier 4 Student Visa: UK Immigration History Form Guidance Notes for Students [PDF - 63kb] 

Please send your completed application form to the following address:

Selection Process

The course team will review your application and you may be called to interview. If you are selected for interview you will be asked to bring a portfolio of previous work, From this work and the interview the course team will decide if you are to be offered a place on the course.

Applicants have the right to ask for feedback if their application is unsuccessful. Requests must be made in writing to the Student Administrator, and we will respond within 20 working days.