The BA Fashion Public Relations course is situated in the School of Media and Communication, and is the only PR course in the UK that specialises in fashion. It offers a diverse and realistic programme of practical and theoretical learning led by industry experts with extensive experience in the field, together with academic study of the broader cultural and historical perspectives of fashion and society. Strategic planning, networking, problem solving, client liaison, pitching, lay-out and design, understanding the media, research skills, the fashion market, current public relations techniques, measurement and evaluation, styling, writing and presentation are essential skills covered in the course, and practical and theoretical assignments equip students with the appropriate knowledge for the fashion and lifestyle public relations industry. Factors for change, such as active citizenship, the impact of new technology, globalisation, ethical awareness and sustainability and the rise of social media, have all influenced the ways in which businesses communicate with their public, and the course looks critically at the issues facing public relations practitioners today. Recent graduates from this course are working in a number of PR firms, including The Communications Store, M & M Management, Hill and Knowlton and Exposure.

BA Fashion Public Relations 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.

UAL statement on learning and teaching

Courses in UAL span a broad range of art, design, communication, business, media, science and communication subjects. So the ways in which you learn and how your time is used will vary according to the specific course you are studying; this may be in studios, labs, classes, involve working alone, learning from peers in pairs or groups, or with external partners. Most importantly, no matter which course you enrol on, you will learn not only about your subject but also about how you learn and how to increase your knowledge base.

Our courses will guide you to take increasing responsibility and ownership of your work and your learning. We do this so that you will be ready and able to take full advantage of the full range of opportunities offered by the creative industries in the global economy.

UAL statement on assessment methods

Assessment always sounds austere and foreboding, but it is not. We see assessment as a very real part of learning, rather than just a means of looking back at past work and measuring achievement; we believe that assessment helps you plan future work and develop new ideas.

Your work will be assessed through projects or portfolios, with written papers or research journals, and, on some courses, examinations. You will be graded according to a set of marking criteria that relate to such things as research, subject knowledge, methodology, and your capacity to analyse and reflect on your achievements. So don’t be afraid of assessment - it is the way to progress.

Course Units

Year One     Stage One     Level 4     120 credits 

Term One: Introduction to Study in Higher Education (20 credits); Public Relations Theory, Publics and Persuasion (20 credits);

Term Two: Introduction to Cultural and Historical Studies (20 credits); Research for Public Relations (20 credits);

Term Three: Collaborative Project for Public Relations (40 credits); 

Year Two     Stage Two      Level 5     120 credits

Term One: Cultural and Historical Studies (20 credits); Image Enhancement and PR in the Marketing Mix (20 credits);

Term Two: Reputation and Crisis Management (40 credits);

Term Three: Research Methods for Media (20 credits); Retail Rescue (20 credits);

Third Year     Stage Three     Level 6     120 credits

Term One: Project Proposal: Fashion Public Relations (20 credits);

Terms One and Two: Cultural and Historical Studies Dissertation (40 credits);

Term Two and Three: Final Major Project: Fashion Public Relations (60 credits);

Course Outline

Year One

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 Public Relations Theory, Publics and Persuasion unit introduces you to the role of fashion public relations in business, fashion, society and media. You will begin to understand the relationship between fashion public relations and the media across all platforms. You will look at the history of PR and its relevance and significance in today’s global society. By studying contemporary fashion PR tools and techniques, you will begin to understand how brands ensure that the right people hear their voice at the right time. You will learn how to write for different audiences and understand how the PR and journalism industries co-exist. You will learn how to identify and analyse key audiences and target media and target markets, as well as essential presentation skills. You will learn to work with different software packages and, working in groups, will create a fanzine for a chosen, defined target market.

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.

Research for Public Relations explores forecasting and trend-tracking and gives you various tools for the creative analysis and employment of results. The unit adds currency, creativity, structure and depth to your research. Looking at brands in detail, you will explore how a brand communicates its key messages across different media platforms. Using primary and secondary research techniques, you will form your own analysis of the brand and suggest new ideas with which to target appropriate media.

In the third term you will do the Collaborative Project for Public Relations unit, which introduces you to the essential skills of creative collaboration. This mirrors the industry where working in PR is dependent on the joint efforts of a number of creative individuals. You will be placed in a group, and together you will produce a well illustrated, visually exciting pitch to a client supported by a conceptual interactive website, with digital content. The brief will emphasise topicality, currency and originality, and you will research your market and develop a rationale for your pitch that you will present using IT and a variety of professional presentation skills.

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 Image Enhancement and PR in the Marketing Mix unit gives you the opportunity to learn more about image enhancement, brand recognition, trend forecasting and styling for the media. You will learn how PR inter-relates with other disciplines, including marketing, advertising and sales promotion. You will produce a robust, image-led campaign that answers a specific brief.

In the second term the Reputation and Crisis Management unit builds on the skills you have acquired so far and develops your knowledge of how fashion public relations practitioners work to protect and promote brands and individuals. The issues facing brands and individuals today are identified, and the ways in which different media platforms handle issues of image and reputation is explored. You will look at the ways in which crisis management techniques are employed, and you will investigate strategies for protecting yourself and your clients from litigation and accusations of slander and libel, through studying the relevant parts of ethics and media law. You will explore audiences and influencers, and the integration of PR into the business sector. You will assess how new media impacts on brands and how public relations practitioners can utilise social media to tell their story. Broadcast for PR will equip you with the necessary skills for you to promote your client online, on screen and on air.

In the third term you will do two units.

Research Methods for Media provides you with an overview of a variety of different research methods that will underpin both your Cultural and Historical Studies dissertation and your Final Major Project in the third year. For the dissertation you will be introduced to the first two key stages, the literature review and the research, and how each relates to each other. You will also look at primary and secondary sources, ways of developing and originating research, and methods of appropriately realising the research for the dissertation. Parallel with this you will develop research ideas for the creative work that you will undertake in the third year.  You will undertake the preliminary research, both primary and secondary, that will enable you to construct the proposal for your Final Major Project. This proposal will include a plan for future research into your chosen area.

The Retail Rescue unit tests your abilities as an independent thinker, researcher and planner and as a team member. In the first part of the unit you are required to secure and complete a four week industrial placement within the media. You will keep a diary of your activities and, when you have completed the placement, you will write an analytical report which will include well reasoned suggestions for ways in which the company could improve its market position. Secondly, individually you will research the fashion or lifestyle market for a faded brand that you feel would benefit from a re-launch. Basing your concept on thorough, well-developed research, you will plan an outline campaign that you will present as a competitive pitch to your peers. You will then work as a team to develop an idea for the re-launch of a faded brand, using every level of the multi-media platform. This will then be presented to your colleagues.

Year Three

In the first term you will do the Project Proposal: Fashion Public Relations unit. This builds on the work done so far and encourages you to further develop your concept for the Final Major Project through extensive, in-depth primary and secondary research. You will design questionnaires, conduct focus groups and analyse consumer trends and branding. You will evaluate findings and define a specific PR need for your chosen brand. Using your results, you will develop a sound case for proceeding with your final project, giving an outline pitch proposal that will identify the brand’s current positioning, the PR requirement, analysis of the problems and challenges facing the brand now and in the future, and how you will work to develop a creative, strategic, targeted campaign to address its needs. Your pitch proposal will include a plan of future research and development for the Final Major Project: Fashion Public Relations.

In the first and second terms you will undertake a major piece of written work for the Cultural and Historical Studies Dissertation unit. This allows you to demonstrate your understanding of the critical and analytical perspectives developed within cultural and historical theory, and how you can apply these theoretical perspectives in a specific study, which you will have already identified in the third term of the second year. The dissertation gives you the opportunity to undertake primary and secondary research that examines in depth cultural issues relating to a particular aspect of fashion, lifestyle, the body, performance or the media, and to produce a written piece of work that reflects the critical debates around your chosen topic.

The Final Major Project: Fashion Public Relations, undertaken in the second and third terms, gives you the opportunity to demonstrate your understanding of the PR industry, working to a self-managed schedule and programme of study. You will produce a convincing PR pitch proposal to present to your client. You will use and collate your primary research and present a convincing argument for your proposal, using a variety of creative and realistic ideas that will address the problem and re-position the brand. You will demonstrate the latest creative techniques and show how they will work over a twelve month period. You will work visually, verbally and in writing, and part of the success of your proposal will be your personal and professional presentation using appropriate software. You will continually test your findings, thereby reflecting on your proposals, your skills and the techniques that you use.

Learning and Teaching at UAL

Courses at UAL span a broad range of art, design, communication, business, media and science subjects. The ways in which you learn and how your time is used will vary according to the specific course you are studying; this may be in studios, labs or classes; involve working alone, learning from peers in pairs or groups, or with external partners. Most importantly, no matter which course you enrol on, you will learn not only about your subject but also about how you learn and how to increase your knowledge base. Our courses will guide you to take increasing responsibility and ownership of your work and your learning. We do this so that you will be ready and able to take full advantage of the range of opportunities offered by the creative industries in the global economy.

Assessment Methods at UAL

Assessment always sounds austere and foreboding, but it is not. We see assessment as a very real part of learning, rather than just a means of looking back at past work and measuring achievement; we believe that assessment helps you to plan future work and develop new ideas. Your work will be assessed through projects or portfolios, with written papers or research journals, and, on some courses, examinations. You will be graded according to a set of marking criteria that relate to such things as research, subject knowledge, methodology, and your capacity to analyse and reflect on your achievements. So don’t be afraid of assessment - it is the way to progress.

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 Lime Grove site is the centre for media studies at LCF and has extensive facilities, including Mac suites, photography studios, edit suites, sound studios and other specialist areas which can be utilised if required.  

Jenny Andersson is the Acting Course Leader for this course.

Kelly Dearsley is the Programme Director for the Fashion Communication courses, which include BA Creative Direction for Fashion, BA Fashion Public Relations, and FdA Fashion Styling and Photography, and has taught at LCF since 2007. She has undertaken many freelance photographic commissions for publication, including the Guardian, Vogue Pelle, and Knitting Fashions of the 1940s (author Jane Waller, published by Crowood Press). Her work encompasses fine art photography, and she has made a number of short films which have been shown at film festivals across the world, including Leeds, Liverpool, Greece, Sweden, London, Slovakia, Croatia and Brazil. Her most recent new work ‘I’ve a Feeling We’re not in Kansas any more’ was devised and performed in Glasgow at the New Territories International Festival of Live Art in March 2011.

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 was seen on television commenting on the fashions at the Royal Wedding of Prince William to Catherine Middleton.

Future Careers and Graduate Prospects

Graduates who wish to continue their education at postgraduate level are encouraged to progress to suitable courses within the College, the University or elsewhere.

Many graduates prefer to seek employment as soon as they have completed their undergraduate studies. Graduates from this course are now working with prestigious public relations companies The Communications Store, M&M Management, Hill and Knowlton, and the creative agency Exposure.

Enterprise and Employability at UAL

We know what it takes to be successful in your chosen field. Your tutors are professionals in their own right and understand what you need to help you establish your career. Staff in our dedicated Centre for Student Enterprise and Employability Service (SEE) are specialists at supporting you onto the right career path and at helping you to build up work‐relevant skills, knowledge and experience throughout your time here. You will also benefit from our many relationships with industry, which give our students exclusive opportunities and access to networks and funding.

Artists and designers tell us they value UAL’s informed engagement with their career development concerns across a whole spectrum of activities and practice interests and our ability to offer them practical advice, guidance and opportunities across the possible pathways open to them - as entrepreneurs and employees. Staff value the resources and skills UAL makes available to help them deliver effective professional and career development through the curriculum.

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.

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.                     

Course Entry Requirements

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

‘A’ level passes at grade C or above (this course requires 240 UCAS tariff points) PLUS passes in five other GCSE subjects at grade C or above to include English

OR equivalent awards

Preferred subjects include English, a foreign language and Media Studies.

This course requires a minimum 240 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.

Applicants selected for interview will be asked to bring an example of their writing (journalistic, academic or creative) for discussion. You will be asked to leave a copy with the interviewers.

English Language Requirements

All classes are conducted in English. If English is not your first language you will be asked to provide evidence of your English language ability when you enrol.

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

Please go to:                          

http://www.arts.ac.uk/international/apply/englishlanguagerequirements/

read carefully and look at the relevant documents.

Student Selection Criteria

What We Look For

The course team seeks to recruit students who can demonstrate:

• A basic understanding of the role of public relations
• A strong interest in fashion and how it is communicated to the media
• An enthusiasm for writing and the potential to develop their writing to the professional level required in a PR practitioner
• An interest in current events, trends and the media in all its forms from newspapers to television, from glossy magazines to radio, the internet and Twitter

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.

Advice for applicants selected for interview

Applicants selected for interview will be asked to bring an example of their writing (academic or creative) and/or a creative project that they have worked on for discussion. You will be asked to leave a copy with the interviewers.

Applicants will be expected to demonstrate the following at interview: what particular strengths you can bring to the course; your leisure interests and reasons for those interests; an awareness of different media and their capacity to influence public opinion; an understanding of public relations; your future ambitions in media; a knowledge of key players in media; and an awareness of key influences in fashion today.

Home/EU Applicants

You apply online through the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) at   http://www.ucas.com 

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 WP22.

The deadline for equal consideration of your application is 15 January 2013.                        

Contact us on:

• Telephone: +44 (0)20 7514 7563 / 7582 / 7344
• Course enquiry form

International Applicants

For specific details on how to apply as an international applicant please click on the following link:

http://www.fashion.arts.ac.uk/lcf-international.htm

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: International Recruitment Office London College of Fashion 20 John Prince’s Street London W1G 0BJ.

• Telephone: +44 (0)20 7514 7656/7678/7629
• Course 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 attend the College to complete a written test, which will then be considered by the course team. If the course team wish to consider your application further, you will be invited to an interview with the course team. If you are successful at the interview stage you will be offered a place.  Applicants are not guaranteed a written test 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.

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. 

Additional Information

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.

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.