Liza Betts - MA History and Culture of Fashion
I started my MA in October 2007 and chose to study part time rather than full time due to work commitments. At that time I was still working in the Costume Department at the BBC. Most of my costume work revolved around the use of 'contemporary' clothing used as costume and this is a subject area that informed much of my work throughout the MA. I therefore already had a very good idea of the direction I wanted my studies to go in and this was definitely a help.
The MA I chose was History and Culture of Fashion but I sat in on many of the MA Fashion and Film lectures too as it was also suited to my area of interest. It felt as though I was straddling two courses in a way!
The course allowed me to consolidate and theorise existing knowledge and gave me a new space to reflect on the process of costume design and my knowledge and experiences of that process. It confirmed my suspicions and helped illustrate the gap in scholarship that exists around this subject. I've loved clothing for as long as I remember and managed to turn my passion into a successful career. The MA vindicated this passion and has increased my hunger - hence my intention to continue on to a research degree. I've been accepted on the programme at LCF and am due to start in the autumn.