Studying fashion today in Chile: options and issues to consider.

Is a degree necessary to work in fashion? Gabrielle Chanel never entered higher education, her sewing notions were acquired in the orphanage where she spent her childhood. Karl Lagerfeld, his follower in charge of the brand, did not learn the trade in the classroom either, his thing was to learn by doing and directly from the Balmain master, of whom he was an assistant and apprentice. Miuccia Prada is a political scientist by profession. The three share the status of the most prominent costume designers of the 20th century and have been in charge of fashion empires whose influence extends globally. Locally, Paulo Méndez , one of the best talents in Chilean costume design, never finished his career as a designer. 

It seems that this question is answered quickly and negatively after that initial paragraph, but the truth is that it is a question with an open answer. The Chilean labor market continues to be conservative and job advertisements normally ask for a degree in order to enter the application. And in the offers that do not require it, the opportunities that an applicant with a title has are notably better than one without a card, in a context where recruiters often do not have the opportunity to learn about the applicant's abilities, beyond what they read in his CV. From this initial question, several other questions arise for those who are analyzing their future work and university, such as what to look for when choosing, where to study, or the aspects that an academic program must address. At Nashion It, we propose to help you with this article that analyzes the different aspects of an educational system, which, like Chilean fashion, is in a constant process of maturation and search. 

The first time I was involved in any academic activity related to fashion was at the now-defunct Universidad del Pacífico, for a long time a redoubt for those who wanted to study costume design in Santiago. A professor from the field of marketing invited me to give a class on fashion communication to the students of the career. At that time, I was a content editor and public relations officer for VisteLaCalle and my experience working in the area seemed relevant to the professor of the field. The invitation began to be repeated frequently and in that process I realized one of the shortcomings that the fashion schools of that time had and that unfortunately a minority still have to this day: a disconnection between the academy and contingent fashion work. The students complained about the little connection of their schools with what was happening in local fashion, about the few bridges between theory and practice and about their lack of immersion in an industry that thrives on doing, on novelty and on effective networking. That is a fundamental first question when choosing where to study fashion, whatever the specific career that will be chosen. The place where you complete your fashion studies has to be an institution linked to the medium or industry where you want to find a job. Without these ties, which can take the form of research activities, periodic activations, an educational model that focuses on practice, and teachers who are relevantly linked to the environment, the learning process will be dry, slow, and your career path will be complicated.

We can learn more lessons from another defunct costume design school. What are mistakes for but to learn from them, right? The School of Costume Design at the University of the Americas stood out as soon as it opened. The educational project placed a strong emphasis on creativity and linking its students with the environment. It was the antithesis of what had been seen and done in fashion education. The UDLA locker room school was explosive. The activities of the school began to acquire notoriety and the most outstanding of its students to win international competitions, to create designs of boundless creativity and to sound like the promises of local design. Despite the fact that it became one of its most visible schools, UDLA decided to close the race. Several times I was invited to evaluate the students in different academic activities and I noticed that despite the fact that several of them had creativity and the desire to give away, there was a shortcoming in the school that did not allow them to take off as expected: business training. . Another issue to take into account when choosing where to study. In an extremely competitive job market, where recent graduates must be able to do several things, business training is a real handicap that can decide whether to apply for a job. For a costume designer, it is necessary to have the technical knowledge of sewing, but also knowledge of fashion marketing, communications and business. In the end, they are absolutely necessary tools for anyone who wants to start and set up their own brand. Stay away from any institution that does not give you tools in this regard, and opt for those that emphasize the development of these skills. 

From missing projects, we move on to one in full development and that seems promising. A few years ago, I was invited to be a jury for an activation between the Design Faculty of the Universidad del Desarrollo and a Belgian bag brand with a presence in Chile. I was surprised that students from the graphic design major, an eminently 2D design, managed so well reinventing bags, bananas and backpacks. I was very impressed with the quality of the work and it was very difficult to choose a winner. A couple of years ago, this Faculty decided to open its mention in Fashion and Management , in a program that requires all design students to take a trunk of common branches, before entering the specialization. In charge of this school and leading the project is the designer Natalia Yañez. “The main particularity of our program is that it is based on a model of competency-based learning, which implies acquiring knowledge and developing skills based on experience-based learning , which is why students from the first year of the degree participate in creative challenges with relevant actors from the local, Latin American and European industry ”, the Director of this program told Nashion It. 

Despite the fact that it does not yet have graduates who can attest to and demonstrate the quality of the training obtained, the program looks solid, combining practice with theory and with a lukewarm, but at least present, business training. 

The fever of short courses

There was a time when they were all the rage. It was the opportunity for those who wanted to get involved in fashion, complement their curricular skills or simply network. After a first, second, and even a third wave of courses of this type, where students learned about a diverse range of issues, the offer gradually decanted until consolidating in this market those who took up the demand for studying fashion responsibly and with a vision of long term. Serious places like Fotodesign or the Brown School continue with a wide range of courses to complement knowledge. Several of the other short course providers have simply disappeared or reinvented themselves. In truth, that level of offer was not sustainable, nor were the programs that often had the objective of being a quick source of income for schools, rather than a course that effectively and honestly contributed to the training of students. A couple of these schools came to be reported to Sernac for the deficiencies of their services.

In the path of those who continue and successfully is Fotodesign, a school specialized in fashion photography, which started in Buenos Aires and which today has offices in Colombia, Chile and Spain. I was Director of this school in Chile for two years and I have nothing but good references. The truth is, its graduates speak for themselves. The replacement generation of fashion photography in Chile has been formed in this place. For Verónica Jara, current Director of this international franchise, success is given by the personalized nature of the courses. “This allows us to accompany each student in their educational and creative process. In addition to wanting to transfer to them all the information they need to be photographers, we are very interested in being able to help them find their style of photography, discover and/or create their own label. This is something that can be innate or that can also require years of work and research, sometimes it is not easy to achieve, and we like to have that mission, to be able to collaborate in the search”. Asked why her alumni stand out in the local photography market, Verónica answered without hesitation: "At Fotodesign we stand out for choosing professionals who are currently inserted in the market as teachers, publishing in the media, producing material and telling them from his experience how the industry of photography, advertising and fashion works in Chile. At the same time, we constantly seek to innovate, looking for new artists to always offer different courses and tools that allow our students to grow professionally and develop a portfolio”.

When looking for a short course, it must be taken into account that a program of this type is to complement knowledge in a specific area, never take it as a specialization. The same thing said for long-term courses applies here: the school must have a link with the environment. 

The fashion academy faces a constant challenge, that of adjusting its programs, vision and activities to the also changing industry where they intend to insert professionals. Stay away from any institution that is slow to react, with inflexible resumes and set in stone principles. A good place to study will always focus on the student and their needs and that is essential when choosing the place where you will take your first steps in fashion.