Top 8 Fashion Schools In South Africa: Fees & Details 2024

There are many fashion schools in South Africa but which ones are considered as the best? This blog post presents the top 8 fashion schools in South Africa where you can gain professional fashion and design skills to kick start a successful career in the industry.

The fashion industry is one of the biggest and most competitive sectors as more people are getting into the space. To set yourself aside from the competition and gain recognition for your work in the industry, you have to attend a renowned fashion school where you can learn directly, as well as work directly with equally renowned industry professors.

This way, you get to develop your creative potential to the fullest, work harder, and gain access to top-notch facilities and resources where you can gain hands-on skills to facilitate your successful entry into the field. Graduating from a prestigious fashion school will automatically give you a name in the industry and put you many steps ahead of those who didn’t graduate from a recognized fashion school.

These and many more are reasons why you should seek the best fashion school to attend if you want to kick start a career in the industry. To this effect, we at Study Abroad Nations have gathered authentic resources to bring you this list of the top best fashion schools in South Africa where you can go and gain skills and resources that will help put you ahead of the competition in the fashion industry.

Of course, we’ve provided other helpful resources on fashion schools from other parts of the world like the fashion schools in London and fashion schools in Germany. Since fashion and design is a discipline of art, you can study them at one of the art colleges you may prefer. With the recommendations I have provided, you can use them to put together a list of where you’d like to study fashion and compare and contrast till you find a suitable one for you.

Next, we will see if South Africa is a good place to study fashion but before we get into that there are other articles we have written that you can find interesting like the best trade school jobs for those who do not want to attend college. If you are interested in nursing, you can get a nursing degree faster whether online or on-campus, it suits everyone regardless of location.

Is South Africa A Good Place To Study Fashion?

South Africa is a country filled with diverse cultures and this is dominant in the fashion style. If you are looking for a place to study fashion where you can easily get inspired simply by walking the street, it is South Africa. During the festivals, you can find hundreds of different creative attires that you can draw inspiration from and enhance your creativity.

Also, some of the most popular fashion brands in Africa such as SELFI, Thalia Strates, Kilentar, Stitch & Steel, etc. are from South Africa. These fashion brands also connect with some of the top fashion schools in the country to train exceptional students and recruit them into their industry and also offer them a platform to grow.

As a student at one of the top fashion schools in South Africa, you also get an opportunity to meet some of the top designers in the country like David Tlale, Duro Olowu, Linda Gale, Liya Kebede, Luduma Ngxokolo, and many more.

How Much Is Fashion School In South Africa?

The cost of fashion and design schools in South Africa varies by school and student residency status. There are institutions focused on only fashion design and then there are universities offering degrees in fashion and design, and they all have different tuition.

The tuition also varies by program type such as certificate, diploma, bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, and Ph.D. degrees. All these are factors to consider to know the cost of fashion schools in South Africa.

Anyways, I have provided the cost of each of the fashion schools in South Africa further below but since they are subject to change, it is best to contact the admissions office or check the website of your preferred fashion school to know their actual cost.

How To Get Into Fashion Schools In South Africa

Gaining entry into a fashion school is highly competitive whether in South Africa or anywhere else in the world but the guidelines below will help make the process easy and seamless for you.

· Completed Secondary Education

You must have completed your secondary education and take subjects related to the fashion field, your teacher or parent should be able to help you out with this. You should also be part of a club in your school, especially one that has to do with design and creativity like a theater or acting club where you are part of the costume team.

This will give you a primary or background experience in fashion designing and can boost your chances of getting accepted into one of the fashion design schools in South Africa. And it also puts you ahead a few steps compared to those who do not have this necessary experience.

· Meet Entry Requirements

This is a general thing for every institution whether it is an online college or law school, there are usually requirements set in place by the admissions board for applicants to meet. Through these requirements, you will be evaluated and given a response. And requirements usually vary between fashion schools and universities offering fashion and design programs in Australia.

But a general requirement between both is that applicants must submit recommendation letters, have some experience in the fashion industry, and submit a portfolio of their work. International applicants may be required to take English language proficiency tests and submit scores.

· Be In Contact With Your Host Institution

This is one of the many things that prospective students never do. Whichever fashion school in South Africa you will be applying for, the first thing you need to do is be in contact with the admissions officer.

This way, you can get firsthand information on things like full requirements, tuition and other fees, financial packages like scholarships, the admission application process, and deadlines.

Although these details can be found on other resources like blogs the chances of them being incorrect or outdated are high so, contacting your host institution grants your fresh details on anything you may need to facilitate your admission into that fashion school.

How Long Is Fashion School In South Africa?

The duration of fashion and design institutes in South Africa is three years but at universities, it can take up to 4 years to get a bachelor’s degree while diplomas and certifications typically take a few months.

Best Fashion Schools In South Africa

The following according to resources from the World Wide Web are the top best fashion schools in South Africa where you can get groomed to become a successful fashion designer or business person in the industry.

Xela College of Design
Villioti Fashion Institute
UberGlam School of Fashion Design
FEDISA Fashion School
Design Academy of Fashion (DAF)
The Design School Southern Africa (DSSA)
Elizabeth Galloway Academy of Fashion Design
North West School of Design (NWSD)

1. Xela College of Design

Xela College of Design is a young fashion college in South Africa established in 2008 and takes pride in being the only fully accredited fashion college in Mbombela, SA. Xela is completely fashion-focused and offers a 2-year, full-time Fashion Design qualification. All courses are accredited by the FP&M Seta and CATHSETA.

Application to Xela College of Design is easy both for domestic and international students and for the requirements, you simply need to have a certified copy of your South African ID or foreign passport, a copy of at least Grade 10, and an application form to enroll. The tuition fee is R28,900 per year. All students are required to have their sewing machine.

2. Villioti Fashion Institute

Villioti Fashion Institute is an accredited tertiary education institute founded by the renowned Spero Villioti who has been in the fashion industry for over 30 years. Another reason this school is held in high esteem is due to its strong affiliations with the London College of Fashion and Parsons New York, FIT. Its international affiliations serve as a stepping stone for her students in South Africa as it exposes them to a vast network within the fashion industry.

The programmes offered at Villioti are Bachelor in Fashion, Diploma in Fashion, and Higher Certificate in Fashion all of which are accredited by the Higher Education Quality Committee (HEQC) of the Council of Higher Education (CHE). Other online and short courses are also offered.

3. UberGlam School of Fashion Design

I had to put UberGlam on this list because of its flexible program offering for all kinds of people. Whether you are working and want to dive into the fashion field or are already in the field and want to enhance your skill, this is the place for you. The school offers full-time and part-time courses in sewing and patternmaking for all types of wear.

Another reason you may want to pick this school is how it completely concentrates on teaching you the skill of fashion and design. There are no exams or overdue projects that will distract you from your main purpose. If you are above the age of 10, you are welcome to pursue excellent fashion and designing skill at UberGlam, these are what makes it the best for us.

4. FEDISA Fashion School

What specific role do you want to pursue in the fashion industry? A fashion buyer or a designer maybe? Oh, maybe a stylist? Whatever it may be, as long as it concerns this fashion sector you can achieve it at FEDISA. The institution takes pride in being a place where you can make your dreams come true through one of the programmes offered.

The programmes offered are Diploma in Retail, BA in Fashion Retail, BA in Fashion, and BA Honours in Fashion. FEDISA has campuses in Cape Town and Sandton where you can apply for the available courses. Fees will be made available when you begin the application process.

5. Design Academy of Fashion (DAF)

Design Academy of Fashion is one of the top fashion schools in South Africa and here’s why. Firstly, this is the only fashion school in Africa to be featured in the CEO World magazine “Top 100 Fashion Schools in the World”. Secondly, it is the only fashion school in South Africa to partake in the GUCCI Fellowship Design Program.

The academy offers a 3-year Diploma in Fashion, a 5-month course in Foundation in Fashion, and a wide range of Fashion Short Courses which consists of fashion design & illustration, garment construction, and fashion styling. The tuition for the Diploma is R78,200 per year, see a further breakdown of all the fees by clicking here.

6. The Design School Southern Africa (DSSA)

DSSA was founded in 1990 and has since been operating as one of the leading fashion and design schools in SA. To reach as many people as possible and train prospective fashion designers to enter the industry, DSSA has campuses in Johannesburg, Pretoria, and Durban. The institute offers a BA in Fashion Design and specializes in dressmaking and other short courses.

DSSA is not your typical fashion school as it also integrates design courses into its curriculum and trains its students in graphics and interior design so that they can be a step ahead in the industry and also be recognized as designers.

7. Elizabeth Galloway Academy of Fashion Design

Elizabeth Galloway Academy of Fashion Design is one of the top fashion academies in South Africa with state-of-the-art facilities equipped with specialized machinery, high-tech computers, a media center, and IT infrastructure specifically designed to take fashion and design education to the next level.

Another perk is the flexible program offering, there are part-time fashion courses, a Diploma in Fashion Design, a Degree in Fashion Design, Advanced Diploma in Fashion, and Adult Learner Programme. You can check for more details on each of these programs on their website to learn more about them and go for the one that suits you best.

8. North West School of Design (NWSD)

The North West School of Design is a prestigious fashion school in South Africa founded by the award-winning and globally recognized fashion entrepreneur Marlene Oosthuizen who has spent more than 22 years training and educating international and South Africa’s top designers and fashion professionals.

At NWSD, you can find full-time courses, short-skill courses, online classes, and off-site training. The specialization here is fashion design, sewing, fashion journalism, fashion marketing, fashion buying, fashion communication, and photography. This may be the last school on this list but it is not the least.

This wraps up the list of best fashion schools in South Africa and their details. Which ones catch your interest more and which will you be applying for?

Fashion Schools In South Africa – FAQs

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