Program Goals

1. Educate students for careers in the global marketplace including buying, merchandise planning, product development, sourcing, styling, and e-commerce.
2. Develop students’ critical and creative thinking skills, communication skills, technological abilities, and quantitative and qualitative research skills.
3. Provide students with experiential learning opportunities through internships, field trips and study tours.
4. Develop students’ ability to function as ethical team members and leaders within professional, socially responsible, and culturally diverse environments.
5. Analyze sustainability and environmental impact issues as they relate to industry activities. 

Program Learning Outcomes

Core Requirement

• Industry Process: Understand functions of apparel/textile industry sectors and analyze global consumer markets to develop, evaluate and sell profitable product lines.
• Appearance and Human Behavior: Understand and apply theories and concepts regarding the interrelationships among historic, cultural, and psychological factors on the role of dress and its impact on human behavior.
• Global Interdependence: Evaluate theoretical perspectives and issues within the global marketplace in relation to ever-changing trade, political, and technological landscapes of international business frameworks.
• Aesthetics and Design Process: Use aesthetics and the design process to develop products that are marketable, sustainable and culturally appropriate.
• Ethics, Social Responsibility and Sustainability: Demonstrate an understanding of the role that ethics, social responsibility, sustainability, and environmental impact plays in the global apparel and textile complex.
• Critical and Creative Thinking: Develop the ability to apply critical thinking strategies to identify problems and apply creative solutions within the global apparel and textile complex.
• Professional Development: Demonstrate communication skills, leadership and team work appropriate to the industry.

Fashion Product Development

• Industry Process: Develop knowledge of apparel construction terminology, techniques and trends for a specific target market. 
• Industry Process: Evaluate quality and serviceability standards of ready to wear apparel.
• Aesthetics and the Design Process: Apply the design process and aesthetic principles in developing fashion products for a variety of people and markets.

Fashion Entrepreneurship/Retail Merchandising

• Industry Process: Develop retail financial strategies, analyzing micro- and macro-factors and applying financial terms and formulas.
• Industry Process: Analyze trends in the marketplace to transform products and services to meet consumer needs in the international retail environment.
• Global Interdependence: Analyze diverse political, legal, cultural and economic systems in the global market to evaluate retail markets and develop retail strategies.