When it comes to charting your career path in fashion, Fashionista is here to help. Find more fashion school resources here and our full Fashion School Directory here.
Fashion merchandisers are the behind-the-scenes stars strategizing how to best present a brand’s creations to its customer base in retail spaces and beyond. It’s a multifaceted career path filled with crafting store displays, staying on top of all the latest trends, planning and purchasing merchandise and more.
Below, we’ve compiled a list of schools in the U.S. and abroad currently offering degrees in fashion merchandising.
United States
Academy of Art University
Location: San Francisco, CA
Degrees offered: AA, BFA, MA in Fashion Merchandising; MFA in Fashion Merchandising & Management
Examples of courses: Fashion Marketing, Buying Fundamentals, Fashion Manufacturing, Retailing and Management, Visual Communication Tools
Other details to note: remote learning available
Appalachian State University
Location: Boone, NC
Degrees offered: BS in Apparel Design and Merchandising
Examples of courses: Apparel and Consumer Behavior, Apparel Design Studio, Survey of Fashion Merchandising, Fashion Buying and Retail Math
Other details to note: also available as a minor; minor in marketing required
Arizona State University FIDM
Location: Los Angeles, CA or Phoenix, AZ
Degrees offered: BA in Fashion Merchandising
Examples of courses: Merchandising Essentials, Professional Practices for Fashion, Product Development Fundamentals, Fashion Visual Merchandising
Other details to note: remote learning available
Baylor University
Location: Waco, TX
Degrees offered: BS in Apparel Merchandising
Examples of courses: Retail Buying, Fashion Illustration, Visual Merchandising and Promotion, Fashion Forecasting, Digital Retailing
Other details to note: also available as a minor
Berkeley College
Location: New York, NY; Newark, NJ; Woodland Park, NJ; Woodbridge, NJ
Degrees offered: AAS and BBA in Fashion Merchandising and Management
Examples of courses: Introduction to Fashion Business, Fashion Textiles for Apparel and Home, Merchandise Planning and Buying, Interactive Fashion Communication, Financial Accounting
Other details to note: remote learning available; program offered at multiple campuses
Cal Polytechnic University, Pomona
Location: Pomona, CA
Degrees offered: BS in Apparel Merchandising and Management
Examples of courses: Fashion Retail Buying, Apparel Quality Management, Digital Design and Illustration for Fashion, Fashion Consumer Behavior, Fashion Entrepreneurship
Other details to note: can option in Apparel Design and Production, Fashion Retailing or Textiles; Fashion Merchandising available as a minor
California State University, Long Beach
Location: Long Beach, CA
Degrees offered: BA in Fashion Merchandising & Design
Examples of courses: Fashion Design and Merchandising Practicum, Fashion Forecasting, Fashion Promotion & Sales, Fashion Buying, International Fashion Retailing
Other details to note: available as a minor
California State University, Los Angeles
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Degrees offered: Undergraduate Certificate in Fashion Retailing
Examples of courses: Principles of Retailing; Retail Buying and Merchandising; Introduction to Fashion, Fiber and Materials; Principles of Marketing; Personal Selling
Other details to note: supplemental certificate, 18 total credits required
Centenary College
Location: Hackettstown, NJ
Degrees offered: BFA in Fashion
Examples of courses: Social Responsibility in the Global Fashion Industry, Visual Merchandising, Fashion Buying, Consumer Goods
Central Michigan University
Location: Mount Pleasant, MI
Degrees offered: BA, BAA, BS and MS in Fashion Merchandising and Design
Examples of courses: Visual Merchandising, Fashion Advertising and Promotion, Luxury Fashion Brand Management, Apparel Prototype and Quality Analysis, Fashion Show Production and Promotion
Other details to note: remote learning available; concentrations available within major
Drexel University
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Degrees offered: BS in Fashion Industry & Merchandising
Examples of courses: Analysis of Product, Presentation Techniques for the Fashion Industry, Retail Operations, Merchandising Planning and Buying, Visual Merchandising, Product Development and Sourcing, Merchandising Analytics
Fashion Institute of Technology
Location: New York, NY
Degrees offered: AAS, BS in Fashion Business Management
Examples of courses: Innovative Business Leadership, Fashion Analytics & Data Insights, Circular Economy for Sustainable Fashion Business, Global Merchandising, Merchandising Strategies
Iowa State University
Location: Ames, IA
Degrees offered: BS in Fashion Design and Merchandising
Examples of courses: Fashion Products and Markets; Dress, Appearance and Diversity; Retail Merchandising; Textile Science; Merchandise Planning and Buying; Omni-Channel Retailing
Other details to note: options available for Merchandising and Retail Analytics
Johnson & Wales University
Location: Providence, RI
Degrees offered: BS in Fashion Merchandising & Retailing
Examples of courses: Forecasting, Retail Math, Retail & Fashion Lab, Marketing Foundations, Strategic Planning in Merchandising
Kent State University
Location: Kent, OH
Degrees offered: BS in Fashion Merchandising
Examples of courses: Fashion Visuals, Fashion Retail Industry, Fashion Forecasting, Product Development, Fashion Apparel Analysis, Trends and Predictive Analytics in Fashion
Other details to note: remote learning available
LIM College
Location: New York, NY
Degrees offered: BBA, AOS and BPS in Fashion Merchandising; AAS in Fashion Merchandising and Management; MPS in Fashion Merchandising and Retail Management
Examples of courses: Digital Tools for Fashion Presentations, Fabric for Fashion, Merchandising Concepts and Practices, Product Development and Merchandising, Sustainability and the Future of Fashion
Other details to note: remote learning available
Long Island University
Location: Brookville, NY
Degrees offered: BS in Fashion Merchandising & Management
Examples of courses: Merchandising Principles, Luxury Branding, Business of Fashion Merchandising, Fashion Entrepreneurship, Computer Aided Design: CAD for Merchandising
Marist College
Location: Poughkeepsie, NY
Degrees offered: BS in Fashion Merchandising
Examples of courses: Fashion Trend Forecasting & Analysis; Retailing Principles and Practice; Buying, Planning and Allocation; Product Development
Other details to note: three concentrations to choose from (Business, Product Development and Fashion Promotion); available as a minor
Marymount University
Location: Arlington, VA
Degrees offered: BA in Fashion Merchandising and Marketing
Examples of courses: Consumer Behavior, Fashion in the Global Marketplace, Merchandise Planning and Analysis, Omnichannel Fashion Retailing
Mercyhurst University
Location: Erie, PA
Degrees offered: BS in Fashion Merchandising
Examples of courses: Personal Styling Analysis, Fashion Branding, Fashion Buying with Excel, Merchandise Planning & Control, Textiles for Apparel
Other details to note: available as a minor
Stevenson University
Location: Stevenson, MD
Degrees offered: BS in Fashion Merchandising
Examples of courses: Fashion and Culture, The Business of Fashion, Consumer Behavior, Fashion Product Merchandising, Merchandise Sourcing and Logistics
Other details to note: available as a minor
Syracuse University
Location: Syracuse, NY
Degrees offered: BS in Retail Management
Examples of courses: Retail Buying and Planning, Visual Merchandising and Store Planning, Electronic Retailing and Marketing, Retailing Fundamentals, Sales and Strategic Partnerships
The Ohio State University
Location: Columbus, OH
Degrees offered: BS in Fashion and Retail Studies
Examples of courses: Business of Fashion & Retailing, Professional Development, Retail Merchandising, Global Sourcing and Trade in Textile Products, Fashion & Retail Promotion
Other details to note: specialization in merchandising available; Fashion and Retail Studies minor available
Thomas Jefferson University
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Degrees offered: BS and MS in Fashion Merchandising & Management
Examples of courses: Product Development and Innovation, Merchandise Buying, Visual Merchandising, Principles of Marketing
University of Delaware
Location: Newark, DE
Degrees offered: BS in Fashion Merchandising & Management
Examples of courses: Fundamentals of Textiles, Merchandise Planning, Strategic Fashion Management, Apparel Brand Management and Marketing, Global Fashion Consumer and Retailers
University of North Texas
Location: Denton, TX
Degrees offered: BS in Fashion Merchandising
Examples of courses: Consumers in a Global Market, Trend Analysis and Forecasting, Branding and Promotion, Sustainable Strategies in Merchandising
University of South Carolina
Location: Columbia, SC
Degrees offered: BS in Fashion Merchandising and Digital Innovations: Retailing
Examples of courses: Principles of Retailing, Retail Buying, Retail Promotion, Customer Experience Management, Sustainability in Fashion and Retail
Virginia Commonwealth University
Location: Richmond, VA
Degrees offered: BA in Fashion Merchandising
Examples of courses: Technology in Fashion Merchandising, Fashion History: The Modern Era, Fashion Forecasting, Fashion Branding, Fashion Management and Leadership Development
Other details to note: available as a minor
International
Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Location: Hong Kong
Degrees offered: MA in Fashion Merchandising
Examples of courses: Apparel Performance Evaluation, Current Issues in Fashion Business, Sourcing and Logistics, Fashion Merchandising Planning & Control
Istituto Europeo di Design
Location: Florence, Italy
Degrees offered: MA in Fashion Merchandising and Buying
Examples of courses: Contemporary Fashion Culture, Market and Consumer Psychology, Product Management, International Fashion Marketing, Fashion Merchandising, Fashion Buying, Fashion Operations
Other details to note: nine-month program
Istituto Marangoni
Location: Milan, Italy
Degrees offered: MA in Fashion Merchandising and Buying
Examples of courses: Fashion Buying Management, Trend Forecasting, Finance for Fashion Buying, Digital Technologies for Fashion Buying, Product Development and Innovation, Supply Chain Management, Advanced Fashion Retailing, Research Methods
JD Institute of Fashion Technology
Location: New Delhi, India
Degrees offered: Diploma in Fashion Merchandising
Examples of courses: Merchandising Concept, Planning, Costing, Sourcing Strategies, Future of Merchandising
Other details to note: six-month program
London College of Fashion
Location: London, England
Degrees offered: BA in Fashion Buying and Merchandising; BA in Fashion Visual Merchandising and Branding
Examples of courses: Fundamentals of Responsible Buying and Merchandising, Fashion Retail Landscape, Circular Product Development, Critical Issues in Fashion Research, Fashion Cultures and Histories
Other details to note: three- to four-year program
Polimoda
Location: Florence, Italy
Degrees offered: MS in Fashion Merchandising & Buying
Examples of courses: Fashion Analysis, Fashion Buying, Fashion Retail, Fashion Merchandising, Product & Production
Other details to note: 32-week program
Raffles Design Institute, Singapore
Location: Singapore
Degrees offered: Advanced Diploma in Retail Management
Examples of courses: Buying Principles, Consumer Behavior, International Retailing, Luxury Retailing
Other details to note: 18-month program
Check out our full Fashion School Directory.
Source: Fashionista.com