UOM: Let's hear it from the teachers! (XII)
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Fashion
As the hectic month of global fashion weeks gears up to start once more, universities across the country have been opening up their doors for the start of a new semester, prepared to mould the budding textile and fashion designers who will lead the future of the industry. It is up to the fashion lecturers, professors and designers at these institutes to help guide these students of tomorrow on their way and ensure they are ready to enter the industry when they graduate. But what are their thoughts on the current state of affairs within fashion educational institutes, designers and the industry itself? FashionUnited took a moment to speak to Dr. Patsy Perry, lecturer in Fashion Marketing, part of the design & fashion business research group at the School of Materials, at the University of Manchester, to hear what the teachers had to say.
FashionUnited: How did you first become involved with the fashion industry?
Dr. Patsy Perry: "I grew up loving clothes. I loved reading glossy fashion magazines, I loved being able to get all dressed up in different outfits and be able to make a statement with your clothes, hair and makeup. So I thought it would be a wonderful idea to combine work with pleasure and build a career within the fashion sector. When I first went to university I went to study Law, but I quickly realised that my heart was not in it and changed degree programme to fashion marketing instead and loved it. I think I was also very much drawn to the global nature of the industry and the opportunity to travel of course and learn about different countries and cultures. I just thought it would be great to work within a sector I was very passionate about."
How did you end up in a teaching role at the University of Manchester?
"When I graduated from my fashion marketing degree, I went to find a job as a graduate in market research, in London. But then after a couple of years I decided to return to academia because I had always thought about doing a PhD one day. So I decided to come back to Manchester, where I earned my fashion marketing degree, because they specialise in textiles design and fashion business. So I did my PhD, during which I focused on the sweatshop problem in the fashion industry and researched the corporate/social responsibility in fashion supply chains. Then after I completed my PhD, the next step was to become an academic, so I found a teaching role up at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, where I taught fashion and retail marketing for four year and then came back to Manchester."
"I had an amazing time teaching at Edinburgh, but ultimately it was a bit far from home, family and friends and a little too cold. And Manchester has such a great University, there is just so much going on in the field of textiles and fashion and I wanted to become part of a bigger institutes with more opportunities."
What can you tell us about your role as a Lecturer and Researcher at Manchester University
"As a lecturer here at the University of Manchester, we are part of the Russell Group of universities, which also focuses on leading academic research, so my role as a lecturer is partly teaching as well as partly research that I feel very lucky to have. It’s great to have so much variety and be able to teach and share your knowledge with students as well as be able to conduct research in interesting areas within the fashion industry. I enjoy the variety and it is great working with the next generation of students who will be moving on to join the fashion industry and helping them to develop a question and critical mind across the various parts of fashion we teach here. But I equally enjoy working on research projects and finding about new trends and developments in technology, supply management and such and writing papers, which is also part of our research activities. It is nice to disseminating your knowledge by verbal means, such as teaching as well as writing for different audiences, such as students or academic journals or writing different articles or engaging with the press and helping a journalist write an article about retail or fashion marketing.
What aspect of your role at the UOM do you enjoy the most and why?
”Probably one of the best bits is the availability to be able to go traveling abroad. For example for an academic conference we may go abroad to different global cities. Last month I returned from a trip in China, where I was teaching some students at one of our partner institutes for a week. I was teaching a group of students who were studying fashion design, so that was a fantastic opportunity for me to somewhere completely new and different I had never been before. And then this month we are taking a group of our students on a field trip to New York City, where we have arranged to have a number of ‘fashion visits’ as well.”
How do you feel about today's fashion educational institutions and their current course offering in comparison to the courses UOM offers?
”I think that it is fantastic to see so many different institutes around the world offering so many different fashion courses. I think the variety is also great for students who want to specialize in one area of the industry, from fashion design, to fashion journalism to fashion business, so there really is something for everyone. I can also see that across the institutions there are various different levels of fashion teaching as well. So for example, here at Manchester Fashion Business sits within the school of science, which results in a different approach to teaching than perhaps what a student would have if they were studying fashion within a school of art or management. So I think the diversity of the offering is wonderful.”
“Here at Manchester University, we use our heritage in science and engineering to provide students with a thorough grounding in the science and technology behind the fashion industry, which they may not have had if they were studying at a school of art or school of management, and that I think is one of our unique selling points. Therefore as a result our degrees are a Bachelors of Science, rather than Art, which is unique in the UK, which makes our students very attractive to potential fashion sector employers when they graduate. Of course Manchester is part of the Russell Group of Universities, so students also benefit from being in an environment where world-class research is being conducted.”
Do you think it is important for fashion schools to be aware of changing trends within the industry and adapt their courses accordingly?
”Absolutely. Of course, fashion is a very dynamic industry and there are lots of exciting developments going on in various areas with the development of digital technology, for example the use of RFID tags in the supply chain to the technological development of mobile apps for retailing. It really is important for fashion schools ensure they are on the cusp of the trends and understand the impact they will have on the industry. We are seeing globalisation of retailing as well as manufacturing activities, and it’s crucial for students who will be going into the industry, to be aware of the current as well as predicted future trends across the business.”
“We have recently rebranded our undergraduate programmes last year to ensure they all have the word ‘fashion’ in the course title, where as in previously it would have been textiles. It is a small difference, but I think nowadays people do not use the term textile much and when potential students are searching for a course they tend to use the word fashion rather than textile. We also revisited the content on our courses to make sure that it is all up to date, but it really depends on the subjects taught. For example, one subject I teach is ecommerce and social media, so every year I have to revisit the content because it is such a rapidly changing sector. What you may have taught last year in regards to fashion social media may have changed this year, so it important to be up to date. You cannot teach the same thing year in and year out, especially in certain areas more than others.”
How important do you think it is for individuals to create links and contacts within the fashion industry whilst earning a degree or teaching at an educational institution?
”I think that it is very important for students, especially if they wish to enter the industry upon graduation rather than pursue a career in academia. In order to build a network, some of our students opt to do a placement year in their third year, and then during that time they gain invaluable experience, so much so that many of them then go on to get an offer of a graduate job with the company once they have graduated. So for those students so it eases the pressure of having to apply for jobs during the final year. The number of graduates is increasing year on year and the majority of graduates in the UK leave with a 2:1 degree, so it’s essential to add something else to your CV to make you stand out from all the other people who also have a good degree. It really is not enough anymore to just have a good degree. And I think that work experiences and placements offer students invaluable experiences which teaches them to think on their feet, use their initiative, justify their ideas and work with other people across the business at different levels, all of which makes students more attractive to employers when they graduate.”
“But there are also other ways of networking, for example students could attend local events. In Manchester, we have Manchester Fashion Network that organises networking events and seminars which are open to students as well as industry practitioners. We also have the Manchester Digital, which organises similar events around ecommerce and digital marketing. Students can attend these events and learn about practice, as well as having the opportunity to connect with people from companies. Sometimes companies come to us asking to run small student projects, which can again be a great opportunity for students to gain experience and enhancing their CV in a shorter time period than doing a placement year. So there are lots of different way students can network, without having to leave their local area or investing a lot of time and effort.”
“For lecturers, I feel it is just as important to network with industry in this sector because our discipline is so connected to industry practice, so to really understand what the current trends and challenges are it is vital. Of course there is a wealth of online information that can be used, such as social media, white papers, business blogs and so on, but I find it’s also valuable to be able to speak directly with people as well whenever possible.”
And lastly, what is the one main piece of advice you would give a student graduating from Manchester and embarking on the start of their career within the industry?
”I would say just say go ahead and enjoy it! There are so many opportunities both at home and abroad for embarking on a career in this industry, and so many different routes, from large corporations, to starting your own brand, to working for a start-up, to working for businesses that service the big retailers and brands, for example ecommerce agencies and photographers, there are constantly new little sector springing up and new developments. Of course, graduate schemes with large corporations are great, but there are lots of other options for building a career in this sector which could be equally fulfilling and exciting. So use, I would say just your imagination when looking for that first entry role and go and enjoy it!”