Bachelor of Design (Fashion & Sustainability) and Bachelor of Applied Business (Fashion Marketing)

This double degree at Collarts combines fashion design with a business and marketing qualification. You graduate with two awards in four years: a Bachelor of Design (Fashion & Sustainability) and a Bachelor of Applied Business (Fashion Marketing). That structure matters. You spend part of your week in studios cutting, draping, sewing and sampling, and the rest working through marketing, consumer behaviour, brand strategy and retail analytics. The two halves feed each other: what you make in the studio is what you then learn to position, price and sell.

How the degree is structured

Australian bachelor degrees normally run three years full time; a double degree adds a year, which is why this one is four. Study is semester-based, with each unit of study carrying a set number of credit points. You accumulate credit points across the degree and need the required total to graduate. Expect core units in both disciplines, plus electives where you can lean further into either the design or the business side. The final year typically includes a capstone or major project where you pull together a full range of work, a collection or product line alongside the marketing plan that would take it to market. Assessment is a mix of studio work, written assignments, presentations and group projects rather than exams alone.

Sustainability and industry practice

Sustainability runs through the design stream rather than sitting off to one side. You look at materials, sourcing, waste, circular design and how garments are made and disposed of, and you apply that thinking to real briefs. Collarts is based in Melbourne, and the fashion and retail sector there is small enough that industry briefs, guest practitioners and studio critiques are part of how the course works. Work-integrated learning, placements, internships or industry projects, is common in fashion and marketing degrees, and you should confirm the exact placement requirements for this course on the official page. Marketing and fashion are not accredited professions in Australia, so there is no registration at the end; your portfolio and industry contacts do the work instead.

Who it suits

This suits someone who wants to make things but does not want to hand the business side to somebody else. If you are equally happy at a sewing machine and in a spreadsheet, or you want to run your own label one day, the double degree gives you both skill sets. It also suits students who care about how clothing is produced and want to work on changing it. International graduates may be eligible for the Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) post-study work stream, and while you hold a Student visa you can work up to 48 hours per fortnight. English proficiency is required for entry, commonly IELTS Academic 6.0–6.5 overall at undergraduate level, with TOEFL iBT, PTE Academic, Cambridge C1 Advanced and the university's own English programmes accepted as equivalents. Tuition is published on the CRICOS register under course code 108974D. Check the official page for current entry requirements, unit lists and fees.

• Fashion designer or assistant designer with a label or manufacturer
• Product developer or garment technologist
• Fashion marketer or brand coordinator
• Digital marketing and social media coordinator for retail and e-commerce brands
• Retail buyer or merchandise planner
• Visual merchandiser
• Sustainability or sourcing coordinator in apparel supply chains
• Founder of an independent label or small fashion business
• Marketing and communications roles in retail, lifestyle and consumer goods

Employers include Australian fashion labels, apparel wholesalers and manufacturers, online retailers, department stores, boutique agencies and sustainability consultancies. Some graduates go straight into their own business.