A Day In The Life Of a Fashion Student: What Is Fashion School Really Like?

What is it like being a fashion student? Do you actually get to cut up garments and deconstruct fabrics? Well, yes! That and so much more! Being a student is to be a sponge – teachable and malleable. Fashion is defined as a few things. Webster’s Dictionary mentions fashion as a way of being – a behavior or manner of self. Another definition, and one that aligns best with being a fashion student, refers to a style of dress. Usually stemming from a popular trend or personal aesthetic and curation. Being a fashion student allows you to challenge your passion for fashion in ways that can help you excel both artistically and personally. To be a fashion student is to be rooted in your own creativity, but still guided by curiosity.

Imagine this: you are on the go bright and early dripped out in your Monday best. You breeze past the school’s front desk check-in, confident for the day of classes ahead. As you move through the building you brush past outfits of all sorts of colors, cuts, and styles. In the mood to set yourself up for success before your Fashion Research & Collection class, you buy a green juice at the Edicola Cafe on the 5th floor. Simultaneously, you are daydreaming about the skirt pattern you have to finish during class number two this afternoon. The makings of an up incoming fashion student funneling through fashion design classes. At Istituto Marangoni Miami you can feel the magic vibrating off the walls. It is a creative hub where fashion students get to nurture their ideas and further expand their brands. The fundamentals are rooted in Italian fashion and techniques, which help create the pillars for a strong understanding of your personal brand and the overall fashion industry. Being a fashion student shows you how fashion, art, interior design, and any other mediums you can think of mirror and flow into one another.

The curriculum at Istituto Marangoni Miami showcases Italian foundational courses and technical teachings from well-vetted educators. At IMM you get to learn under professors who have real-world fashion experiences that they bring to the classroom daily. Some of the ways that amplify students’ success are also related to Istituto Marangoni Miami’s hands-on learning approach. Positive impacts of being a fashion student learning in this environment:

• Encouragement in thinking outside of the proverbial box
• Improvement of problem-solving
• Enhancing creativity through critical thinking and real-life examples
• Assistance in integrating the fundamental teachings with tangible classes

As a current fashion design student at Istituto Marangoni Miami, I can say that a day in the life at a fashion design school is nothing short of exhilarating. Fashion design classes allow you to step into a world of deep creation. As a fashion student, you get an opportunity to work and thrive in hands-on environments, especially at Istituto Marangoni Miami. The school provides an abundant level of opportunities to volunteer, network, and intern with various fashion designers, brands, and outlets. Students are privy to having access to partake in design contests like the Silent D x Free People shoe design contest, volunteer at events like New York Fashion Week with brands during collection showcases, and assist in other fashion-related events, just to mention a few. All resources that Marangoni fashion students can use to network, build a fashion community, and simultaneously give students real-world experiences as we move through our studies. Whether posted on the elevator bulletin board or email blasted updates, a day as a fashion student starts with a chance to get your name in rooms you have yet to enter.

Still not sure if being a fashion student is for you? Think of The Devil Wears Prada, the 2006 star-studded film featuring Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, and Stanley Tucci. Anne Hathaway plays the role of Andy Sachs, an aspiring writer, who steps into the world of editorial fashion as an assistant to the editor-in-chief of ‘Runway Magazine’, Miranda Priestly, played by Meryl Streep. Early on in the film, there is a scene where Andy, as naive as she was, scoffed at belts that the team of designers and Ms. Priestly were deciding over. Miranda asks Andy if something was humoring her. Andy follows up by saying, “No. No, no, it just- both of those belts look exactly the same to me. You know, I’m still learning about this stuff.” Miranda Priestly, whose character might be loosely based on Anna Wintour, swiftly and proficiently gives her assistant a lesson on the high fashion industry to the commercial fashion industry pipeline all while using Andy’s cerulean knit sweater as an example. Running through everything from the color, to the designer, the year, the color reference, to styling, and all the way down to the decision of Andy’s garment selection via her department store shopping process. If that scene moved you in any way, you should consider fashion school. If you’ve never seen the film, this is your sign.

A day at Istituto Marangoni Miami is simply not enough to understand the magic that radiates through the building. A day in the life as a fashion student involves hands-on technical projects, research, and an in-depth understanding of how best to shape the ideas for your own brand. Never had seen yourself as a brand owner? That’s ok! Istituto Marangoni encapsulates various ways that you can hone in your creativity and design the future that’s right for you.