Best Fashion Schools in Canada: For checking out this post, we assume that you’ve always loved fashion, but now you want to turn that passion into an education and career in Canada.
There is actually a growth in demand for fashion designers in Canada, according to Job Bank, the job opportunity for fashion designers and other similar creatives are expected to increase to 9,200 from 2019-2028.
This means more employment opportunities are opening up even for international students who wish to study in Canada.
So if you are looking for the best Canadian fashion schools, you’re in the right place! We’ve compiled this list as determined by student reviews and degree program popularity.
Read below to find the one that best suits your interests and needs.
Why Study For A Fashion Degree in Canada?
As we have previously explained, studying for a fashion degree in Canada will help you develop creative and technical skills such as creative design, marketing, apparel production, etc.
Another reason most students choose Canada as their study destination is that the country has been ranked as one of the safest places in the world, with a very good economy, and a high standard of living.
And as a fashion designer in Canada, you can make a decent income, the average base salary of a fashion designer in Canada according to Payscale is nearly CAD 60,000 and can range from CAD 38,000 to CAD 82,000.
What is the job outlook for a Fashion designer in Canada?
Here is a table showing the salary range of fashion designers in Canada, according to Payscale;
| Job Profile | Salary Range |
| Design | C$55,846 |
| Adobe Illustrator | C$57,094 |
| Product Development | C$60,420 |
| Technical Garment Knowledge | C$54,045 |
| Adobe Photoshop | C$55,339 |
This also shows that the education needed to become a profitable fashion designer in Canada is a university degree in fine arts or visual arts.
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Best Fashion Schools in Canada to get a degree| Latest Rankings
1. George Brown College, Toronto.
George Brown College is a leading college in Toronto for Fashion studies in Canada, ranked by Fashionista, and offers a Diploma in Fashion Techniques and Design.
George Brown College offers a two-year (4 semesters) diploma program that prepares students for careers in garment manufacturing design rooms and virtually the entire spectrum of fashion design and fashion business education.
One of the reasons that most students decide to get a fashion degree from George Brown College is because the school implements the use of industrial machines and students can learn the essentials of technical illustration, pattern making, pattern grading, and clothing construction.
So students can get digital training and also a hands-on learning experience to enter skilled employment.
Getting into George Brown College is not very difficult, students are required to have a minimum of 2.7GPA and the domestic tuition fee is $4,195.00 CAD.
2. Toronto Metropolitan University School of Fashion, Toronto.
Toronto Metropolitan University formerly known as Ryerson University is one of the best Canadian fashion schools offering highly competitive programs that lead to a Diploma in Fashion Techniques and Design.
Toronto Metropolitan University’s acceptance rate for fashion students is very low at 16% for fashion design and 14% for fashion communication programs.
The school offers courses with optional concentrations in Fashion Communication, Fashion Design, Fashion Studies, Design Leadership, or Textiles and Material for undergraduates and graduates.
The undergraduate students are expected to complete 400 hours of fashion industry internships between the second and final years of study, and third-year students can apply for international exchange programs.
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3. Humber College, Toronto.
Humber College is also one of the most prestigious fashion schools in Canada that offers programs leading to a Fashion Management Degree, Fashion Arts and Business Diploma, and a Fashion Management Graduate certificate in Ontario.
For students interested in pursuing a fashion management degree, you should know that it is an 8-semester honors degree program that will prepare you for the business side of fashion and management.
You will be groomed in subjects like:
- Organizational behavior
- Law
- Economics
- Finance and Accounting
- Marketing, and
- Operations management.
For students interested in the Fashion Arts and Business Diploma, it might interest you to know that it is a 4-semester diploma program and you will learn retail operations from both domestic and international perspectives.
You will be groomed in subjects like:
- Marketing
- Store planning and merchandising
- Brand management
- Social media
- Event planning, and
- Retail buying.
And for students interested in the Fashion Management Graduate certificate, the program takes 3 semesters to complete and you will be issued a graduate certificate program.
Here are some of the courses you will be groomed in;
- New product development and branding
- Fashion buying and retailing
- Multi-channel commerce
- International marketing and product management, and
- Entrepreneurship.
For more information, you can visit the school’s official website.
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4. Fanshawe College, London, Ontario.
Fanshawe College is next on the list of the top Canadian fashion schools, they offer a three-year advanced diploma program in fashion giving students professional training.
Students will be groomed in all the aspects of fashion marketing and management to give the student a full education within the fashion industry.
So if you are interested in studying fashion and making a career of it, then the Fashion Design program at Fanshawe College will help design your future and can give you a head start in the career you’re looking for.
At the end of your program here, you must have developed creative design skills, and skills in visual communication, business marketing, and apparel production technologies.
Another reason most students choose the fashion program at Fanshawe College is that they learn practical skills like fashion illustration, computer-aided design, pattern-making and draping, and garment construction.
Here is a breakdown of the fashion courses at Fanshawe College;
- Pattern Making
- Fashion Drawing & Theory
- Sample Room Production
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5. Sheridan College, Oakville.
As an upcoming fashion designer in Canada, Sheridan College offers an 8-semester program from its Faculty of animation, Arts & Design that incorporates a full range of textile processes and techniques.
The program will train students how to be creative with textiles and the program will lead to an Honours Baccalaureate Degree.
Sheridan College also offers a two-year diploma program in visual merchandising that equips fashion enthusiasts with skills in communication, leadership, and visual merchandising.
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6. LaSalle College, Vancouver.
LaSalle College in Vancouver is one of the fashion schools in Canada offering five DEC fashion programs, they include Fashion Design, Fashion Marketing, and Fashion Design for Costumes for Cinema and Television.
The school also offers nine AEC programs including Technical Clothing design, Interior Design, and Fashion Styling. They also offer three DEP programs including Hairdressing, Aesthetic, and Computer Graphics.
The difference between the AEC and DEC programs is that the AEC programs do not have general education courses like French, English, or Philosophy and they are generally more flexible than the DEC or DEP programs.
Students studying fashion at Lasalle College should know that the programs lead to a Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design, and 3 fashion diploma programs, and there are also three online programs to choose from.
7. Kwantlen Polytechnic University, Surrey, British Columbia.
Kwantlen Polytechnic University is one of the top Canadian universities offering an internationally recognized fashion and technology bachelor’s program that helps students get design skills and the business acumen needed to compete in the global fashion industry.
The degree program takes four years to complete and after graduation, most of the school’s alumni are placed in innovative and leading positions.
Artists and fashion lovers can take advantage of Kwantlen Polytechnic University’s two-year diploma program in Fashion Marketing, these programs are taken at the Wilson School of Design.
And this program equips students with practical skills in business, fashion, communication, and marketing.
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8. OCAD University, Toronto.
Fashion lovers can take the Material Art & Design program here, from this program they can learn how to create jewelry, textiles, and ceramics as professional studio artists or designers.
These programs lead to a Bachelor of Design and a Bachelor of Fine Arts, students can select from focusing on textiles or jewelry/metalsmithing.
Those that focus on textiles can go to create woven and experimental textiles for sculpture, clothing, and surface design, while those that focus on jewelry can further in producing fine jewelry and sculptures with metals and other materials.
After four years of completing the program at OCAD University, the student will earn either a Bachelor of Design (BDes) or a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree.
9. The Academy of Fashion Design, Saskatoon.
The next on the list of the best fashion schools in Canada is the Academy of Fashion Design which has been operational since 1997 and is located in Saskatoon.
Students are taught the fundamentals of garment construction, Pattern Making, Textiles, Illustration, Design Principles, and Business Skills for the Fashion Industry.
The Academy of Fashion Design offers a certificate of fashion design, and a diploma and also trains students in indigenous sewing.
For students who wish to obtain a certificate in fashion design from the Academy of Fashion Design, the program will emphasize historical studies, modern fashion trends, and design.
And as for those going for a diploma in fashion design, after you have completed the certificate program, you can take up the 8-month diploma program that should prepare you to produce custom apparel for select clients.
Finally, for students who are interested in Indigenous Cultural Sewing, this program will focus majorly on the diverse traditional clothing of First Nations people.
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10. Coco Fashion Design Institute, Toronto.
Coco Fashion Design Institute is another top Canadian private college that is located in Toronto and offers 1-year programs to fashion enthusiasts interested in designing and creating clothes.
The programs here lead to a fashion design diploma and a graduate certificate, here are some of the fashion programs offered by Coco Fashion Design Institute;
- Patternmaking and Garment Construction Certificate
- Diploma course in Makeup Artistry and
- Diploma in Pattern Development for Fashion Design
As for the tuition fees, the Garment Construction certificate program costs $4,000 CAD to obtain while the diploma in Pattern Development costs $4,500 to obtain and the Makeup Artistry course costs $975.
Other Canadian fashion Schools include;
- Concordia University, Montreal – Design (BFA)
- Georgian College, Barrie, Canada – Honours Bachelor of Interior Design with Co-op
- Richard Robinson Fashion Design Academy
- Cambrian College, Greater Sudbury – Diploma in Design and Visual Arts (ADSP)
- Ecole Holt Couture; School of Sewing and Design
- Seneca College
- University of Alberta Fashion
- Vancouver Institute of Media Arts – Diploma in Game Art & Design
- Redeemer University College – BA in Art and Design
- Olds College Fashion
- Lakeland College, Vermilion CA, Diploma in Interior Design and Tech
- North Island College, Courtenay, Canada- Metal Jewellery Design Certificate
- York University – BDes in Design
- Conestoga College, Kitchener, Canada- Bachelor of Degree (Honours)
- Yorkville University, Fredericton, Canada – Bachelor of Interior Design
- Selkirk College, Castleger, Canada- Cerificate in Textile Studio
- Mount Royal University, Calgary, Canada- Bachelor of Applied Interior Design
Frequently Asked Questions
Where can a fashion designer work in Canada?
As a fashion designer in Canada, you can work as a designer, you can be a pattern maker, an interior designer, an industrial designer, or even work as a CAD-aided design technologist.
How can one become a fashion designer in Canada?
To become a fashion designer in Canada, it is recommended to pursue a Bachelor in Fashion design from any of the top Canadian fashion schools listed in this article, with that degree you can take advantage of the growing fashion design opportunities in the country.
Conclusion
We hope this article helps you make the right decision for the fashion schools that can start kickstart your career.
These are the most recommended fashion schools in Canada, you can visit the schools to get started.
References:
- Fashion Design Career Outlook in Canada: https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/marketreport/outlook-occupation/5785/ca
- Bachelor in Fashion Design: https://studyabroad.shiksha.com/canada/bachelors-in-fashion-design-courses-sl
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