15 Best Online Bachelor’s in Fashion

Online fash­ion degree pro­grams put you on the fast track to achiev­ing all of your career goals if you love work­ing with fash­ion and design. Earn­ing a degree online gives the stu­dent an oppor­tu­ni­ty to find work with­in the indus­try while they are going to school. They can take on any type of job, gain­ing valu­able expe­ri­ence that will allow them to pur­sue a fash­ion career as a design­er, an event coor­di­na­tor, or in any oth­er capac­i­ty that is part of such a diverse and expan­sive field.

Enrolling in one of the many online fash­ion degree pro­grams is the best way to jump-start your career. If you are already employed with­in the indus­try, you will have a dis­tinct advan­tage over oth­er stu­dents in your class­es. By work­ing with­in the indus­try itself, you are gain­ing not only hands-on valu­able expe­ri­ence, but you are also able to see what you are being taught in action. For stu­dents who learn by doing, this makes learn­ing that much more fun, and the lessons are eas­i­er to remember.

Methodology: Ranking the Best Online Fashion Degree Programs

To rank the best online fash­ion degree pro­grams, Bachelor’s Degree Cen­ter edi­tors researched online and hybrid offer­ings from accred­it­ed, rep­utable insti­tu­tions across the US. Pro­grams are ranked accord­ing to prac­ti­cal fac­tors such as tuition rate, stu­dent sat­is­fac­tion, and poten­tial salary, using data from IPEDS and Niche.

1. Drexel University

Drex­el Uni­ver­si­ty has one of the best online fash­ion degrees, and majors in this pro­gram learn mer­chan­dis­ing, busi­ness insights and visu­al design as they relate to the fash­ion indus­try. This BS in design and mer­chan­dis­ing teach­es stu­dents how to plan, mar­ket an esti­mate the like­li­hood that prod­ucts and ser­vices relat­ed to fash­ion will see suc­cess. Cours­es cov­er mul­ti­ple chan­nels includ­ing inter­net and tele­vised con­tent. Grad­u­ates find jobs across the fash­ion indus­try in new prod­uct lines and well-estab­lished companies.

Locat­ed in Philadel­phia, this pri­vate Uni­ver­si­ty has near­ly 14,000 under­grad­u­ate enrollees. Appli­cants for admis­sion should put forth their best effort, as only 77% of those who apply receive the green light for admit­tance. Oth­er pop­u­lar majors include account­ing, nurs­ing and mechan­i­cal engi­neer­ing. Drex­el grad­u­ates an impres­sive 69% of students.

What We Like: Drex­el is rat­ed #48 among Best Col­leges for Design in Amer­i­ca, accord­ing to niche.com.

Degree: BS in Design & Merchandising

Drex­el Uni­ver­si­ty BS in Design & Merchandising

2. Baylor University

One of the best online fash­ion degree pro­grams can be found at Bay­lor Uni­ver­si­ty. The school has an appar­el mer­chan­dis­ing pro­gram that pro­vides expo­sure to the busi­ness side of fash­ion. Stu­dents pick up cru­cial knowl­edge regard­ing prod­uct devel­op­ment, retail­ing and pur­chas­ing. They also learned the art of mer­chan­dis­ing fash­ion. Cours­es in this pro­gram include dig­i­tal retail­ing, fash­ion illus­tra­tion, buy­ing, mer­chan­dis­ing and pro­mo­tion, and sales fore­cast­ing. Stu­dents have an oppor­tu­ni­ty to take a sum­mer intern­ship for real-world expe­ri­ence. Intern­ships are locat­ed through­out the Unit­ed States and Coun­tries in Europe.

Locat­ed in Waco, TX, this pri­vate, Chris­t­ian col­lege has 14,000 under­grads and Accepts just 39% of appli­cants. Besides fash­ion, stu­dents choose majors such as account­ing, biol­o­gy and nurs­ing. The school grad­u­ates an impres­sive 78% of students.

What We Like: Bay­lor ranks among the country’s top Chris­t­ian Colleges.

Degree: BA/ BSFCS in Appar­el Merchandising

Bay­lor Uni­ver­si­ty BA/ BSFCS in Appar­el Merchandising

3. South Dakota State University

South Dako­ta State Uni­ver­si­ty has a BS in Fash­ion Stud­ies and Retail Mer­chan­dis­ing that is among the best online fash­ion degrees. The school has a coop­er­a­tive arrange­ment with New York City’s Fash­ion Insti­tute of Tech­nol­o­gy (FIT). This allows stu­dents to spend a year study in NYC, one of the fash­ion cen­ters of the world.

South Dako­ta State is a well-respect­ed school with more than 8,000 under­grad­u­ate stu­dents. This mid­size school takes 92% of stu­dents who apply. Oth­er majors include ani­mal sci­ences, nurs­ing and biology.

What We Like: South Dako­ta State Uni­ver­si­ty is rat­ed #3 among South Dako­ta’s Best Val­ue Colleges.

Degree: BS in Fash­ion Stud­ies & Retail Merchandising

South Dako­ta State Uni­ver­si­ty BS in Fash­ion Stud­ies and Retail Merchandising

4. Stevenson University

Steven­son Uni­ver­si­ty also has one of the best online fash­ion degree pro­grams avail­able. This bach­e­lor’s in Fash­ion Mer­chan­dis­ing gives stu­dents a glob­al per­spec­tive of the indus­try. Cours­es include art, mar­ket­ing, fash­ion and busi­ness man­age­ment so that stu­dents learn all the essen­tials to work in the indus­try upon grad­u­a­tion. The pro­gram offers a unique inter­na­tion­al per­spec­tive of cul­ture, soci­ety and busi­ness. Grad­u­ates of this pro­gram go on to con­struct and exe­cute mar­ket­ing strate­gies for their employ­ers. Stu­dents mas­ter the fun­da­men­tals of con­sumer behav­ior towards fash­ion and retail merchandise.

Stephen­son is a pri­vate uni­ver­si­ty with a great rep­u­ta­tion and over 2,700 under­grad­u­ate stu­dents. Locat­ed in Mary­land, the school has a com­pet­i­tive admis­sions process and accepts only 73% of those who apply. Those lucky enough to get in, choose majors such as busi­ness, crim­i­nal jus­tice, and nurs­ing. Six out of 10 stu­dents fin­ish their degree requirements.

What We Like: Steven­son Uni­ver­si­ty is ranked #11 among Best Col­leges in Maryland.

Degree: Bach­e­lors in Fash­ion Merchandising

Steven­son Uni­ver­si­ty Bach­e­lors in Fash­ion Merchandising

5. Ashland University

Ash­land Uni­ver­si­ty has one of the best online fash­ion degree pro­grams, stu­dents grad­u­ate with a fash­ion mer­chan­dis­ing degree. The pro­gram focus­es on the dynam­ic, fast-paced world of fash­ion, as stu­dents learn about tex­tiles, the his­to­ry and evo­lu­tion of fash­ion and busi­ness ana­lyt­ics. They also mas­ter a firm grasp of the busi­ness through retail, mar­ket­ing and adver­tis­ing cours­es. Stu­dents can study in Paris or New York to receive real-world expe­ri­ence in man­age­ment and merchandising.

Locat­ed in Ash­land, OH, the school has 3,500 under­grad­u­ate stu­dents. About 68% of stu­dents who apply receive let­ters of accep­tance from the uni­ver­si­ty and majors include nurs­ing, lib­er­al arts, and edu­ca­tion. The school grad­u­ates 65% of stu­dents, which is respectable for schools of its size.

What We Like: The school ranks #35 in Ohio for Best Val­ue Colleges.

Degree: BS/BA in Fash­ion Merchandising

Ash­land Uni­ver­si­ty BS/BA in Fash­ion Merchandising

6. Long Island University

Anoth­er best online fash­ion degree, Long Island University’s BS in Fash­ion Mer­chan­dis­ing includes con­cen­tra­tions in pub­lic rela­tions, mar­ket­ing, eco­nom­ics and jour­nal­ism. Stu­dents can also choose a fash­ion mer­chan­dis­ing minor to enhance their appeal to prospec­tive employers.

Long Island Uni­ver­si­ty is locat­ed in the New York City Area. it has near­ly 5,700 under­grad­u­ate enrollees. This com­pet­i­tive uni­ver­si­ty accepts just 76% of stu­dents who apply for pop­u­lar majors such as busi­ness, phar­ma­cy, and nursing.

What We Like: 95% of stu­dents receive finan­cial aid, mak­ing this an afford­able option for those who want to have a degree from a well-respect­ed school near the heart of one of the most fash­ion­able cities in the world.

Degree: B.S. in Fash­ion Merchandising

Long Island Uni­ver­si­ty BS in Fash­ion Merchandising

7. Academy of Art University

The Acad­e­my of Art Uni­ver­si­ty has one of the best online fash­ion degree pro­grams. Grad­u­ates receive a BFA in Fash­ion Mer­chan­dis­ing. The pro­gram pro­vides an overview of fash­ion man­age­ment and mer­chan­dis­ing, and stu­dents learn mar­ketable skills such as man­ag­ing and sell­ing fash­ion items. Retail man­age­ment and sim­i­lar cours­es pre­pare stu­dents for jobs in the real world. For­mer stu­dents cur­rent­ly work in some of the most suc­cess­ful fash­ion retail­ers across the globe.

Since 1929, the Acad­e­my of Art Uni­ver­si­ty Has built a sol­id rep­u­ta­tion as one of the country’s largest pri­vate art and design schools. The school is locat­ed in San Fran­cis­co, a city rich in tech­nol­o­gy and cul­ture. A diverse pop­u­la­tion of stu­dents includes 16,000 under­grad­u­ate enrollees. Prospec­tive stu­dents who want to learn more about art and design can do so at the Acad­e­my of art. The school has a no-bar­ri­er admis­sions pol­i­cy, mean­ing that it accepts every­one who applies. With more than 30 degree pro­grams, stu­dents have wide access to high­er edu­ca­tion, no mat­ter how they did on their stan­dard­ized tests.

What We Like: The Academy’s 100% accep­tance rate gives stu­dents access to col­lege edu­ca­tion even if they did poor­ly in high school.

Degree: BFA in Fash­ion Merchandising

Acad­e­my of Art Uni­ver­si­ty BFA in Fash­ion Merchandising

8. The New School — Parsons School of Design

The New School Par­sons School of Design ranks as one of the best online fash­ion degree pro­grams, thanks to its focus on best prac­tices in the indus­try. Stu­dents receive a firm foun­da­tion in both the­o­ret­i­cal and con­crete con­cepts and pre­pare for entre­pre­neur­ial careers or jobs in the fash­ion indus­try. Cours­es include retail buy­ing and mer­chan­dis­ing. Grad­u­ates emerge ready to take on The New York fash­ion indus­try and with a firm mas­tery of glob­al marketing.

The new school is a pri­vate Uni­ver­si­ty with 4,300 under­grad­u­ate enrollees. It has a com­pet­i­tive admis­sions process and just 63% of stu­dents who apply received let­ters of acceptance.

What We Like: 81% of stu­dents sur­vey say they believe their pro­fes­sors put a lot of effort into class­es, and the online for­mat makes this a high­ly flex­i­ble way to obtain a degree in fashion.

Degree: Fash­ion Business

New School Par­sons School of Design Fash­ion Business

9. Southern New Hampshire University

South­ern New Hamp­shire Uni­ver­si­ty has a BS in Fash­ion Mer­chan­dis­ing Man­age­ment that is among the best online fash­ion degree pro­grams. Those who choose this school learn about the dynam­ic world of fash­ion, which evolves as a result of cul­tur­al influ­ences, sea­son­al­i­ty and a mul­ti­tude of mate­ri­als. Stu­dents find out how to ana­lyze tran­sient con­sumer fash­ion and emerge ready to apply the con­cepts of mar­ket­ing, tex­tile the­o­ry, col­or and retail oper­a­tions to jobs in the real world. Course con­cepts help stu­dents mas­ter the selec­tion of styles that meet the expec­ta­tions of their future cus­tomers. With small class sizes, stu­dents in the online and in-per­son envi­ron­ment have plen­ty of access to instruc­tors who ful­ly grasp tech­nol­o­gy and busi­ness con­cepts relat­ed to fashion.

For more than 80 years, South­ern New Hamp­shire Uni­ver­si­ty has pro­vid­ed high-qual­i­ty edu­ca­tion to its stu­dent body. The school has more than 300 pro­grams at the under­grad­u­ate and grad­u­ate lev­els. So, stu­dents have a wide vari­ety of options in how they will make an impact on the world through their edu­ca­tion. Cer­tifi­cates are also avail­able in a num­ber of pro­grams and the uni­ver­si­ty was rec­og­nized as one of the most inno­v­a­tive schools in the Unit­ed States by U.S. News. The school adapts to con­tin­ue offer­ing afford­able, high­ly acces­si­ble edu­ca­tion for his stu­dents are prospec­tive students.

What We Like: SNHU ranks #5 among New Hampshire’s Best Colleges.

Degree: BS in Fash­ion Mer­chan­dis­ing Management

South­ern New Hamp­shire Uni­ver­si­ty BS in Fash­ion Mer­chan­dis­ing Management

10. Fisher College

Fish­er Col­lege has a BS in Fash­ion Mer­chan­dis­ing that offers stu­dents access to one of the best online fash­ion degree pro­grams. Stu­dents learn about both fash­ion and busi­ness. In order to accom­plish this, they have oppor­tu­ni­ties to meet with top exec­u­tives and entre­pre­neurs in the field. Stu­dents in this major have access to study abroad options so that they can absorb dif­fer­ent cul­tures to enhance their artis­tic eye and under­stand­ing of the fash­ion industry.

At Fish­er Col­lege, stu­dents gain from expe­ri­enced fac­ul­ty who per­son­al­ize the edu­ca­tion­al expe­ri­ence for each stu­dent. Stu­dents look­ing for men­tors who work in fash­ion will do well at Fish­er College.

What We Like: Over 95% of all stu­dents get some sort of finan­cial aid, mak­ing this one of the most afford­able schools.

Degree: BS in Man­age­ment: Fash­ion Merchandising

Fish­er Col­lege BS in Fash­ion Merchandising

11. North Coast College

North Coast Col­lege has one of the best online fash­ion degree pro­grams in Ohio. Grad­u­ates emerge with a bach­e­lor of sci­ence in busi­ness admin­is­tra­tion con­cen­trat­ing on the fash­ion indus­try. Grad­u­ates mas­ter learn to lever­age their busi­ness skills and knowl­edge of fash­ion to suc­ceed in a multi­bil­lion dol­lar indus­try. North Coast expos­es stu­dents to crit­i­cal think­ing and learn­ing to make deci­sions on their feet. Grad­u­ates emerge to take jobs in an evolv­ing mar­ket­place and the course­work helps them pre­pare for entre­pre­neur­ial think­ing and how to suc­ceed in a cor­po­rate environment.

NCC is a non­prof­it school in the Cleve­land area. It has only 69 under­grad­u­ate stu­dents and accepts 82% of those who apply. Oth­er pop­u­lar majors include inte­ri­or design and appar­el merchandising.

What We Like: All stu­dents at NCC receive finan­cial aid.

Degree: BS in Busi­ness Admin­is­tra­tion: Fash­ion Merchandising

North Coast Col­lege BS in Busi­ness Admin­is­tra­tion: Fash­ion Merchandising

12. Immaculata University

Immac­u­la­da Uni­ver­si­ty has anoth­er one of the best online fash­ion degree pro­grams and grad­u­ates receive a BS in Fash­ion Mer­chan­dis­ing. Mul­ti­dis­ci­pli­nary cours­es com­bine busi­ness prin­ci­ples with cre­ative con­cepts. Stu­dents gain expo­sure to the indus­try and learn how to suc­ceed in this com­pet­i­tive field. The pro­gram offers study tours where fac­ul­ty mem­bers take stu­dents too fash­ion cen­ters in Philadel­phia and New York City.

This Catholic uni­ver­si­ty is locat­ed in the Philadel­phia area of Penn­syl­va­nia. Immac­u­la­ta has few­er than 900 under­grad­u­ate stu­dents and accepts about four out of five stu­dents who apply. Its grad­u­a­tion rate is 67% and oth­er pop­u­lar majors include busi­ness and kinesiology.

What We Like: 100% of stu­dents receive finan­cial aid.

Degree: BS in Fash­ion Merchandising

Immac­u­la­da Uni­ver­si­ty BS in Fash­ion Merchandising

13. Moore College of Art and Design

Stu­dents who want to achieve a BFA in Fash­ion Design may want to con­sid­er Moore Col­lege of Art and Design. It is one of the best online fash­ion degree pro­grams avail­able and cur­rent grad­u­ates work in the fash­ion indus­try. The pro­gram offers cre­ative and busi­ness skills stu­dents need to suc­ceed in this com­pet­i­tive indus­try. Stu­dents emerge ful­ly equipped to use tech­nol­o­gy and busi­ness to suc­ceed in Philadel­phia, New York, and oth­er cen­ters of fashion.

A pri­vate col­lege in Philadel­phia, Moore is a very small school with few­er than 400 under­grad­u­ate stu­dents. Just over half of stu­dents who apply receive a let­ter of accep­tance and choose from pop­u­lar majors such as appar­el design, graph­ic design or illus­tra­tion. 100% of stu­dents receive stu­dent aid for their studies.

What We Like: Rank­ing #23 in Best Col­leges for Design, Moore Col­lege offers stu­dents an oppor­tu­ni­ty to com­plete course­work online.

Degree: BFA in Fash­ion Design

BFA in Fash­ion Design — Moore Col­lege of Art and Design

14. LIM College

LIM Col­lege has one of the best online fash­ion degree pro­grams in the indus­try. Suc­cess­ful stu­dents earn their bach­e­lors degree and gain a firm foun­da­tion in both busi­ness and lib­er­al arts. For stu­dents who want to begin their career imme­di­ate­ly after school, LIM is a great choice. Some stu­dents go on to enter high­er lev­els of study in the field. the school offers sev­er­al tracks so that stu­dents can choose the one that best suits their career goals. Over­all, the pro­gram focus­es on prepar­ing stu­dents to meet the needs of prospec­tive employers.

LIM oper­ates on a for-prof­it mod­el and is based in Man­hat­tan. This small uni­ver­si­ty has about 1,400 under­grad­u­ate stu­dents and accepts 83% of appli­cants. Oth­er majors include mar­ket­ing and design and visu­al communications.

What We Like: The school’s 83% accep­tance rate gives stu­dents a great chance of get­ting into this com­pet­i­tive industry.

Degree: BBA in Busi­ness of Fashion

LIM Col­lege BBA in Busi­ness of Fashion

15. Cazenovia College

Cazen­ovia Col­lege has a BFA in Fash­ion Design that many con­sid­er to be among the best online fash­ion degree pro­grams. Stu­dents devel­op the tech­ni­cal and cre­ative skills it takes to suc­ceed in the fash­ion indus­try. Cours­es walk stu­dents through the process of cre­at­ing pat­terns and build­ing gar­ments for a vari­ety of mar­kets. Many stu­dents go on to cre­ate their own fash­ion lines. The pro­gram focus­es on the tech­ni­cal side of the indus­try so that grad­u­ates mas­ter prod­uct devel­op­ment of com­mer­cial cloth­ing. Stu­dents have to com­plete an intern­ship and team-based projects.

Cazen­ovia Col­lege Focus­es on stu­dent suc­cess. Fac­ul­ty mem­bers pro­vide oppor­tu­ni­ties for indi­vid­ual inter­ac­tion and pre­pare grad­u­ates for careers or enroll­ment in post­grad­u­ate pro­grams. The col­lege encour­ages a pos­i­tive learn­ing expe­ri­ence and stu­dents have many oppor­tu­ni­ties to engage with one anoth­er online or on campus.

What We Like: All stu­dents receive finan­cial aid and the school accepts 82% of applicants.

Degree: BFA in Fash­ion Design

Cazen­ovia Col­lege BFA in Fash­ion Design

Why Should I Get My Fashion Degree Online?

Since the fash­ion world works dur­ing all hours of the day and night, tak­ing online cours­es allows the stu­dent to study when it is most advan­ta­geous for them. No mat­ter what type of job they take while com­plet­ing their online cours­es, they can work on their stud­ies while on break or while they are wait­ing for cloth­ing or make­up changes. Find­ing time to com­plete their degree is easy if they revolve it around their work sched­ule. In fact, they can enlist co-work­ers to help them study which is espe­cial­ly ben­e­fi­cial if they are stu­dents in the same (or sim­i­lar) degree program.

How Do I Choose an Online Fashion Degree Program?

It’s impor­tant to always look for online fash­ion degrees from accred­it­ed col­leges and uni­ver­si­ties. By choos­ing an accred­it­ed degree pro­gram and school, you are ensur­ing that you get the very best pos­si­ble edu­ca­tion avail­able. While there may be many dif­fer­ent degree pro­grams for you to choose from, many may not have passed the strict guide­lines to be con­sid­ered accred­it­ed. Com­plet­ing an accred­it­ed degree pro­gram gives you a lit­tle extra advan­tage due to the fact that you are already used to work­ing with­in the high­est lev­el of indus­try standards.

Accred­i­ta­tion means that the school or the course pro­gram meets the stan­dards set by the indus­try. Just because a uni­ver­si­ty or degree pro­gram has earned accred­i­ta­tion once, it does­n’t get to keep the dis­tinc­tion indef­i­nite­ly. Instead, they must be accred­it­ed on a reg­u­lar basis to ensure they con­tin­ue to meet indus­try stan­dards as new tech­nol­o­gy and tech­niques are intro­duced. If they do not meet the same strict stan­dards year after year, they will lose the accred­it­ed status.

Anoth­er way to choose a fash­ion design degree pro­gram is by know­ing what type of job you want to do. Some schools offer bet­ter design cours­es, while oth­ers are bet­ter when it comes to the use of tex­tiles and oth­er types of mate­ri­als. Before you choose your school, it’s impor­tant that you choose your spe­cial­iza­tion. If you choose one area and lat­er find out you are bet­ter suit­ed for anoth­er path, you can eas­i­ly change your degree pro­gram and move in a dif­fer­ent direction.

Do I Need a Specialized Degree to Get a Job?

Grad­u­ates do not need a spe­cial­ized degree to get a job with­in the fash­ion indus­try. With­in the fash­ion indus­try, there are many dif­fer­ent career paths to choose from. A few of the most sought after careers in fash­ion design includ­ed sales team, styl­ists, tex­tile design­er, cre­ative devel­op­er, and prod­uct devel­op­er. If you pre­fer upper man­age­ment posi­tions, you can opt for a qual­i­ty assur­ance man­ag­er, pro­duc­tion man­ag­er, and enter­tain­ment direc­tor. All of these posi­tions require spe­cial­ized skills, but earn­ing a degree in fash­ion design is only the begin­ning of the learn­ing experience.

Hav­ing a spe­cial­ized degree pro­gram does have its advan­tages. A spe­cial­ized degree allows you to focus on a par­tic­u­lar aspect of the indus­try. In the fash­ion world, a spe­cial­ized degree gives you an advan­tage. Because there are so many dif­fer­ent career paths to choose from, a spe­cial­ized degree pro­gram makes it pos­si­ble for you to nar­row down your options. You may want to work in sev­er­al dif­fer­ent jobs with­in the indus­try before you set­tle on just one.

Fash­ion is incred­i­bly diverse, so hav­ing a spe­cial­ized degree pro­vides you with options so that you can max­i­mize your poten­tial and con­tin­ue to move for­ward with your career. A spe­cial­iza­tion allows you to explore your own cre­ativ­i­ty and find ways to show­case your tal­ent. With so many peo­ple try­ing to make their way into such a fast-paced indus­try, you need to have an edge that will cause you to stand out among the crowd. You can’t be like every­one else. The goal is to be as diverse as the indus­try itself.

Relat­ed Rankings:

25 Best Bach­e­lor’s in Fashion

10 Fastest Online Bach­e­lor’s in Fashion

10 Most Afford­able Bach­e­lor’s in Fashion