Annual Salary
£22,000 to £30,000
Average UK salary in 2023 was £34,963
(source Office for National Statistics)
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Swap to Performing arts or Games or go back to all job sectors
Fashion design assistants help designers create new clothing ranges for fashion brands and labels.
Average UK salary in 2023 was £34,963
(source Office for National Statistics)
You could work: evenings / weekends; flexibly
There will be
0.5% more Fashion design assistant jobs in 2027.
As a fashion design assistant, you could:
You could work in a creative studio or in a workshop.
You can get into this job through:
You could do a foundation degree or higher national diploma in a subject like:
You'll usually need:
You could take a college course to learn skills in pattern cutting, sample machining and computer-aided design.
Courses include:
Look for courses that teach both the creative and technical side of the job. These will give you the practical skills that employers look for.
You could apply to do a Fashion Studio Assistant Level 3, or Garment Maker Level 3, Advanced Apprenticeship.
These apprenticeships take around 2 years to complete and are a mix of on-the-job training and classroom learning.
You'll usually need:
You could start as a general assistant with a fashion company or retailer, then work your way up by doing training and gaining qualifications in fashion design.
There is strong competition for jobs in the fashion industry, so it will help if you can get some experience and make employer contacts through internships, work placements or volunteering.
This will give you an understanding of the role and can help with interviews.
The British fashion industry supports initiatives like the National Saturday Club for young people aged 13 to 16, looking to learn about fashion careers.
You'll usually need to put together a portfolio of your work for course and job applications. This should include mood boards, designs, drawings and examples of finished items of clothing you have made.
You can find more details about working in fashion from:the British Fashion Council; UK Fashion and Textiles (UKFT); Discover Creative Careers
With training and experience you could become a fashion designer, then senior designer.
You might also move into:sales and marketing; fashion buying; photographic styling for product launches and shows
You could work as a freelance designer and create your own collections.
You'll need: