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Whether it's Sabyasachi’s lehengas or Manish Malhotra’s Bollywood attires, fashion designers never disappoint the audience. With unique insights blended with creativity and skills, the fashion design industry has been a dream of many creative individuals. Pursuing a course and then landing a job is often the common road for many.
But have you ever thought, "Would pursuing a career in fashion design be worth your time and investments?”. Or fashion designing courses cost more than what you receive after landing jobs. So, is your dream worth pursuing? Let us find out with this blog. The blog offers a deep dive into the question, “Is fashion design worth the cost?” Understand the course types, analyse fee structures and your career potential. Discover the ROI based on your preferences for a fashion designing course. But first, understand the:
Fashion design is a diverse and broad discipline. It is available in various types across numerous design areas. Every type of fashion designing course shall lead you to different pathways, career options and salary expectations. Let us understand the types of fashion designing courses in India:
✅ Undergraduate Courses: These are full-length degree programmes. Anyone seeking an in-depth exposure to the fashion designing and marketing industry could consider these courses. The duration of these courses often differs from 3 to 4 years. Furthermore, some of the most sought-after UG courses in fashion designing include BDes, BSc Fashion Design, and BFTech.
✅ Postgraduate Courses: They are advanced courses that you could pursue after graduation. PG courses in fashion designing generally last two years. Pursuing a master's in fashion design could be beneficial for your career growth. It also helps you secure high-level and high-paying job roles. Besides, MDes, MSc Fashion Design, MFTech, and MFM are several popular PG programmes in fashion designing to consider.
✅ Diploma Courses: Diplomas in fashion design cover a more comprehensive curriculum. It emphasises industry-oriented knowledge and training. Additionally, diploma courses' duration varies by institutions and generally ranges from 6-24 months. You can pursue them after 12th or graduation. Besides, considering PG diplomas would be better to advance your qualifications and expertise.
✅ Certification Courses: The duration of these programmes generally ranges from 3-12 months. Certificates in fashion design are short-term courses that ensure practical exposure. They are ideal to keep your knowledge up-to-date. You gain relevant industry insights in the short term.
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Every institution follows a separate fee structure for its individual courses. In India, the fee structure is inclusive of the college's prestige, type of curriculum, career support services, and extracurricular activities. Moreover, the financing of the course also depends on its type. For example, bachelor's & postgraduate degrees cost more than diplomas. Certification courses usually require lower fees due to their short duration. Here is an average fee breakdown for fashion designing courses in India:
Note: The average fee range is a general overview that varies for institutions. It is concluded based on different fashion designing institutes in India.
Fashion design is a broader and more versatile industry. It comprises various departments such as sales, marketing, designing, operations, and more, like a corporation. Here are several in-demand roles based on distinct departments in the fashion design industry. Explore at a glance:
Source: Ambition Box
An ROI or return on investment varies by many factors. It is different for each course, each job role, college of studying, campus placements and walk-in interviews. Pursuing it from a top college and securing placements with on-campus salary packages are generally higher than the first-time jobs or internships secured through external interviews. Here is a concise and crisp analysis of ROI based on types of fashion designing courses and job roles:
Comprehensive, full-fledged courses like BDes make you eligible for entry-level roles. With 0-2 years of experience, you can earn an average of INR 3.2 LPA - INR 6.7 LPA. Furthermore, you could advance with a master's degree in fashion design to prepare for managerial roles. The salary packages for managerial or high-level jobs range between INR 5 LPA - INR 8 LPA and beyond, based on experience.
Thus, bachelor's degrees cost INR 7-18 lakhs for a 3-4 year programme, depending on colleges. On average, let us consider a mid fee structure of INR 10-12 lakhs for a 4-year course. Average salary packages for roles after undergraduate degrees may vary from INR 3.6 LPA to INR 7.5 LPA. Take a look at the ROI analysis:
ROI = Total Fees / Annual Salary
✅ For an average lowest salary of INR 3.6 LPA: It may take 2.8-3.3 years to recover your fees and expenses of INR 10-12 lakhs.
✅ At a mid salary range of INR 5.5 LPA: The fees recovery duration shall differ from 1.8-2.2 years.
✅ For the average highest salary package of INR 7.5 LPA after a bachelor's: You can receive returns on your investments after 1.3-1.6 years.
Therefore, if you complete a course in fashion designing for 3-4 years with a fee structure of INR 10-12 lakhs, you may easily recover your investments within 1.3 to 3.3 years. This duration varies by your chosen course type, job roles, and placements.
Diplomas and certification courses in fashion designing cost between INR 10,000 and INR 4,00,000 on average. It differs based on your institution and the duration of the course. As a fresher, you can earn between INR 2.5 LPA and INR 5 LPA. However, this range could go beyond INR 8-10 LPA if you combine a diploma with graduation or post-graduation. Here is the analysis:
✅ At a beginning salary of INR 2.5 LPA to the least, you can recover your fee amount of INR 1.5-3 lakhs within 0.6-1.2 years.
✅ With a median salary of INR 3.5 LPA, the investment recovery duration could be shorter, just between 5-9 months.
✅ If you manage to secure your starting salary around INR 5 LPA, the fee amount can be covered within 3-7 months, and make profits after that.
End Note:
Thus, diploma and certification courses offer ROI faster than the high-cost degree programmes. However, you must remember that this could vary by institution, placement type, and company.
Check out how to stand out and enhance your career opportunities in fashion designing. Here are several amazing tips:
⭐ Build a personal and fascinating portfolio from the first semester and keep updating it with your achievements.
⭐ Grab the internship opportunities to work with experts or famous designers for industry exposure.
⭐ Stay updated with fashion trends and digital tools.
⭐ Participate in fashion events, exhibitions, or other events to widen your professional network.
⭐ Look for international opportunities for global exposure.
In a nutshell, yes, fashion designing is a career that is worth the cost. However, returns on investments are a matter of time and skills. Aspirants generally invest 4-6 years in pursuing fashion designing courses and spend a large sum of money. To ensure profitable returns, you must also give your career 4-6 years. Pursuing a fashion designing course from top-ranked colleges often provides early placements and higher salary packages. However, with excellent skills and knowledge, you could even secure promising salary packages regardless of your background or college. All you need is the ability to think out of the box and perform the unconventional.
Yes, fashion designers, depending on their location and job roles, serve in high-paying industries. Fashion designers' creativity and skills are widely appreciated and given opportunities for career growth.
Yes, pursuing your fashion designing course from a top-notch college could be expensive. However, esteemed colleges often offer you excellent placement assistance and opportunities to earn higher salary packages. It ensures ROI for the expensive courses.
Yes, fashion designing is a high-paying career. However, the salary packages differ by job location, company, job role, and years of working experience. Self-employed fashion designers are considered to earn even higher incomes.
Yes, many fashion designers like Sabyasachi Mukherjee, Manish Malhotra, Ritu Kumar, and Neeta Lulla are popular and rich fashion designers in India, among others.
NIFT fashion designing courses' fee structure ranges from INR 12,00,000 and INR 15,00,000. It offers undergraduate, postgraduate, and diploma programmes in fashion designing.
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