Fashion school portfolio: here's what I learned!

It has been months since I have last posted a blog post, but I have been pretty busy!

I applied to 9 schools; 6 for fashion design and 2 for fashion merchandising. After a year of working every single day until midnight, I have gotten into 2 of my top choices, a.k.a the 2 best fashion schools in the world.

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For schools as prestigious as The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) and Parsons School of Design, the portfolio process was 100 times more rigorous compared to the other schools. However my dream school has always been FIT, so I have recently committed there! 

I have recently posted a 'Tik Tok' on the portfolio that got me into FIT:

The portfolio that got me into the #1 Fashion School in the US

Here are some of my favorite pieces that got me accepted into the Parsons School of Design with a scholarship!

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When going through this process, I wish I had more of a student's perspective on what this process is really like. For one, it is incredibly different from someone who may be applying to an Ivy League, and that is okay! Here’s everything I have learned over these past few months:

1. Attend portfolio review days!

   1.  I attended national portfolio review day, the date tentative and typically announced sometime in the summer. Every prestigious art school brings admissions counselors from their universities and you can show your work to them! It may sound daunting, and trust me I was shaking as I was showing my work to a school like FIT, but I only grew and learned from their feedback. They’re only going to help you. 

   2. My suggestion is to compile all of your work before this big day, even if you’re not finished, show everything you plan to put in your portfolio. That way you can get an idea of what they like!

2. Colleges see interest!!! For schools as hard to get into as these ones, showing that you’re passionate about their college puts your application on their radar.

   1.  Obviously, throwing money at a school is not the only way you can put your application on top. However, I was lucky enough to get a feel of FIT and if it was the right fit for me in a summer pre college program. There, I was additionally able to get an idea of what the professors are like.

   2.  A common misconception is comparing Parsons and FIT; they are incredibly different!! If you think you will thrive in a more conceptual environment, go on tours and application reviews at Parsons (those are typically free!) If you think you will thrive in a much more technical environment, do the same at FIT!

   3.  I think something that helped me was my understanding of the schools in my essay. A prompt for a Parsons supplement is “Why are you so interested in The New School?” In the supplemental, I detailed a conversation I had with a current student, and I quoted their website on their morals as a school. 

3. Follow the college’s portfolio rules! As I started my portfolio, I was under the impression that I could only make one portfolio that I can send in for every school I apply for. However, as I stated before, every school is not the same and that is not the case. 

   1. A school that it would be incredibly important for you to follow the rules is FIT. If you are applying to the most competitive program at FIT, fashion design, they are expecting you to be a well rounded applicant. This means you must know how to sew, design and explain your work. An admissions counselor told me they have a checkbox for each application; if you are unable to meet even one of those boxes, your application is thrown. 

   2. Unlike FIT, schools such as Pratt Institute and Parsons require artwork. Pay attention to the criteria however, because an art school might want more technical work, such as a still life drawing, or conceptual, inspired artwork. 

4. Take a step back and see what the work you are working on actually looks like!

   1. Trust me, this worked wonders. I talked to a current Parsons student, and he gave me this advice. It was probably the most impactful piece of advice I was given throughout this process. I realized once I took a step back that I was forcing myself to make ideas work; do not find yourself doing too much! 

   2. Another thing admissions counselors told me was that I had too much, meaning I was trying to make so many ideas work just to have more pieces. Start with a basic idea you want to work with, build around 15 ideas, and go from there! It will all fall into place when you start placing it into the submission website. 

5. Stats do not matter as much if you have an essay and portfolio to back you up!

   1. If you were worried as much as I was about seeing other people taking the SAT/ACT, doing AP classes, and getting straight A’s, I’m here to say it is not the main thing they care about! Of course, if you were looking to go into the business side of fashion, that would be more applicable. But, if you are looking to go into the arts/design, make sure your essays tell your story and passion to back up your portfolio!

6. Lastly, one thing I’ve learned about the portfolio process in general is the amount of commitment a person needs to have. 

   1. You are going to have to put in the work and cancel plans. You are going to have to lock yourself in your rooms for weeks on end. It is all worth it in the end. 

It may seem incredibly daunting to start building a portfolio. I put it off for months because I had no idea where to start. Once you get started though, and you put in copious amounts of work, I promise you it will get you into your dream art school. 

I am so excited for the future ahead of me, and I cannot wait to post more blog posts when I am at FIT.