India’s Best Colleges | 15 fashion institutes in India

Good options: At the postgraduate level, Nift offers two-year master’s degrees in the design, management and technology specializations. Photo: Madhu Kapparath / Mint

Along with training in basic design skills and methods, undergraduate students are required to take core courses in technology that involve production processes and materials sciences, as well as undergo education in marketing, promotion and merchandising, get a grounding in the “socio-cultural” history of fashion, art and design. The final element involves hands-on training through internships and field study.

In the last semester of the final year, students take part in a graduation project which, in the case of those specializing in fashion design, means creating an entire collection using the skills they have acquired including sourcing, pattern-making, cutting and stitching.

“I always wanted to be a part of the fashion fraternity,” says Diana Kakkar, a third-year student specializing in fashion design.

“Nift incubates you to be part of the industry and it lets you go out to the villages and intern within the industry. It is also one of the most recognized fashion institutions in the world, so it gives you good prospects.”

The academic fees for one semester stand at Rs36,750, while for non-resident Indians the academic fees for two semesters, or one academic year, come in at Rs3,18,500. At the postgraduate level, two-year master’s degrees are available in the design, management and technology specializations.

From its inception in Delhi as a school for fashion design, Nift now has eight centres spread across India, in Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Gandhinagar and Rae Bareli. There are plans to open more centres, in Kannur, Bhopal, Shillong and Patna, as well as in Mauritius and even in the UAE and Malaysia.

“Nift has been growing at a very, very fast pace,” says Baxi. “There’s this pressure to expand because the government feels the industry is growing and we need to impart this professional education to students in different states. I think perhaps we would also constantly be looking at the new specializations, the new professions that are constantly emerging, for example, styling.”

Although the school is government-run, Baxi says the curriculum remains independent of policy: “They don’t impact at all and they don’t interfere with our curriculum. Government policies may impact us indirectly but not otherwise.”

As part of its efforts to remain relevant and at the cutting edge of design, Nift helped set up FDCI in 1998. It also laid the foundations for the establishment of the International Foundation of Fashion Technology, which today has 25 members, and hosts meetings at which member institutes discuss and share ideas, research, trends and new ways of thinking about design and education.

The school also regularly looks to introduce new sub-specializations to meet changes within the industry and provide a variety of career options for its students.

In addition to a new course on styling, the school is currently contemplating introducing modules on the business of luxury, and even theatre and make-up.

Despite Nift’s focus on industry interaction, and pride in its 100% placement guarantee, the industry feels education and training in the design space in India still has some way to go.