Short courses go the distance
The fashion department of Melbourne?s RMIT University, long regarded as a leader in fashion education, this year introduced short courses in Global Production Management (GPM) and Global Quality Management (GQM) for the fashion industry.
Taking place in both Melbourne and Sydney, the one-day courses were a direct response to industry demand. They were specifically designed to fit in with the busy schedules of professionals already working full time in industry, confirmed course co-ordinator Nicholas Maggio.
"These kinds of courses are definitely a growth area for RMIT. With more and more production going offshore, the GPM course gives participants and understanding of how to keep control over offshore production. The GQM course goes hand in hand with GPM and is about gaining a full understanding of quality control processes."
The Global Production Management course caters to fashion professionals responsible for offshore production but is equally relevant to onshore production.
It develops key skills including project management and the specific technical knowledge demanded by the profession.
Queensland kidswear label Eeni Meeni Miini Moh production manager Ellen Pember was a recent participant of the Sydney course and found it to be "very beneficial".
"It covered all aspects of production from design conception, specification preparation to textile technology. I was surprised at how much knowledge I gained over the course of the day and would recommend that anyone working in design or production take the time to participate," she says.
Global Quality Management (GQM) is aimed at fashion professionals responsible for the quality of products. It develops key competencies in the areas of quality management, fabric care instructions and other labelling requirements, as well as covering product evaluation and development of quality systems.
While the GPM and GQM courses are at the forefront of its growth, RMIT also continues to offer a wide range of short courses within the area of fashion and textiles.
These include sewing, patternmaking, pattern cutting, patternmaking software packages Lectra and Gerber, Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop for the fashion and textile industry as well as product knowledge workshops in textiles, footwear, designing and making footwear by hand and upper and bottom grading for footwear.
Courses on bags and accessories, design concepts, pattern making concepts and beading for fashion are also available.
Many students of RMIT?s full time fashion courses choose to supplement their education with the short courses, says Maggio.
"Students will participate in the short courses if they want to increase their skills in a particular area or study a specialised skill. The short courses can definitely add another string to full-time students? bow."