Why I chose to study Textile Design at Falmouth

This piece was written by Textile Design BA(Hons) student Megan about her experiences studying at the School of Architecture, Design & Interiors.

Hey there, I’m Meg, a current third year Textile Design student at Falmouth. In this blog, I’ll be writing about why I chose to study Textile Design at Falmouth – I hope it’s helpful for those of you interested in the course!

Firstly, Textile Design is SUCH a fun course! It’s so creative & exciting and our classes really do have the best time. I hadn’t even heard of the course before I did my Art Foundation qualification, but as soon as I learned about it, I was very interested in applying. We learn skills for woven, printed & mixed-media textiles and, after you’ve learned all 3 of these disciplines, you choose one to specialise in during your second and third year. I chose Printed Textiles! The possibilities really are endless with what you produce – our academic staff and technicians are incredibly supportive and constantly challenging us to try new things, upskill as designers and consider sustainability throughout our design process. I think one of my favourite aspects of the course is how supported we are and the community we have – it’s a really encouraging and uplifting one! We have regular 1-1 and group tutorials with staff, where we discuss and get feedback, advice & input on our work. We have skilled technicians in each discipline and IT, who teach you everything you need to know – so please don’t worry if there’s something you’ve never tried before!

Collaboration across courses is something that’s really valuable and encouraged here at Falmouth and one of the main reasons I chose to study here – the Fashion & Textiles Institute, where we’re based, is a bright space shared with other courses, such as Fashion Design, Costume Design for Film & Television, Fashion Marketing etc. The open plan design means you get to meet students from other courses and work together on projects, if you wish to! Because of this open-plan environment, a third year Fashion Design student saw some of my samples from a project I’ve just finished and, after chatting, we ended up collaborating on a garment, which she sewed with fabric I block printed onto! We also have a big collaboration wall in the studio, where people put up their ideas and projects to encourage collaboration.

The facilities are also what really drew me in – we have brilliant equipment. The University also runs something called WOW (Wednesday Open Workshops), where you can sign up for workshops in other departments of the University on Wednesday afternoons, to make the most of the facilities across the whole University.I went to an Open Day, which was a wonderful opportunity to see the studios in-person and ask any questions I had. I’d definitely recommend making the journey to visit, if you can – seeing the campus in-person really gave me the confidence that Falmouth was the right place for me. I got to speak to staff & students and see the studios in action, which gave me a great insight into the atmosphere. Speaking to students who were on the course at the time really helped me find out about the student experience.

If you ever have any questions for students, drop one of us a message on the ‘Ask a Student’ page on the University’s website – I personally found it a very valuable tool to get all of my questions answered before coming to Falmouth. And, If you can’t make the trip to campus, don’t worry! There are great virtual tours of the Penryn Campus and the Fashion & Textiles Institute (where I'm based) on the University’s website, which give great insight to the technology and equipment we have here at Falmouth.

My experience on the course so far has been amazing. I’ve made friends & connections that I’ll always keep and I actually can’t believe how much I’ve learned. Now that I’m nearing graduation, it’s crazy looking back on my first-year work and seeing how much I’ve been taught and how much I've progressed and upskilled. If you’re interested in Textile Design at Falmouth, definitely check out our Textile Design course page on the University’s website - it gives you a great and clear overview about the course. And don't forget to follow our Instagram, @textiledesignfalmouth, where we frequently post from behind the scenes! Best of luck in your application!