Our sister colleges work with hundreds of brands to offer students a broad range of hands-on opportunities to ensure they start their future careers with the experience they need to succeed.
PLACEMENTS
Enrichment activities are at the centre of EFI Group's curriculum strategy, ensuring graduates from the Fashion Retail Academy and the London College of Beauty Therapy are job-ready, with both the academic learning and practical, hands-on experience they need to succeed in industry.
Depending on the delivery type, our industry partners can support the next generation of talent by offering work placements and mentorship across a range of courses and specialisms in fashion, retail and beauty, giving them a first look at the graduate talent pool.
Get in touch for more information on how it works.
CAREERS FAIRS
Find the right fit at our Careers Fairs, held on campus at the Fashion Retail Academy and the London College of Beauty Therapy several times a year. Offering an excellent opportunity to talk to students first-hand about careers within your brand, some fairs are focused on graduate roles, while others offer part-time opportunities for students looking to work alongside their studies.
Check out our calendar for the latest information on our upcoming careers fairs, or contact us to find out how you can get involved.
JOB BOARD
Advertise your vacancy on our college-specific job boards to reach both our current student body and our alumni network of thousands of fashion, retail and beauty professionals working at all levels of the industry.
From entry-level roles to management positions, we can help you reach a highly-relevant audience and enhance your team with top talent. Contact us with details of your vacancy to find out how we can help you recruit your next-gen workforce.
OPPORTUNITIES CALENDAR
View our calendar to see the upcoming opportunities to engage with students.
Many students at the Fashion Retail Academy are offered the opportunity to take a relevant work placement during their course, ranging from three weeks for Level 3 students up to 3 months part-time for undergraduate students.
Not only do our students gain valuable hands-on experience, but your brand can also take advantage of early access to next-gen talent. Many students go on to be offered roles at the brand where they did their placement immediately after graduating.
MORE QUESTIONS?
Check out our FAQs below to find out more about how placements work.
FAQs
Both FE and undergraduate students are offered the opportunity to take up a relevant 3 week, full-time work placement during their course. Degree students are also offered an extended part-time placement over 3 months, which sees the students spend 2 days per week on their placement alongside their attendance at the FRA.
The FRA works with industry partners to ensure that they allocate those students best suited to the available opportunity, taking into account the nature of the placement, the location and the students attendance and work completion.
Although it may sometimes be difficult to offer a physical placement due to the location of the student or the brand, the Fashion Retail Academy cab support students to complete blended placements in some cases. Contact us to find out more about what kind of placements can be offered.
There are certain times of the year that students go out on placement depending on the type of course, but there may be some flexibility in terms of exact timings. View our calendar to find out more and contact us for further information.
Following completion of the work placement, both the student and the brand representative are asked to complete a short feedback form which helps us to ensure that future placements continue to offer value to both the brand and the student. On many occasions, work placement students from the Fashion Retail Academy have been offered permanent roles at the host brand to begin when they have completed their course.
Mentoring offers a valuable opportunity for students to learn directly from industry peers, while mentors have the chance to improve their coaching and leadership skills and gain insight into the mindset of the next generation of retail talent.
The Fashion Retail Academy's Undergraduate Mentoring Programme has been running since 2017, with a variety of individuals supporting degree students with a minimum commitment of five one-hour sessions (in person or remote) over the two-year course. The mentor offers insight into working in the industry, advice on work, portfolios and career paths and can help the mentee to expand their professional network.
Level 3 Fashion Design and Visual Communications & Styling students are also offered group mentorships in their second year. The mentor meets with the group at least three times between October and May to support the students for their onward journey into a career in the industry or higher education. They can offer advice on portfolios, building networks and looking for a job.
There are a number of opportunities throughout the academic year for brands to set short-term and longer challenges and projects for Fashion Retail Academy students at all stages of their learning journey.
Students enjoy the opportunity to work on real industry briefs, while brands benefit from the fresh perspective of the students and valuable insight into the mindset of next-gen retail talent – who are also your brand’s current and future consumers. Some students’ past project ideas have been so successful that they have been put into production by our brand partners.
INDUSTRY CHALLENGES
Quick turnaround challenges set by industry partners offer a fantastic opportunity for students to hone their creative thinking, team working, time management and problem-solving skills.
The Fashion Retail Academy's Industry Collaboration team works with your brand to create a brief representing a real, specific industry situation, for which the students devise a solution, working in groups. Groups present their ideas to a panel of tutors for feedback at the end of the challenge. Brand representatives can also take part in the feedback panel, sometimes picking a winning team and even awarding a small prize.
UNDERGRADUATE PROJECTS
All of the Fashion Retail Academy's degree students work on a live project set by a brand during their second year, gaining knowledge and insight into the inner workings of the industry. These projects are linked to a specific course module, and brands can work with the Fashion Retail Academy's Industry Collaboration team to develop an appropriate brief that delivers a valuable learning experience for the students while also offering valuable insight for your brand. At the end of the module, the students present their work in front of their peers and a panel comprising tutors and brand representatives for feedback.
INDUSTRY PANELS
As well as the unit-linked projects, the FRA's degree students also present their Final Major Project to an industry panel at the end of the course, which is a critical element of their degree. The panel offers immediate verbal feedback as well as additional written feedback to the students.
Being part of an industry panel gives you the opportunity to see students' ideas and work in detail as well as adding an important element of real-world constructive criticism. This not only helps prepare students for entering the workplace, but also gives you a chance to develop your skills in giving professional and impactful feedback.
Industry talks and masterclasses are the ideal opportunity to raise the profile of your company as an employer of choice.
Taking place at key points throughout the year at both the Fashion Retail Academy and the London College of Beauty Therapy, masterclasses and talks offer a chance to showcase your brand’s career opportunities and workplace culture. Offered either in-person or remotely, these masterclasses give students insight into the inner workings of the industry to help further their studies and career ambitions.
As well as finding out more about different companies and job roles they may not have previously considered, students have the chance to ask questions to deepen their understanding of day-to-day life in a fashion, retail or beauty brand.
Brand representatives can give talks on a range of subjects, from generic introductions to a brand and its operations which are suited to all students, to more specific topics targeted towards a particular area of work, such as sustainability or make-up artistry.
Masterclasses can be given by brand representatives at any level, including C-suite and brand owners, and can explore themes such as their career journey, thoughts on the state of the industry or a detailed look at their current role.
Around 90% of Fashion Retail Academy graduates go straight into work in the industry and put their learning into practice with excellent results.
Whether you have just one role to fill or 20, we have a recruitment solution to match your needs. Several times a year, brands get early access to meet our students before the graduate at our Careers Fairs and Assessment Centres. Careers Fairs at the Fashion Retail Academy and the London College of Beauty Therapy are extremely popular with brands and places go quickly. Assessment Centres for FRA students allow a more in-depth dialogue between recruiters and students, and often result in job offers.
In addition, our Jobs Board is promoted to both current and former students, giving you access to the best pool of talent to fill your in-store and head office vacancies at all levels. Our Careers team can work with you to make sure your vacancy is seen by the right people at the right time.
For more information about how our Careers team can help you, talk to us today and get your brand in front of our talent.
FOCUS GROUPS
Gain valuable insight on your latest ideas, whether that’s presenting new designs, thoughts on social media strategy or even feedback on their in-store experience.
REVERSE MENTORING
Give your staff the opportunity to develop their leadership and coaching skills whilst gaining first-hand insights into the Gen Z psyche.
EXTERNAL EVENTS
If you need an extra pair of hands to prepare for events such as fashion shows or press days, our students are always happy to help out.
INDUSTRY CRITIQUES
Give contextual direction and feedback on a set project, to give real-time support and guidance to students to help achieve a successful outcome.
DONATIONS
As a charity, we will always welcome donations to support our students in their learning: terminal stock, fabric offcuts, samples, display materials and mannequins are just some of the items we need.