Several North Carolina schools, excluding UNCW, have a fashion program. Whether it’s as upfront as a Bachelor of Science degree with a concentration in Merchandising Fashion Design, or as discreet as a textile class, it’s there and available to students.

“We have all of the basic offerings like English, math and science. In terms of professional programs, we have some, but we simply don’t have all of the ones out there,” said Martin Posey, Dean Associate Vice Chancellor of Undergraduate Programs.

UNCW offers 56 majors without a licensure and 12 majors with licensures. Out of these 68 majors, only two, the studio art degree and the art history degree, involve art.

“UNCW right now is strictly a liberal arts program, so the presence of design is not funded,” said UNCW Studio Art Professor Donald Furst.

Other North Carolina schools have a variety of art classes ranging from basic painting to pre-industrial world textiles.

“We are short staffed for basic classes,” Furst said. “The only design thing we have is graphic design. We don’t have the funding for faculty or rooms.”

The lack of space, faculty and funding has diminished the chance of UNCW obtaining a fashion program, but hope is not completely lost. Other schools in the area offer classes and programs UNCW cannot.

“We haven’t been able to develop everything. It depends on demand, and we have not had the demand for it,” Posey said.

North Carolina State University, know for its design program, offers students 59 art and design classes. A Bachelor of Science in Fashion and Textile Management option is also available, which has three concentrations to choose from: textile brand management and marketing, fashion development and product management, and retail and supply chain management in textiles.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill works much like UNCW in their course list. They too only have art history studio art majors.

“The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill simply does not have a design curriculum.  Usually students interested in design attend NC State.  On the other hand, a strong education in the arts can enable students to move into various careers in the arts,” said Jim Hirschfield, department chair of art at the UNC Chapel Hill.

East Carolina University also offers a vast amount of classes to choose from when it comes to art. Their concentrations include, but are not limited to, painting, sculpting, printmaking, graphic design, illustration, textile design, fabric design, weaving design and more. ECU has a Fashion Merchandising program that covers everything from the fashion designer to manufacturers, distributors, marketers and retailers. There is a study abroad program affiliated with this major where students get the chance to visit high-end companies like Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom, Burberry, Valentio and others.

The North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University offers a Fashion Merchandising and Design degree that covers merchandising and apparel design. Graduates of this degree from North Carolina A&T work in professions such as fashion photography, fashion merchandising and directing, trend forecasting, textiles styling, materials sourcing and others.

Appalachian State offers fibers coursesand a B.S in Apparel Design and Merchandising. The University of Charlotte has a group dedicated to fashion shows and the fashion industry. Then of course there’s always the Art Institute of Charlotte to think about, along with the University of North Carolina Greensboro, which has 3 majors dedicated to apparel design.

“It’s hard to predict sometimes how programs develop. I don’t see it developing in the next year or two,” said Posey.

From the cities of North Carolina to the mountains, there is a degree suitable for a fashion major, but finding one near the beach, well it doesn’t look like it’s going to happen. Not any time soon that is.