Textiles MA
Start Dates
21 September 2026
Duration
1 year full-time
Overview
Why choose Huddersfield for this course?
- Explore textile innovation - combine traditional craft with digital technology across weave, knit, print and embroidery.
- Sustainable working - experiment with new materials and processes that promote responsible design.
- Experienced teachers - Learn from experts who balance creative experimentation with commercial insight.
The Textiles MA is part of the School of Art and Humanities MA Art & Design Suite, an innovative approach to postgraduate taught education that brings together disciplines from across art and design to produce a collaborative programme of courses that foreground the shared practices, processes and values of art and design in the 21st century.
The MA in Textiles covers a broad area of contemporary textile and surface design practice. Spanning both the commercial and arts aspects of the field, the course enables exploration of a varied range of textile directions and contexts.
It offers recent graduates, and those returning to education later in their careers, opportunities to enhance their knowledge, skills, creativity and employment prospects, through imaginative enquiry into different textile and surface design concepts and processes.
The aim of this course is to enable you to:
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Develop innovative and imaginative approaches to materials, processes and methodologies in textiles, and rigorously test these ideas against trends within current practice.
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Evidence advanced critical evaluation and development of traditional and innovative textile techniques in the creation of new product and concepts.
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Experiment, expand and encourage progressive thinking in the sustainable practices for textiles to meet future industry opportunities and customer demands.
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Systematically plan, negotiate, and implement a body of work underpinned by advanced practice and research in textiles and/or surface design.
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Examine the principles and practices inherent in textiles and surface design and their intersection with commercial and creative industries.
Our course aims to combine advanced creative, aesthetic and technical design skills. You will normally have a degree in a related subject (Textiles or Surface Design, Textile Crafts or Fashion), and may be seeking to develop fresh approaches to your subject. This could be towards fashion, interiors or exterior architectural surfaces, future materials, 3D textiles or surfaces, advancing your weave, embroidery, knit, and print skills, or textile art approaches, building your portfolio for future industry or freelance practice.
Career opportunities after the course *
Visual Merchandiser
Womenswear Designer
Menswear Designer
Seamstress
Product Developer
*Lightcast
Entry Requirements
Entry requirements for this course are normally:
- An Honours degree (2:2 or above) in a relevant subject or an equivalent professional qualification.
- Alternative qualifications and/or significant experience may be accepted, subject to approval.
- International students with qualifications in 'creative' or 'practice' subjects should submit a digital portfolio (pdf) of work with their application.
- All suitably qualified applicants are normally invited in for an informal chat with a portfolio or considered for admittance under alternative arrangements.
If your first language is not English, you will need to meet the minimum requirements of an English Language qualification. The minimum for IELTS is 6.0 overall with no element lower than 5.5, or equivalent. Read more about the University’s entry requirements for students outside of the UK on our International Entry Requirements page.
Course Details
Teaching and Assessment
Discover what to expect from your tutor contact time, assessment methods, and feedback process.
Your Career
Graduates of the Textiles MA can progress into a variety of creative, technical and commercial roles across the fashion and textiles industries. Career pathways include positions such as Designer (womenswear, menswear or childrenswear), Visual Merchandiser, Tailor, Seamstress, or Production Assistant, contributing to the development and realisation of textile and fashion products. Opportunities also extend to Product Developer/Designer and Buyer roles, supporting product ranges from concept through to market. These skills are valued by fashion brands, manufacturers, retailers, design studios and independent labels.
Source: Lightcast data extracted from the Graduate Career Explorer
98%
Percentage of the University's postgraduate students go on to work and/or further study within fifteen months of graduating.
* HESA Graduate Outcomes 2022/23, UK domiciled.
1.3 million
The number of jobs supported by the UK fashion & textile industry
* UK Fashion & Textile Association (UKFT)
£62 billion
Amount contributed to the UK fashion & textile industry
* UK Fashion & Textile Association (UKFT)
Huddersfield stood out for its unique textiles course, warm welcome and supportive tutors. I grew in confidence, gained valuable experience as a Student Ambassador, and now teach in FE. The University helped me believe in myself and prepared me for my career.Read More
- Amanda Lead
Textiles MA Graduate
Fees and Finance
This information is for Home students applying to study at the University of Huddersfield in the academic year 2026/27.
Please note that tuition fees for subsequent years may rise in line with inflation (RPI-X) and/or Government policy.
From January 2027 the UK government is launching a new student funding system for people starting university education. Read more about the Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE).
For detailed information please visit https://www.hud.ac.uk/study/fees/
This information is for international students applying to study at the University of Huddersfield in the academic year 2026/27.
Please note that tuition fees for subsequent years may rise in line with inflation (RPI-X) and/or Government policy.
For detailed information please visit https://www.hud.ac.uk/international/fees-and-funding/
Field Trips: Field trips are usually organised and executed in conjunction with specific modules to experience relevant cultural events and/or exhibitions. Tutors will explain the designated destinations and the procedure for travel. Students are also encouraged to visit museums, galleries, exhibitions, textile design practices and studios. The estimated cost of this is £100 depending on the exhibition/studio you chose to visit.
Materials : You will need to cover the cost of some printing of your work for presentation during the course. You will also need to supply your own materials for some aspects of your studies, which may include sketchbooks, general art materials, and some specialist materials and tools for the Major Project. The approximate cost of material items is estimated at around £500. Costs may vary based on the materials you choose and the approximate costs are given as a guide only
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The Barbara Hepworth Building
Inside the Barbara Hepworth Building
Inside our textiles workshop
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When you enrol as a student of the University, your study and time with us will be governed by our terms and conditions, Handbook of Regulations and associated policies. It is important that you familiarise yourself with these as you will be asked to agree to them when you join us as a student. You will find a guide to the key terms here, along with the Student Protection Plan.
Although we always try and ensure we deliver our courses as described, sometimes we may have to make changes for the following reasons:
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If we propose to make a major change to a course that you are holding an offer for, then we will tell you as soon as possible so that you can decide whether to withdraw your application prior to enrolment. We may occasionally have to withdraw a course you have applied for or combine your programme with another programme if we consider this reasonably necessary to ensure a good student experience, for example if there are not enough applicants. Where this is the case we will notify you as soon as reasonably possible and if you are unhappy with the change we will discuss with you other suitable courses we can transfer your application to. If you do not wish to transfer to another course with us, you may cancel your application and we will refund you any deposits or fees you have paid to us.
Changes to your course after you enrol as a student
Changes to option modules
Where your course allows you to choose modules from a range of options, we will review these each year and change them to reflect the expertise of our staff, current trends in research and as a result of student feedback or demand for certain modules. We will always ensure that you have an equivalent range of options to that advertised for the course. We will let you know in good time the options available for you to choose for the following year.
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We will only make major changes to non-optional modules on a course if it is necessary for us to do so and provided such changes are reasonable. A major change is a change that substantially changes the outcomes, or a significant part of your course, such as the nature of the award or a substantial change to module content, teaching days (part time provision), type of delivery or assessment of the core curriculum. For example, it may be necessary to make a major change to reflect changes in the law or the requirements of the University’s regulators or a commissioning or accrediting body. We may also make changes to improve the course in response to student, examiners’ or other course evaluators’ feedback or to ensure you are being taught current best practice. Major changes may also be necessary because of circumstances outside our reasonable control, such as a key member of staff being unable to teach due to illness, where they have a particular specialism that can’t be adequately covered by other members of staff; or due to pandemics, other disasters (such as fire, flood or war) or changes made by the government.
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