Students From Central Saint Martins, FIT And The New School Reflect On The Road To Graduation

The semesters leading up to graduation can often be anxiety-ridden. Many in school can speak to feeling as though they wish they could fast forward to their life post-grad. Racking up credits and also relying on internships to potentially turn into full-time roles can feel petrifying like you’re in limbo. Similarly, fashion design students have high expectations of what their lives must amount to after clocking in hundreds of hours crafting their universes. To get a bird’s eye view of the hardship and uncertainty some students often face, we connected with three upcoming fashion graduates from programs that are considered prestigious. These individuals detailed their experiences in school in addition to what’s potentially next for them. Their fears are valid, but so is the fact that their futures are just as bright as their ambitions.

The esteemed Central Saint Martins is a university in London that has groomed some of the top designers in the fashion industry from Alexander McQueen to the eccentric Mowalola Ogunlesi. Womenswear design student Traiceline Pratt is excited to get her start in the fashion industry. Pratt already received an undergraduate degree in fine arts at North Dakota University. Now in her master’s program at CSM, she has had designer David Kappo as her guide and mentor, they’ve pushed her to discover her untapped potential and the places her designs could take her.

 “I feel really good [about graduating] in all honesty, I’ve had my time in the university system and it was something I enjoyed, but it’s extremely safe within the four walls of CSM. I have no fear in walking out of the doors and diving head first into the industry,” Pratt tells ESSENCE.com. “[It may be] a hustle at first, or smooth going from the jump [but] I’m ready, I’ve prepared myself for this and I think my designs speak for themselves to say I can hold my own against what’s out there already.” 

Pratt’s confidence isn’t blind, she’s seen what it takes to succeed through watching other graduates perfect their crafts. She feels prepared and is confident that CSM has given her the right tools to contribute in a high capacity to the fashion industry. Pratt was sure to let the school’s professionals know what her goals were immediately, and the tutors respected it and pushed her toward the direction she wanted to go in. With designers Fabio Piras and Kappo’s contributions as her mentors and constructive criticism on her portfolio, Pratt’s runway for graduation looked cohesive with leathers, knits, and furs. Pratt plays with textures in her project, adding fur not as a collar but rather as a hood on a jacket while trousers made with contrasting fabrics came down the runway. Her version of luxury womenswear looks playful with 3D fuzzy tops, a silver floor-length puff dress, and collared shirts with exaggerated arm cuffs.

In New York, the Fashion Institute of Technology has created household names ranging from Calvin Klein to Carolina Herrera. Fashion design student Elijah English is aiming to be just as large as these two. “It’s bittersweet moving on from college. I’ll miss the resources and access, but I’m going to enjoy working on things that excite me rather than getting a grade,” English said. Although he’s excited to join the workforce, his greatest fear at the moment is being stuck at a job that won’t make him happy. This is a notion that many generations can relate to, but since he’s a part of Gen Z it feels fitting and personal. He adds that school wasn’t the sole thing that made him feel prepared for reality after graduation. English notes that work and his experiences outside of school prepared him. 

“I didn’t feel like my school was keeping up with what I was seeing on the day-to-day,” he said. “ [I] often had to prove myself worthy before getting any kind of helpful input or assistance which felt like a backward approach. “I say this with grace because I believe the industry operates in a similar manner,” English reflects candidly. His work leans toward luxury streetwear with mixes of functional details like bags made solely from zippers and textured mohair blazers. He’s done freelance design for KidSuper in 2020.

At Parsons which is also referred to as The New School in New York City the alumnae who are inspiring prospective students include Tom Ford, Mara Hoffman, and iconic fashion figure Willi Smith. Yetunde Sapp, a fashion design student, is terrified of graduating. She’s been in school for six years, delaying her graduation out of mostly fear. However, her college experience has been anything but smooth with the global pandemic and a recent school-wide strike slowing down her graduation process even more. Sapp originally started at Parsons as a fine arts major only to transition to design, unsure of what to expect. She tells ESSENCE.com that finishing her last year of undergrad is bittersweet. “I constantly think about all the things I could have done more of or the ways I could have gone harder because going to fashion school can be so intense and highly competitive—-something I didn’t quite feel when pursuing fine arts,” Sapp shared. 

Upon graduating, Sapp realizes she’s not as excited to design clothing anymore, but rather “rethink” and reimagine spaces and systems that clothes operate in. “I have to think about what role I play within this fashion system which is very layered, and at its root tied to our disconnection to who is making the things we consume and how we play a part in that.” Although she’s gotten her education in fashion, Sapp is an artist at heart. Through Parsons, she’s been able to explore other mediums beyond fashion and even created a community of women of color artists called SLACHOUZ. “There’s no telling what I may do next, but I’m open to what the world has to offer,” she adds. Sapp’s designs are whimsical with a puffy textured pant design, zigzag hand-knit sweaters, and lots of vibrant colors, mainly green, Sapp’s favorite color. Her clothing pieces always lean toward wearable art with her signature figures that tend to hand paint onto pieces and T-shirts. 

Graduating and all its transitions can be a daunting new venture into the world, but from what these students have endured and triumphed it seems that the fashion industry is in good hands. From a global pandemic to roadblocks of proving themselves Black fashion students show resilience, therefore proving themselves already.