Textile Design (MA)

This Master's programme takes you well beyond surface patterning to explore textile design as a tool for creating functional, aesthetic and innovative solutions across materials and products. You will learn to design complex surfaces, develop new textile-based applications and combine textile thinking with other disciplines to address challenges in performance, sustainability and market relevance. The course encourages experimentation with materials and technologies to conceive future-oriented products and systems.

Teaching is project-driven and interdisciplinary, giving you hands-on experience and opportunities to work within a lively research environment on the Münchberg campus. The curriculum covers textile technology, eco-design, project management and applied design methods so you can tailor your studies toward specific interests and career aims. Strong links to industry and practice-focused modules help you build professional networks and practical skills.

Graduates leave ready for roles across fashion, product and built-environment sectors—anywhere textiles play a role in function or experience. Typical entry-level positions include textile designer, product or apparel designer (fashion, sportswear, workwear), eco-design specialist, interior/spatial designer, automotive designer, graphic designer, or working independently as a freelance designer or entrepreneur in the textile and design industry.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in textile design, apparel design, product design, architecture, interior design or a related field
• Programme language: English

This three-semester master's curriculum intensively develops practical and theoretical expertise in textile design by combining traditional craft with new technologies and methods. You work across studio projects, critical theory and emerging tools (including AI-supported approaches) while tailoring your pathway through a broad elective palette. Individual mentoring from professors is provided throughout, helping you shape a distinct professional profile and refine a market-ready portfolio.

The first two semesters mix mandatory core modules with electives. Core studio and theory modules include Project; AI-Supported Design Strategies; and Theories of Design in semester one, followed by Presentation and Documentation and Textile Products and Interior Design in semester two. Design electives (Advanced Textile Design 1 & 2; Collection Design and Pattern Making 1 & 2) let you deepen specialist studio skills, while management and sustainability electives (e.g., Circular Economy, Sustainable Project Management, Design Management, Renewable Products for Textile Industries, Innovation Management and Strategies, and the German-language course "Agile, traditionelle und hybride Methoden im internationalen Projektmanagement") build business and eco-conscious competencies. The third semester is reserved for a master’s course and the thesis, which typically combines a practical project with a supporting theoretical component developed in consultation with your supervisors.

Key learning outcomes

• Advanced practical and conceptual skills in textile design, integrating traditional techniques and contemporary technologies (including AI-informed strategies).
• Ability to present and document design work professionally and to develop textile products for interior and applied contexts.
• Competence in sustainable and managerial aspects of the textile sector, including circular-economy thinking, eco-labels, project management and innovation strategies.
• Capacity to produce an independent, practice-led master’s thesis with an accompanying theoretical framework and to articulate a clear professional profile.

Program requirements (curriculum-level)

• Duration: three semesters.
• Continuous individual mentorship from teaching staff.
• Semester 1 core modules (all mandatory): Project; AI-Supported Design Strategies; Theories of Design.
• Semester 1 electives: choose at least one design elective (options include Advanced Textile Design 1; Collection Design and Pattern Making 1) and up to two management/sustainability electives (options include Circular Economy, Certificates and Eco-Friendly Labels; Sustainable Project Management; Design Management).
• Semester 2 core modules (all mandatory): Presentation and Documentation; Textile Products and Interior Design.
• Semester 2 electives: choose at least one design elective (Advanced Textile Design 2; Collection Design and Pattern Making 2) and up to two management/sustainability electives (options include Renewable Products for Textile Industries; "Agile, traditionelle und hybride Methoden im internationalen Projektmanagement" (German); Innovation Management and Strategies).
• Elective load: in the first and second semesters you select a total of three electives per semester, with at least one being a design elective.
• Semester 3: Master’s course and master’s thesis—typically a practical project plus a complementary theoretical part, topic chosen and developed in consultation with course lecturers.

Graduates are prepared for a wide range of roles across fashion, sportswear, workwear, eco-design and accessories as well as applications in architecture, temporary architecture, interior design, product design and automotive design. Typical entry positions include textile designer, product designer, apparel designer, eco-design specialist, interior/spatial designer, automotive designer, graphic designer, or freelance designer/entrepreneur in the textile and design industry.

The programme’s emphasis on practical projects, sustainability and interdisciplinary skills also supports careers in design management, innovation roles within textile industries, and self-employment or consultancy where graduates can develop niche or experimental textile solutions for commercial and architectural contexts.