Fashion Business

BS

Why study Fashion Business?

Fashion is more than trends—it’s a global industry driven by business decisions. The Bachelor of Science in Fashion Business is a joint undergraduate degree between the Lindner College of Business and the College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP) at the University of Cincinnati. The program is designed to prepare graduates who can fluently bridge creative fashion practice and rigorous business decision-making—an increasingly critical need in the global fashion and retail industry. 

At its core, the program intentionally integrates Lindner’s AACSB-accredited business foundation with DAAP’s strengths in design, visual communication, textiles, and trend research. Unlike many fashion-related degrees that sit entirely outside colleges of business, this program ensures students graduate with both deep fashion literacy and a strong grounding in marketing, finance, operations, analytics, and professional practice. 

In this major, students combine a strong business foundation with fashion-focused coursework. Students begin with core business topics such as marketing, management, finance, and data analysis, and core fashion topics like trend forecasting, textiles, design thinking, and visual communication. The curriculum will dig deeper into merchandising, buying, retail planning, and brand strategy. The result is a career-ready degree that connects fashion knowledge with practical business skills. 

Admission Requirements

First-year applicants are those who have not enrolled in college or university courses (other than Dual Enrollment or College Credit Plus courses) since graduating from high school.

More details regarding admissions requirements can be found here.

 

Successful candidates for this program:

  • Are passionate about fashion, brands, and retail
  • Enjoy problem-solving and planning
  • Like working with both creative ideas and data
  • Want a business degree with a creative edge

Graduates of the Fashion Business program pursue careers with fashion brands, retailers, and consumer product companies. Common career paths include: 

  • Buyer or Assistant Buyer
  • Merchandiser or Merchandise Planner
  • Retail or E-commerce Manager
  • Brand or Marketing Coordinator
  • Product or Sales Coordinator
  • Visual Merchandising Specialist
  • Purchasing or Procurement Associate
  • Project or Operations Coordinator 

Employers range from national and global fashion brands to specialty retailers and e-commerce companies. 

The information provided is sourced from a third party, Lightcast. Their product, called Career Coach, combines extensive labor market data from Lightcast and the U.S.Bureau of Labor Statistics. It provides insights on industry, occupation, compensation, and projected growth for each profession. Economic and workforce information is available for various geographic regions. Some careers may require additional training or education.

The Lindner College of Business does not offer a minor in fashion business. Lindner student seeking a similar discipline should consider the Fashion Studies minor.

Lindner students may add a minor or double major in another discipline, allowing them to add a second area of expertise to their chosen major. Students who wish to add a minor should follow these instructions

Qualified UC students enrolled in non-Lindner baccalaureate degree programs may also pursue a discipline specific minor in the Lindner College of Business or a minor in business administration, which follows a sequence of courses designed to give them experience in the business fundamental disciplines. To add a minor, students who wish add a minor should follow these instructions

For more application information and a complete list of minor options, visit the Business Minors website

Please note: students may not double count courses between Lindner majors and minors. 

Academic advisors are trained to assist students and are available on an appointment basis and on a walk-in basis during specific periods. They can help with questions about scheduling, academic planning, course pre-requisites, the curriculum, and how study abroad and co-op fit with degree plans. 

The Carl H. Lindner College of Business has assigned advisors for all students. Current students who need assistance may:

  • Contact their advisor in My Bearcats Network
  • Come to the Advising Suite in Lindner Hall
  • Telephone (513) 556-7030

Prospective students interested in transitioning to Lindner are invited to attend an information session.  Information session dates and times can be found online under transition students. Additional details about planning your transition can be supported by the Transition Advising Center. Transition students must attend orientation before registering for Lindner classes.

Success in today’s business environment is primarily driven by who students are and how they act. Accordingly, Lindner offers an innovative approach to business education that we call PACE. The PACE framework allows students to create a customized roadmap for developing proficiency in Professionalism, Academics, Character and Engagement to ensure they can successfully pursue the personal and professional goals they are passionate about.

Professionalism

  • Lindner’s real-world learning opportunities ensure that our students learn the professional communication skills they need to excel in today’s business environment.

  • Lindner’s Career Services (career services) team works with undergraduate students to help them obtain real world work experience through Lindner's Universal Co-operative Education requirement. All new first-year students must complete two co-op rotations to meet graduation requirements. Career services guides students in developing resumes, learning interviewing techniques, and obtaining the practical skills that fulfill the expectations of businesses. 

Academics

  • Lindner students are distinct individuals with unique goals and interests, and that is why our curriculum ensures that students have a foundational understanding of the key business functions. The breadth of majors and minors allows students to add a second major or minor that will customize their education for added value. Students can augment in-class learning with co-operative education, internships and international study abroad experiences.

Character

  • Character means having the strength and conviction to lead and work with teams made up of people with differing backgrounds and viewpoints. Lindner students build these skills through hands-on, collaborative projects, often working with Cincinnati businesses.

Engagement

  • Students’ lives and careers will be comprised of more than just work. Community service, citizenship and organizational involvement are all key components of personal growth. Lindner empowers students to get involved in the things they care about via the student organizations within the Lindner College of Business, the 300-plus organizations within the University of Cincinnati and ongoing partnerships with service organizations.

Lindner Business Honors (LBH) attracts ambitious students who are intellectually curious and face new challenges head on. In alignment with the college’s unique distinctions, Honors is built on four pillars:  

  • Dedicated Infrastructure of Honors Faculty and Staff: A team of outstanding professionals to help student’s leverage the skills and knowledge they develop to pursue new experiences. 

  • Foundation for Exploration, Freedom for Flexibility: Students will utilize their learning communities to explore all that Lindner has to offer. 

  • Specialized Academic and Experiential Learning: An accelerated, interdisciplinary curriculum with problem solving as a common thread. 

  • Personalized Honors Communities: Personalized communities that support the entire college experience and foster a special sense of legacy. 

The Lindner College of Business offers a variety of study abroad programs in every continent of the globe ranging from one week to a full semester abroad. General international business and culture programs are offered to freshmen and sophomores while discipline specific programs are offered to upper classmen. Students receive credit toward their degree, while gaining real-world international experience in their area of study. Study Abroad includes academic coursework at UC, and lectures, company visits and cultural activities overseas. To learn more, visit Study Abroad

Universal Co-operative Education provides students with real-world work experiences with leading businesses throughout the United States.** These opportunities are the perfect time for students to “test” out their major(s) and discover which type(s) of work they most enjoy. Our employer partners pay students real money and assign students real work (versus just “busy work”) which means the co-op experience provides Lindner students with a huge competitive advantage when they enter the workforce. Because different employers and industries have different staffing needs throughout the year, co-op may be part-time, full-time, or during various terms. New first year students must complete two co-op rotations to meet graduation requirements.

**International co-ops are possible/supported but not common.

The degree of Bachelor of Science in Fashion Business is granted to those who satisfactorily complete the required coursework for the specified degree, with university, major, and minor (if declared) grade point averages of 2.0 or better. All students must meet the residency requirements of the college (50% of Fashion Business core and major coursework, and the last 30 credit hours of the degree must be taken in residence) and must contract for graduation with an academic advisor. 

Students wishing to transfer to the UC Lindner College of Business may find additional details about transfer requirements here.  

Students may apply online through University of Cincinnati Admissions. Lindner admits transfer students to begin in each academic term.  

Transfer Articulation Agreements & Pathways  

UC has developed clear pathways (articulation agreements) between select associate degrees at partner institutions and compatible bachelor’s degrees at UC. Each pathway includes a Transfer Degree Map that offers a semester-by-semester course comparison to assist with your transfer planning.

To learn more about changing majors at UC, visit Lindner College of Business: Transfer & Transition Admission Requirements.

The UC Lindner College of Business welcomes international applicants who seek a challenging academic environment. If your native language is not English, you will be required to take an English proficiency examination. Please reference the Office of Admissions Web site with international student information for the Lindner minimum standards.  

International applicants at the first-year level must have a strong mathematics background and be prepared to begin the college's calculus sequence. 

The University of Cincinnati requires that all transcripts be official copies with an official translation attached. Lindner requires all students who have earned credit at foreign universities to have the documents evaluated by a credit evaluation service prior to registering for classes at the university. A copy of the evaluation must be received by Lindner at least two weeks prior to the date the student is scheduled to register for classes. 

Such an evaluation may be obtained from: 

 

World Education Services 

568 Broadway, Suite 301 

P.O. Box 745 

New York, NY 10013 

USA 

Web address: wes.org 

 

Other such agencies may be located via the Internet. 

 

Although the Lindner College of Business does not require international applicants to take the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) or the American College Test (ACT), it is highly recommended. 

Contact the Office of Admissions for further information regarding admission procedures and deadlines for Lindner. 

Explore unique opportunities, faculty, and resources available in Fashion Business

Application Deadlines

Prospective Freshmen - Additional details regarding the freshman application deadlines can be found here.

Changing Majors within UC - Students applying for admission to the Lindner College of Business from other UC colleges should complete a Change of College Web Form in accordance with the?application deadlines printed on the form.

Transferring to UC - Additional details regarding the transfer application for admission can be found here

 

The University of Cincinnati and all regional campuses are accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.

 

The UC Lindner College of Business has been accredited continuously since 1919 by AACSB International, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, the premier accrediting agency for business colleges.

Contact Information

Carl H. Lindner College of Business Admissions
Carl H. Lindner Hall
Cincinnati, OH 45221-0020
(513) 556-7030
business.ug@uc.edu

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Program Code: 22BAC-FASHBUS-BS