London Fashion Week is an edgy, dramatic and slightly chaotic affair. Designers rush to put the finishing touches to their creations and models are primped and primed to sashay down the catwalk in front of select clientele, magazine editors and photographers’ flashbulbs. It’s make or break for the reputations of the UK’s most established brands such as Paul Smith and Matthew Williamson and its newer stars, including Gareth Pugh. But the hard work really begins years earlier, at university.

The fashion industry is very good at selling the bright lights and glamour, says Andrew Groves, a course director in fashion design at the University of Westminster. For graduates, the reality can be a disappointment. “Students do their runway show and expect Valentino to call up and ask them to take over the house,” he says. But the big break is more likely to come from a solid portfolio, a network of contacts or work experience.

Few become the next Alexander McQueen or John Galliano. The most creative students can be the hardest to place, says Claire Swift, director of programmes for womenswear and surface textiles at the London College of Fashion (LCF). Simply put, there are fewer opportunities at the top end of the market. This drives about 10 per cent of Swift’s students to collaborate with others or go into business by themselves. “Once they have graduated they go on to do business courses and enterprise schemes,” she says. “The degree course is a springboard.”

A placement is the best place to learn what being a commercial designer is really about. Working in a design studio requires the ability to blend in, Groves says. “You have to be adaptable. Whatever your style, you have to work for another designer. It’s about submerging your ego under someone else’s name.”

Understanding where you want to work – whether it’s Marks & Spencer or a trendy label such as Cassette Playa – is part of the battle. “Then be really determined”, Groves says. Technical roles such as pattern-cutting are often overlooked because it's not considered to be sexy. It is, however, very smart. “You will always be in work and it’s probably paid twice as much as a designer,” he says.

Sarah Turton, the menswear design director for River Island, leads a team of 25 people, from graphic designers to garment technologists and, of course, designers. She receives about two portfolios a week from aspiring designers. To have a chance of landing a job at the high street retailer, a candidate needs to have a personality that fits the team, show an understanding of the brand by tailoring their portfolio and have visited the stores.

The field is competitive, so students need to get as much work experience as possible before they graduate. The high street is a thrilling place to work, she says. “It’s just as creative and just as interesting [as working at the top coutu-riers].” And you see people wearing your designs on your way to work.

Julia Ison-Stierer won the University of Westminster’s student of the year award. Her quirky neon sportswear also won her a job at Adidas. “[Since] I graduated I have been surprised at the opportunities I have been given,” she says.

Talent, luck and determination – as well as work experience at Giles Deacon and River Island – all played a part in earning those opportunities. Having been selected to show her designs on the catwalk at Graduate Fashion Week, Ison-Stierer received an e-mail from someone in the design team at Adidas who suggested that she apply for a job on Stella McCartney’s range for the sportswear label. She received a polite rejection but persevered and applied for an internship even though, as a graduate, she didn’t qualify. The approach paid off and she is about to fly to Adidas HQ in Germany to start on a temporary contract. It’s an opportunity that Ison-Stierer hoped might come her way in five years’ time. “The fact that it has happened now is almost frightening,” she says.

Many graduates opt to work off the runway and become stylists, fashion journalists or fashion PRs. One of those is Tanya Shaw, the divisional director at Stephanie Churchill PR (SCPR), who took a four-year degree course at LCF. She spent her year working in industry at SCPR and took a job there when she graduated.

“I loved the PR environment because it’s so varied and involves so many elements of the industry, from creative product development sessions, to photo-shoots, fashion shows and press launches.” she says.

“I still get a buzz from coming up with new ideas to promote a brand and then watching them work.”

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