Technical Apparel Design

Program Introduction

You’re the person who reads gear reviews from start to finish. You notice the seams on a jacket. You’re constantly wondering how the right piece of equipment can help someone go faster, stay warmer, or make it out alive. That instinct has a home here.

In The KPU Wilson School of Design’s Post-Baccalaureate Diploma in Technical Apparel Design program, you’ll turn your curiosity into tangible skill. Research methods for understanding users come first, including interviews, field visits, and how to translate what you find into a strategic design direction. Technical drawing and production skills follow, moving from concept sketches to manufacturable garments. And the business side is in there too, so you know how to pitch and sell the products you design.

You’ll work in the heart of British Columbia’s renowned technical apparel industry, alongside the businesses driving it — from Arc’teryx and lululemon to Mustang Survival and MEC. Over four semesters, you’ll build towards a final capstone project and you’ll present that vision to the companies you actually want to work for.

What it looks like to design technical garments for real-world situations:

Why Study Technical Apparel Design?

A Wilson School grad on the hands-on nature of the Technical Apparel Design program:

Here’s what makes our program unique:

With only a small number of top applicants admitted each year, you get real one-on-one time as you build your skills.
The curriculum is always up to date. Our Advisory Committee helps us adapt quickly to changes in the marketplace.
You’ll learn from people working in the industry right now, through guest lectures and site visits.
You’ll share the Wilson School of Design’s purpose-built home with designers from every other discipline, so collaboration happens naturally, not by accident.
You’ll leave with more than design skills. You’ll know how to think strategically about everything from apparel to product design and beyond.
Already working in a related field? You don’t have to put your career on hold. Our flexible schedule, plus credit for prior learning or past coursework, can help you get there faster.
Grads are recruited by dozens of technical apparel companies right here in the Lower Mainland, and some go on to build careers in the U.S. or overseas.

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Who Studies Technical Apparel Design?

Technical Apparel Design draws people from all kinds of backgrounds: fashion, product design, engineering, kinesiology, business, and more. Maybe you’re a designer who wants to work with performance materials, or an engineer drawn to how gear actually works on a moving body. What you share is curiosity. You notice how gear performs under stress, you want to know why it works, and you want to make it better.

You don’t need a design degree to find a home here. What you’ll build is technical fluency: how to research what a user actually needs, how to draft and construct a garment built for performance, and how to think strategically about the business behind it. If you’re an independent thinker who likes figuring things out rather than being told the answer, you’ll thrive here.

This grad was inspired to design a jacket that regulates body temperature:

Admission Requirements

Here’s what you’ll need to do in order to apply to the Wilson School of Design:

Demonstrate successful completion of a recognized undergraduate degree, or a design-related diploma or associate degree, along with a minimum of 5 years of related work experience.
Meet our English Proficiency Requirement.
Submit an Entrance Package.
Complete an Interview.

Click the links below to explore detailed requirements about this program.

How to Apply Admission Requirements

Technical Apparel Design Grad Profile

Thiago Bazzi had never sewn a stitch before he walked into the Wilson School of Design. The Technical Apparel Design program changed that. In fact, it changed how he thinks about design altogether. Thiago says he learned that everything starts with the person wearing the gear. He gives the example of a climber, saying they need a harness that won’t cover the pockets they’re reaching for. In his time at Wilson School, Thiago and his classmates went straight to the source, from kayaking trips to visits with local firefighters, to understand what real users actually need. After graduation, Thiago went on to become a Product Developer at Arc’teryx, guiding designs from initial concept to final production.

“I had never made a garment before I joined. I know where to look for the answers that I need now. The Technical Apparel Design program empowered me to communicate better the things that we need. I think design is just the art of getting something out of your head and just putting it into the world.”