All students earning their undergraduate degree in a Design discipline from the OSU College of Business complete a common design core. This core, consisting of about 100 credits across all four years, provides students with a strong design foundation.

Apparel design graduates will be professionally competent to:

  1. Describe the roles and functions of industry sectors involved in the planning, creation, production, merchandising, distribution, and consumption of textiles, apparel, and footwear products.
  2. Explain how social, environmental, political, cultural, and economic systems, as well as geography relate to the planning, creation, production, merchandising, distribution, and consumption of textile, apparel, and footwear products and resulting company performance.
  3. Explain consumer behavior theory as it applies to the pre-acquisition through to consumption of textile, apparel, and footwear products.
  4. Assess the suitability of and recommend viable materials, trims, construction, coloration, and finishes for specific end-uses.
  5. Apply creative, analytical, and technical skills in a collaborative environment that includes calendar development, research, line planning and development, costing, product creation, evaluation/testing, and merchandising.
  6. Apply consumer behavior theory and research throughout the product creation process to design and develop products that are in-line with users' needs.
  7. Verbally and visually communicate a design process from concept to completion.
  8. Apply industry relevant skills in the development and production of textile and apparel products in a manner consistent with industry practices.
  9. Create a technical package that incorporates technical illustration, construction details, measurement specifications, and material, trim, prints, coloration, and finish details.
  10. Develop logical product creation strategies regarding materials, trims, construction, print, coloration, and finishes for a specific end use.
  11. Evaluate the prototype in terms of fit, construction, aesthetics, and marketability and make revisions to improve the design.