No new students will be accepted into the programme for the 2022–2023 academic year. Find a full explanation in the text below.

In September 2017, with the appointment of Pascale Gatzen, ArtEZ expressed a clear wish for a new course for the Master Fashion Design (MFD). Pascale, known for her holistic approach to fashion, clothing and education, has been working on a new curriculum. In doing so, she focused on how, on the one hand, a Master’s programme can contribute to and respond profoundly to the urgencies of our time and, on the other, how to integrate this vision into the existing educational frameworks.

It has led to a wide range of processes, research projects and outcomes, creating meaningful connections and collaborations between participants and with external partners. This has changed the way we think about fashion, design and even education: working from trust and cultivating the innate wisdom that every person carries inside themselves.

At the same time, the programme is a Master’s programme within the Dutch educational system and must therefore comply with the legal frameworks of the Dutch Higher Education and Research Act (WHW) and the Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders (NVAO). Pascale has come to the conclusion that the further adjustments required to align the programme with the formal Master’s degree structure do not match the educational vision that has flourished within the programme in the past few years.

For this reason, no new students will be accepted into the MFAD degree programme for the 2022–2023 academic year. This will allow ArtEZ to take a step back and rethink and reconsider the future of the Master Fashion Design. For the time being, Pascale will remain involved in the Master Practice Held in Common programme to ensure current students receive the support and resources needed to complete their studies.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact our coordinator: Ms Maïté Tjon A Hie, info@practiceheldincommon.nl.