Choices galore for fashion school graduates

Choices galore for fashion school graduates

By Agni Amorita

JAKARTA (JP): About two decades ago, Indonesia's fashion
industry went through its first boom period. Unfortunately, it
did not lead to the emergence of local experts in the field.

"When I returned home from my fashion studies in Europe, I
found that most fashion practitioners were expatriates," said
Susan Budihardjo, one of the country's noted fashion designers.

Motivated by the situation, Susan -- who studied at the Berlin
Letteeverain Academy and London School of Fashion Design --
decided to set up the Susan Budihardjo Fashion School in 1980.

"I was the only teacher then," she said. Today, there are
branches in Surabaya, Semarang and Denpasar, with more than 4,000
alumni.

Susan's example inspired others to set up fashion schools. In
Jakarta alone, there are now three fashion schools under the name
Budihardjo, although they are not affiliated in any way with
Susan.

"I was born Eddy Budihardjo," said Eddy Budihardjo, who set up
his Budihardjo Fashion School on May 1, 1985. He had the school's
name patented on March 2, 1994. "On March 5, 1994, I also
patented my own technique of making a pattern in one go. This is
now known as the Eddy Budihardjo System of Dressmaking Pattern
Construction." In 1987, he also patented a multipurpose ruler.

Apart from local fashion schools, ones holding franchises of
international fashion institutions also have flourished in
Jakarta.

"The fashion sector holds quite promising career prospects,"
Susan acknowledged. She said dozens of her former students were
famous fashion designers, or made a living in the garment
industry and mass media.

"It is a pity that many fashion school students still cling to
the notion that they must become designers after graduation,"
Susan said. "If they cannot become designers, they think they
will be considered failures. This misleading notion still
prevails."

The misconception was confirmed by Dini Novita, marketing
manager of LaSalle College International, Jakarta.

"In fact, the fashion sector offers a great variety of job
opportunities," she said. "One can be a fashion marketer. In
fact, fashion marketing is one of the strong points of La Salle
Jakarta, because few fashion schools in the capital include
fashion marketing in their curriculum."

Dini observed that fashion marketing in Indonesia was only
considered a subsector of the fashion business which remains
dominated by expatriates.

"In terms of job description, a fashion marketing position is
interesting because it requires you to be always in touch with
the development of the world's fashion trends, and then translate
the trends into reality to conform to Indonesian culture.
Besides, this job also entails frequent overseas trips. So, it
both challenges our sense of innovation and provides a lot of
fun."

Graduates of fashion schools today find themselves with a much
greater variety of jobs than before.

"Apart from being fashion designers and patternmakers, they
also can make careers as buyers, merchandisers, costume
designers, fashion consultants, fashion illustrators, fashion
coordinators, textile designers and even trend researchers," said
Maria Tinche, marketing manager of ESMOD Jakarta, a fashion
school based in Paris, France.

ESMOD, which stands for Ecole Superieure des Arts et
Techniques de la Mode, was established in 1841. "It is the
world's first fashion school," said Tinche.

Because of its international standards, ESMOD sends teachers
from Paris to its branches the world over.

"The language of instruction is French so in each class there
is an interpreter who will tell the students in Indonesian the
teaching materials," said Tinche, adding that some students
hailed from Korea, Malaysia and Japan. "Besides, ESMOD students
will have an opportunity to join a student exchange program
involving all ESMOD schools in 17 countries."

ESMOD's fees are relatively high because it is an
international school. "For a one-year program, the tuition fee is
Rp 36 million while the international diploma program, which
lasts three years, costs Rp 35 million per year."

She added there was a maximum 25 students to each class.

At LaSalle Jakarta, which has its headquarters in Montreal,
Canada, tuition fees are billed in U.S. dollars. "The
registration fee is US$150 and the tuition fee $2,100 per
semester," said Dini Novita.

LaSalle Jakarta has two programs -- three semesters and six
semesters -- with each semester lasting 3.5 months. The school is
a joint venture involving several Indonesian entrepreneurs --
including Poppy Dharsono, Hariyadie Sukamdani, Argo Manunggal
Group, Great River Group, the Indonesian Textile Association --
and the Canadian International Development Agency.

Local fashion schools set lower fees. Susan Budihardjo, for
example, charges Rp 4.5 million for a 10-month course. Eddy
Budihardjo sets tuition at Rp 7 million for a course lasting 1.5
years.

But students with their hearts set on studying at fashion
school are unlikely to be concerned by the cost. More and more of
them are enrolling at fashion schools in the belief that their
skills will be needed in the effort to turn Jakarta into one of
Asia's fashion hubs.