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Academic Majors

 


Apparel, Retail Merchandising and Design/Retail Merchandising

Students majoring in apparel, retail merchandising and design choose between two options - retail merchandising and apparel studies. Students in the retail merchandising option can make themselves marketable for a variety of careers in retailing fields. Retail merchandising is such a part of everyday life that people often take it for granted, but it’s one of the fastest changing, most dynamic industries in the world today. 

Students in retail merchandising choose to focus on either textile product merchandising or interior merchandising. The textile product merchandising focus includes courses such as sewn product manufacturing and analysis, consumer behavior, history of fashion, product development, dress and human behavior. The interior merchandising focus includes courses such as the history of interiors, the interior design process and interior graphics – knowledge needed to enter retail interior careers. 

Retail Merchandising PDF

See below for basic program information and sample curriculum. For more information, visit the department website: Retail Merchandising

Background Information

New retail opportunities are emerging around the world. National and global retailers provide goods and services to consumers, via multichannel retailing involving traditional stores, online venues, mobile apps, social networking sites, catalogs, and direct mail. Retailers use state-of-the-art technology to respond instantaneously to changing consumer demand from around the world. The dynamic environment in the retail industry provide many exciting opportunities for college graduates interested in the competitive, fast paced field of retailing.

Career Opportunities

Retailers undertake a wide variety of activities. They raise capital from financial institutions; purchase goods and services; develop accounting and management information systems to control operations; manage warehouses and distribution systems; design and develop new products; predict and act upon fashion trends; and undertake activities such as advertising, promotion, sales force management and market research. Thus, retail firms worldwide offer opportunities for people with a wide variety of skills and education. 

Graduates of the retail merchandising program hold positions such as buyers, store managers, visual merchandisers, regional managers, store owners, interior merchandisers, sourcing specialists, social media specialists, account executives and fashion forecasters with such companies as Target, Kohl’s, Scheels, Macy’s, Merchology, Evereve, Best Buy, Nordstrom, The Gap, The Buckle, Evine Live, Nike, Forever 21, Old Navy, and Duluth Trading Company, to name a few. Many stores limit their management positions to employees who have completed a four-year degree. Often, recruiters consider the degree a minimum requirement for a management and/or buying career. A degree in the retail merchandising option provides students with a firm grasp of business strategy. Graduates have a solid educational foundation that allows them flexibility in their career paths to move into positions in the wholesale sector, finance, marketing and sales. 

The Program

Positions available in the retail merchandising field are diverse with differing needs; therefore, this option provides students with an educational background that can fit into both short- and long-range career goals. The course of study includes classes on buying and merchandising, global retailing, retail market management, merchandise promotion, financial management and control, global fashion economics, consumer behavior related to apparel selection decisions, and the analysis of textile and apparel products using textile testing equipment. Digital technology for the apparel and retail industry is introduced and reinforced in several courses. 

A minor in business administration provides a business background that prepares students for in-depth work in the retail merchandising area. An overall 2.5-grade point average is required for the business minor option. 

Our Contacts Beyond College Walls

Special features of NDSU’s retail merchandising option that help prepare students for a retail merchandising career include (1) acquiring sales and/or merchandising experience and earning college credit through summer retail internships, (2) participating in study tours to national or international destinations while earning college credit, and (3) obtaining a minor in business administration while earning the Bachelor’s degree in Apparel, Retail Merchandising and Design. Another choice some students make is to attend the world-renowned Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in New York City. Students can take advantage of international study abroad experiences made available by NDSU’s study abroad programs. 

Through the above-mentioned experiences, students gain valuable sales and/or retail merchandising experience before graduation while a faculty member helps them gain insight into store functions. Students are encouraged to work in retail stores part-time while in school because learning takes place on the job as well as in the classroom. The program’s study tours expose students to the fast pace of the constantly changing merchandising world. 

Graduates of our program have a better knowledge and understanding of (1) textile products and how these products can be expected to perform, (2) product development, (3) how fashion trends evolve, (4) the impact of consumer behavior on the fashion and interiors industry, and (5) skills in managing and/or buying soft goods and interior products. 

Extra-Curricular Opportunities

The Fashion, Apparel and Business Organization (FABO) allows interested students with additional contacts with professionals and opportunities for leadership. The annual spring fashion show is one of the organization’s major events. Other organizations in the college and University provide further opportunities for personal and professional growth. 

Scholarships

Several scholarships are designated for students majoring in apparel, retail merchandising and design; additional scholarships are available to all college majors.

For further information on scholarships visit: www.ndsu.edu/adhm/apparel_retail_merchandising_design/overview/scholarships/

Transfer Students

A sample plan of study is provided; other combinations are possible. Students who plan to transfer to NDSU should contact the Department of Apparel, Design and Hospitality Management for guidance in selecting courses before or during their first year.

Apparel, Retail Merchandising and Design Plan of Study - Retail Merchandising with Interior Merchandising Focus - visit ndsu.edu/bulletin

Apparel, Retail Merchandising and Design Plan of Study - Retail Merchandising with Textile Product Merchandising Focus

Please note this is a sample plan of study and not an official curriculum. Actual student schedules for each semester will vary depending on start year, education goals, applicable transfer credit, and course availability. Students are encouraged to work with their academic advisor on a regular basis to review degree progress and customize an individual plan of study. 

Freshman

Fall

Credits

Spring

Credits

ADHM 171 Fashion Dynamics

3

ACCT 102 Fundamentals of Accounting

3

ENGL 110 College Composition I

4

ADHM 181 Aesthetics and Visual Analysis of Apparel Products           

3

CSCI 114 or MIS 116 Microcomputer Packages or Business Use of Computers                     

3

COMM 110 Fundamentals of Public Speaking

3

Gen Ed Science & Technology Lab

4

ENGL 120 College Composition II

3

Gen Ed Wellness

2

Minor/Elective/STATS prereq

3

 16

 

15

Sophomore

Fall

Credits

Spring

Credits

ADHM 310 History of Fashion

3

ADHM 271 Visual Merchandising and Promotion

3

PSYC 111 Introduction to Psychology

3

ADHM 272 Product Development

3

Gen Ed Science & Technology

3

ECON 105 Elements of Economics

3

STAT 330 Introductory Statistics*

3

Gen Ed Humanities & Fine Arts

3

ADHM 489 Study Tour**

1

Elective

3

 13

15

Junior

Fall

Credits

Spring

Credits

Summer

Credits

ADHM 366 Textiles

3

ADHM 370 Sewn-Product Manufacturing and Analysis

3

ADHM 496 Field Experience

3-6

ADHM 367 Textiles Laboratory

1

ADHM 386 Merchandise Planning and Buying

3

 

ADHM 372 Global Retailing

3

MGMT 320 Foundations of Management

3

 

ADHM 375 Professional Development

1

MRKT 410 Consumer Behavior

3

 

ENGL 320 Business and Professional Writing

3

Elective

3

 

MRKT 320 Foundations of Marketing

3

 

 

15

 

15

 

3-6

Senior

Fall

Credits

Spring

Credits

ADHM 385 Global Fashion Economics

3

ADHM 481 Capstone in Apparel, Retail Merchandising and Design

3

ADHM 470 Retail Financial Management and Control

3

Business or Prof Elective

3

ADHM 486 Dress and Human Behavior

3

COMM 383/BUSN 383  Organizational Communication I or 
(use alternate COMM course)

3

MRKT 362 Foundations of Retailing

3

Prof Elective

3

Prof Elective

3

Elective

4

 

15

 

16

Total Credits: 122-125

*

Prerequisites may apply.

**

 Minimum 1 credit Study Tour in consultation with your advisor. Three-credit Study Tour is typically offered in Summer

View NDSU equivalencies of transfer courses at: www.ndsu.edu/transfer/equivalencies

Evelyn Morrow Lebedeff Hall
Room 270


Evelyn Morrow Lebedeff Hall is located in the center of campus on Centennial Boulevard and is connected to the east end of the Katherine Kilbourne Burgum Family Life Center (Campus Map)

Contact Information

 

College of Human Sciences and Education
North Dakota State University
Dept 2600 PO Box 6050
Fargo, ND 58108-6050

Phone: (701) 231-8211
Web: www.ndsu.edu/hse/

                        or

Apparel, Merchandising, Interior Design and Hospitality Management
North Dakota State University 
Dept 2610 PO BOX 6050
Fargo, ND 58108-6050

Phone: (701) 231-8604
Web: www.ndsu.edu/adhm/

 

Office of Admission
North Dakota State University
Ceres 114
Dept 5230 PO Box 6050
Fargo, ND 58108-6050

Phone: (701) 231-8643 / Fax: (701) 231-8802
Email: NDSU.Admission@ndsu.edu
Web: www.ndsu.edu/admission/

 

 

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Office of Admission
North Dakota State University
Phone: +1 (701) 231-8643 / Fax: (701) 231-8802
Campus address: Ceres Hall 114
Physical/delivery address: 1301 Administration Ave., Fargo, ND 58102
Mailing address: NDSU Dept. 5230 / PO Box 6050 / Fargo, ND 58108-6050
Page manager: NDSU Webmaster

Last Updated: Sunday, January 17, 2021 11:21:10 PM
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