Fashion design careers mean you’ll more than likely brush shoulders with fashionistas from around the world. Learn greatly about the foundation of fashion and the craft of handwoven fabrics and textiles. Different cultures bring different points of view, different tastes, and thus, different styles. These different styles marinate together, create new trends, and keep fashion culture hot and thriving. You won’t see any drab threads walking the catwalk here. 

Italy. We’d be remiss for not mentioning fashion design courses in Italy! The international fashion capital of Milan is home to some of the finest fabrics known to grace the fashion world, not to mention top fashion colleges. Designers such as Armani, Dolce and Gabbana, and Roberto Cavalli reign over the fashion district, where shoppers flock to pay an arm and a leg for designer goods or just window shop the high end boutiques. You’ll also get to soak in Italy’s innate simplistic yet chic style. Milan is also known for its architectural gems – one of these jaw dropping, historical buildings may just house the next fashion week!

France. The city of lights and love, fashion schools in Paris are known for a transcendent vogue culture. The list of designer all-stars to emerge from Parisian culture seems infinite – topping the charts are Pierre Cardin, Yves Saint Laurent, and Christian Dior. It may have its own fashion week, but you can catch high-end fashion on the streets of Paris any day. A proper Parisian cannot emerge from their home in anything less than an effortless, minimalistic, but slightly daring outfit. Of course, no look is complete without the perfect pair of Louboutins, a trench, and mon dieu, don’t forget the scarf! Grab a warm croissant or pain au chocolat and stroll along the Seine River as a student of French fashion at some of the world’s best fashion design schools.

Japan. Home to a plethora of fashion styles, cultures, and subcultures that it’s challenging for even the most dedicated fashion founder to follow, fashion design schools in Japan are unlike anything anywhere else in the world. Tokyo is at the head of this funky fashion empire, and it all can be found among the eclectic, Japanese fashion fans. Bright colors, trendy platforms, and bold shapes take precedence, but each street fashion model has a clear unique quality that defines them in a crowd—great news for a fashion merchandising student! With a wider spectrum of styles, you can be sure that the clothes you choose to line the racks will appeal to someone.

United States. The city that never sleeps, New York, is home to fashion design universities and big names such as Vera Wang, Marc Jacobs, and Calvin Klein. It hosts the infamous Fashion Week, where lists of designers like Tom Ford, Coach, and Tommy Hilfiger boast their high-end designs on the catwalk. You’ll feel ultra-inspired outside of the design studio, too, thanks the dynamic concrete playground that attracts cultures and people of every corner of the world.

While the number one fashion school in the world is debateable, we think the above shortlist gives you a good headstart.