The British Fashion Council today announced that its 2009 Colleges Council Graduate Preview Day, formerly known as the ‘Colleges Council Open Day’, will take place on Tuesday 28th April 2009, between 10.30am – 5pm at the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), 66 Portland Place, W1.


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This annual event brings industry insiders from media, recruitment, retail, design, manufacturing, sales, marketing and PR together to preview the work of graduates who will be entering the job market later in the year. Twenty seven leading fashion colleges will be exhibiting portfolios of their 2009 graduates’ work.

Exhibiting colleges will be judged for The Drapers College Portfolio Awards in association with the British Fashion Council. The Awards will recognise the college that brings the ‘Best Portfolio Based on Overall Presentation’ and for the first time, ‘The Best Portfolio for Fashion Illustration’.

In addition there will be an award presented for the best Digital Presentation portfolio, recognising the increasing relevance of this medium. The awards will be judged by a selection panel of senior industry members, with the Award announcements taking place at 3.30pm on the day. Last year’s Best College Portfolio Award went to Kingston University, runners up were Edinburgh College of Art and London College of Fashion.

Hilary Riva, Chief Executive of the British Fashion Council commented, “This event continues to provide unparalleled opportunities for the country’s top fashion colleges to present outstanding upcoming talent direct to the industry their students aim to work in.”

Lauretta Roberts, Editor of Drapers comments on the importance of the Portfolio Awards, “This is the third year Drapers has been involved in BFC Colleges Council Portfolio Awards and we’re delighted to be associated with it. We consider it a huge privilege to get such early access to the work of the future stars of fashion and to recognise those colleges who have nurtured that talent. We do have the best fashion colleges in the world and the quality of the portfolios is testament to that. But it’s not just in producing talent at which our colleges excel it’s in ensuring their graduates have rewarding careers in the industry and the Colleges Council Graduate Preview Day is a perfect platform for that.”