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Parsons School of Design MA Fashion Studies program theses

 Collection
Identifier: PC-02-04-06

Abstract

This record group consists of print and digital text, video, and image files documenting theses created by students in Parsons School of Design's master's program in fashion studies, situated in the School of Art and Design History and Theory.

Dates

  • 2012-2024

Creator

Extent

1.63 Gigabytes (118 theses)

2.6 Cubic Feet (2 boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Scope and Contents

The Fashion Studies theses in this collection are available solely in the form of electronic records, with the exception of print theses in Series 1. All theses have a written component in which students describe their projects in detail. Some also include photographs, diagrams, and video recordings.

The collection inventory should not be considered a definitive list of all program graduates for a particular year. Some students choose not to place their thesis with The New School Archives. Other students may fail to submit the necessary agreements to have their work archived. Additionally, for pre-2022 theses, The New School Archives may not have received all theses submitted by students in a particular year. For confirmation of graduation from the MA Fashion Studies program, it is necessary to verify with the university's Office of the Registrar.

Conditions Governing Access

Theses are available in electronic form only, with the exception of print theses in Series 1. Most of the collection is open for research use. For newly accessioned theses, some authors have requested that their theses not be made available online for one year from the date of submission, but have indicated that their theses may be viewed onsite in the New School Archives. In other instances, authors have opted to make their theses completely unavailable for viewing until one year from the date of submission. Please contact archivist@newschool.edu for appointment.

All theses in Series 1. are only available by appointment in The New School Archives reading room.

Conditions Governing Use

In accordance with The New School's Intellectual Property Rights Policy, copyright is held by each thesis's respective author. The responsibility to secure copyright permission rests with the user.

Historical Note

Parsons School of Design, a division of The New School university, announced the establishment of a graduate program in Fashion Studies in 2009, with professor Heike Jenss as its inaugural director. Situated within Parsons's School of Art and Design History and Theory, then led by Hazel Clark, the MA Fashion Studies program was intended to be an interdisciplinary approach to understanding fashion using the methodologies of fashion history, design studies, anthropology, and cultural studies. The program launched in the Fall semester of 2010, with the first class graduating in May 2012.

Parsons website text from 2010 describes the program as follows:

Recognizing the growing significance of fashion, MA Fashion Studies offers a new academic route to advance the research and analysis of fashion as a cultural phenomenon. It will be of particular interest to students with degrees in the humanities and social sciences as well as to students with art, design, and fashion industry backgrounds who want to gain a deeper understanding of fashion and its scholarship.

In addition to the MA Fashion Studies program, Parsons School of Design added several new master's level programs in the early 2010s, including the MFA in Fashion Design and Society and the MFA in Transdisciplinary Design.

Bibliography

Fashion Studies (MA). Accessed October 18, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20100912035417/http://www.newschool.edu/parsons/ma-fashion-studies

The New School Communications and External Affairs, "Parsons Launches Graduate Fashion Programs," February 5, 2009. Accessed through Internet Archive, October 18, 2023: https://web.archive.org/web/20101218125858mp_/http://newschool.edu/pressroom/pressreleases/2010/ParsonsFashionGradPrograms.aspx

The New School Communications and External Affairs, "High Line Co-Founder Robert Hammond Addresses New School Graduates," May 18, 2012. Accessed through the Internet Archive, October 18, 2023: https://web.archive.org/web/20120622082445/http://www.newschool.edu/pressroom/pressreleases/2012/Commencement2012Release.htm

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically by year of submission and within each year in alphabetical order.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Theses from 2012-2022 were submitted to The New School Archives by program administrators from the Parsons School of Design MA Fashion Studies Department, without student participation in the submission process. As of 2022, electronic theses are submitted directly to The New School Archives by students in the Parsons School of Design MA Fashion Studies program, with support from program administrators.

In 2022, twelve spiral-bound theses, now in Series 1., were transferred to The New School Archives from the University Center Library, where Fashion Studies faculty had placed them on reserve in past semesters. In 2024, the Fashion Studies Department coordinated the transfer to the Archives of 51 additional theses that had been stored on the shelves of the departmental faculty lounge.

Accruals

Further accruals expected.

Processing Information

All metadata for individual theses received in 2022 and after is supplied directly by the student author to The New School Archives.

Metadata for individual theses in Series 1. supplied by graduate student and archives volunteer Katherine Ibsen (Fashion Studies, '24). This series was subsequently processed by current Fashion Studies student Sarah Ory.

Per New School Archives acquisitions policy, Archives staff do not accession student theses submitted directly to the Archives by students without a completed agreement form. Therefore, the theses comprising this collection should not be considered a full representation of every thesis submitted by a Fashion Studies graduate.

Title
Guide to the Parsons School of Design MA Fashion Studies program theses
Status
Completed
Author
New School Archives and Special Collections Staff
Date
October 31, 2023
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Revision Statements

  • April 30, 2024: Katherine Martinez added Series 6. 2023 theses to the container list. Jenny Swadosh updated inclusive date range for the collection.
  • July 9, 2024: Katherine Martinez added Series 7. 2024 theses to the container list and updated the Series and Resource level extents. Jenny Swadosh updated inclusive date range for the collection.
  • September 5, 2024: Victoria Fernandez added Series 1 and Jenny Swadosh updated inclusive dates, extent, and top-level notes to reflect the addition of print theses to the collection.