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Fashion Schools in Raleigh-Durham: Costs and Industry Guide

By · Reviewed by Kamila Katkauskaite (Creative Brand & Content Coordinator), November 5, 2026 · Editorial policy

The Raleigh-Durham area, the Research Triangle, has one of the best-known textile schools in the country. NC State’s Wilson College of Textiles calls itself the only college in North America devoted to the entire ecosystem of textiles and the national leader in its field since 1899. Alongside it are a fashion merchandising and design degree at Meredith College, a women’s college in Raleigh, and an apparel design program at North Carolina Central University in Durham.

This guide compares the three, the North Carolina textile and apparel industry they feed, and the cost of living. For every North Carolina program, including UNC Greensboro and App State, see our North Carolina fashion schools guide.

Fashion schools in Raleigh-Durham

Costs below are published in-state tuition and the average net price after grants, from U.S. Department of Education data. Net price includes housing and food. Official 2026-27 prices are in the program notes below.

School Location Type Tuition (in-state) Average net price Focus
North Carolina State University Raleigh Public $8,815 $16,486 Design and merchandising
Meredith College West Raleigh Private $47,448 $22,801 Design and merchandising
North Carolina Central University Durham Public $6,733 $16,708 Design

The main programs

NC State University, Wilson College of Textiles

NC State offers two fashion degrees. The BS in Fashion and Textile Design, with fashion design or textile design concentrations, is a studio program that admits students for fall only. Applicants must apply to NC State by November 1 and upload a portfolio of 10 recent images and an essay through SlideRoom. It takes eight semesters even for transfer students, whatever credits they bring. Seniors show their collections at the Emerging Designers Showcase; the 2026 show, called Threads, featured 14 designers. The BS in Fashion and Textile Management, with concentrations in brand management and marketing or in fashion development and product management, covers the business side.

North Carolina residents pay $4,623.25 a semester in 2026-27 tuition and fees, and nonresidents $17,480.25. NC State’s separate College of Design runs Art2Wear, a student-produced wearable art show.

Meredith College

Meredith, a private women’s college on Hillsborough Street whose graduate programs are coed, offers a BS in Fashion Merchandising and Design with a merchandising or design concentration, plus fashion design and merchandising minors. The college says its fashion majors complete internships with designers, retailers and magazines, and students finish with a senior exhibition course. Full-time tuition for 2026-27 is $49,170, though grants bring the average cost far lower.

North Carolina Central University

NCCU in Durham offers a Bachelor of Science in Fashion, Apparel and Textile Design Studies with an apparel design concentration, in its Department of Art and Design, plus a minor. The program has run for more than 30 years, holds an annual fashion design competition, and won a $100,000 grant from Gap and Icon 360 in 2021. In 2026-27, North Carolina residents pay $4,777 a semester and out-of-state students $11,491, both including $1,312 of student health insurance.

Other options

Neither Wake Tech nor Durham Tech, the area’s community colleges, offers a fashion program, so students who want to start at a community college take general education courses and transfer. The Art Institute of Raleigh-Durham closed in 2018.

The industry around the schools

North Carolina’s apparel companies are mostly in the Piedmont Triad to the west. Kontoor Brands, the owner of Wrangler and Helly Hansen, has its headquarters and an innovation center in Greensboro; it completed the sale of its Lee brand to Authentic Brands Group in November 2026. UNIFI, the maker of REPREVE recycled fiber, is also based in Greensboro. HanesBrands, long based in Winston-Salem, has been part of Canada’s Gildan since December 2025.

In the Triangle itself, the textile work is often research. NC State is a core partner in the National Science Foundation’s North Carolina textile innovation engine, which can receive up to $160 million over 10 years, and its Wilson College runs extension training and research centers for the industry. Raleigh Denim Workshop still designs and makes jeans.

Jobs and pay

The federal survey does not publish fashion designer figures for Raleigh or Durham. Statewide, North Carolina fashion designers earned a median of $74,990 in May 2025, against $80,960 nationally. Buyers and purchasing agents earned a median of $77,210 in the Raleigh area and $79,620 in the Durham-Chapel Hill area, around the national median of $77,710. Our fashion merchandising degree guide explains those jobs.

What it costs to live here

HUD sets fair market rents by ZIP code in the Raleigh area. For fiscal 2026 they are $1,550 a month for a studio and $1,620 for a one-bedroom in ZIP code 27607, near NC State and Meredith. In the Durham-Chapel Hill area the metro-wide figures are $1,417 and $1,507.

GoRaleigh buses cost $1.25 a ride or $40 for 31 days, but NC State students ride GoRaleigh and GoTriangle free with a GoPass, and NC State’s Wolfline buses are free for everyone. GoDurham is currently fare-free. GoTriangle’s regional buses cost $2.50 a ride, capped at $80 a month.

Transfer routes and aid

Under North Carolina’s Comprehensive Articulation Agreement, students who finish an Associate in Arts or Associate in Science at a community college get their general education requirements waived at UNC System universities, including NC State and NCCU. NC State’s published transfer pathways into the Wilson College start at community colleges outside the Triangle, and none leads into the design degree, so Wake Tech and Durham Tech students should plan their courses with NC State directly.

The Next NC Scholarship is for North Carolina students with family income of $80,000 or less; its most recent published awards are at least $5,000 a year at UNC System universities and $3,000 at community colleges. It does not apply at private colleges such as Meredith. North Carolina no longer takes part in the Academic Common Market, so it does not cut tuition for out-of-state students.

Is studying fashion in Raleigh-Durham worth it?

For textile design, product development and fashion business, yes: NC State’s Wilson College is a nationally known program at in-state prices, with research and industry ties across the state. Students who want design should prepare for its November 1 portfolio deadline. For a private, smaller setting, compare Meredith’s aid offer with the public options, and see fashion design schools in North Carolina for UNC Greensboro and others.

Frequently asked questions

Does NC State require a portfolio for fashion design?

Yes. Fashion and Textile Design applicants upload 10 recent images and an essay through SlideRoom by November 1. The management degree has no portfolio.

Can I transfer into NC State’s design degree to finish faster?

No. NC State says the Fashion and Textile Design program takes eight semesters regardless of transfer credits.

Is Meredith College only for women?

Its undergraduate college is a women’s college. Its graduate programs are coed.

Where else should I look?

See the North Carolina guide, fashion schools in Atlanta and our other city guides.

Sources

What changed on this page

  • November 2026: city guide published.