In conversation with: Adrian Sweeney Golano, BA (Hons) Fashion Communication and Promotion

Hey everyone! My name is Adrian and I study BA (Hons) Fashion Communication and Promotion at Norwich University of the Arts. From college I decided to go straight into work, but after working for a few years and realising where my passions really were, I wanted to go to Norwich and do a degree! I love anything fashion, marketing, inclusion and diversity related.

I didn’t go into education after college because I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do, but after a few years went by, my interest for social media, fashion and content creation became a lot bigger and I made the decision to do Fashion Communication and Promotion because it finally felt like I had found the right degree. I also wanted to go to university to learn more about the industry and use my degree to figure out what exactly it was I wanted to do, while also exploring new areas of the industry that I hadn’t before.

As someone who’s very focused on my degree, but also works two jobs and has an active social life, an average week as a student for me is always super busy. Getting the balance between these three right took some time but now that I’m in my second year, I’m managing to organise my time more effectively. An average week for me is spent with three days on the University campus with one of those days online. On my two days off, I work and spend my evenings doing course work. I use weekends to socialise, go out and catch up on any work I’ve missed in the week.

Living in Norwich since starting my course has been great. It’s opened up so many opportunities for me, both for my career and socially. I loved discovering the night scene and how varied this was while making lots of friends, as well as meeting new people at University, building my network and meeting so many talented people I could collaborate on projects with. Living in student accommodation played a big part in helping me meet new people. The Freshers Week that The Students’ Union held when I first started really helped me visit new places in Norwich and gave me a chance to do things with the new friends I had made.

On my course, I get to explore a large range of topics, so far, I’ve learned a lot more about how the fashion industry works. We’ve investigated fashion trends, forecasting, marketing campaigns, strategies, branding, blogs, digital media, visual merchandising and a lot more. We were able to choose how we approached all of our briefs, specialising in our own preferences. I was able to focus my work more on topics I was interested in and create a campaign that aligned with my interests and passions, using and developing skills I wanted to focus on.

We’re also able to collaborate with other courses on projects and create a team to help carryout our work. This has been amazing for building a network and getting to know other people from the University.

Our projects help me to stay inspired because they give us so much creative freedom which allows me to explore all types of topics I’m interested in. For example, we’re currently doing a 360 fashion ad campaign, and because I’m more interested in social media and making content, I’ve been able to base my whole project around a social media campaign and with this I’ve been able to explore diversity and inclusivity, which I’m increasingly interested in.

There’s also the design studio, where I can go to print and create something physically and bring my designs to life. I found using the studio spaces at the University really helpful, they are open until 9pm on some nights, where I’m able to focus and get on with my work much better then.

The best advice I have for someone who is considering coming to Norwich, is to just take a leap of faith and do it! It’s what I did and it’s the best decision I’ve made. The highlight of my course has been knowing that I picked the right degree, loving everything I’m doing on my course and the fantastic student experience and network of friends I’ve built while at university. I’ve met some of the best people I could have hoped for!

After I graduate, I want to do a Masters, I’m still a little unsure on what to study specifically, but I’m currently exploring different career paths and interviewing people in the industry which is giving me a much better idea on what I want to do. I came into this degree with a broad interest in fashion communication and have enjoyed exploring, but I’m now focusing on a select few areas and figuring out what I want to pursue.