What Is Level 5 Fashion Design Technology? Your Complete Guide

By Delight Technical College | Academic Guide | 2026

 

Level 5 is a pivotal moment in the Delight fashion journey. It is the level at which students transition from skilled producers to thinking designers developing not just technical mastery but the intellectual and creative foundations that distinguish a fashion professional from a skilled maker. Here is everything you need to know about Level 5 Fashion Design Technology at Delight Technical College.

📋 Course Overview

• Course Title: Fashion Design Technology
• Level: 5 (KNQF)
• Qualification Awarded: Craft
• Examination Body: TVET-CDACC
• Duration: 1 year (2 terms of study + industrial attachment)
• Entry Requirement: KCSE D (D Plain) OR a Level 4 Certificate
• Progression: To Level 6 Fashion Design (Diploma)

 

📚 The Curriculum- Four Rich Modules Across Two Terms

Term Three- Module III (6 units)

Unit	Hours	Hours/Week
Digital Literacy	40	4
Communication Skills	40	4
Textile Material Principles	60	6
Fashion Design & Sketching	60	6
Fabric Decoration	80	7
Ladies’ Wear	200	18

 

Term Four- Module IV (4 units)

Unit	Hours	Hours/Week
Pattern Construction & Grading	160	15
Work Ethics and Practices	40	4
Entrepreneurial Skills	40	4
Gents’ Wear	240	22

 

🔍 What Makes Level 5 Different From Level 4

Level 4 is almost entirely practical (420 hours of garment production and fabric decoration. Level 5 adds):

• Theory- Textile Material Principles and Fashion Design & Sketching introduce analytical and design-thinking dimensions
• Business- Entrepreneurial Skills and Work Ethics prepare students for professional and commercial reality
• Digital- Digital Literacy and Communication Skills develop the modern professional capabilities every designer needs
• Advanced technical skills- Pattern Construction & Grading is one of the most technically demanding fashion skills

 

🏭 Industrial Attachment at Level 5

• Timing: Term 5 (following Level 5 study terms)
• Duration: 3 months (480 hours)

The longest study-related attachment so far. Level 5 students spend three months in professional fashion environments with the skills to take on real, meaningful roles rather than purely observational positions.

 

🎓 What a Level 5 Craft Certificate Means

A Craft Certificate in Fashion Design Technology represents a significant professional qualification:

• You can design, sketch, and communicate fashion concepts
• You can construct, grade, and work from professional patterns
• You have textile knowledge to make informed material choices
• You can produce both ladies’ and gents’ wear to a professional standard
• You have the business skills to price, market, and manage fashion work professionally
• You are fully prepared for, and entitled to progress to, the Level 6 Diploma

“Level 5 is where students become fashion professionals. By the time you complete this level, you are not studying fashion, you are doing it, thinking it, and building a business around it.”

 

📍 Delight Technical College | Muindi Mbingu Street, Opposite Jevanjee Gardens, Nairobi | +254 722 533 771 | www.delight.ac.ke