About our Department
›› We are one of four academic units in the
College of Family and Consumer Sciences with
courses taught on the Athens campus as well
as online offerings.
›› Our faculty members have expertise in
the areas of polymer, fiber and textile
sciences, historic dress, merchandising,
international trade and the built environment
employing both quantitative and qualitative
methodologies. Faculty research focuses on the
topic areas of:
Textiles, Merchandising
and Interiors
Department of
„„functional fibrous and polymeric
nanostructured materials
„„20th century fashion and pop culture
„„Social and political study of dress
„„e-tailing
„„cultural analysis of consumer behavior
„„home environments and design
consultation
About The University of Georgia
The University of Georgia (UGA), founded
in 1785, is recognized as one of the nation’s
leading public universities. U.S. News & World
Report’s 2014 “Best Colleges” edition has
UGA ranked 20th among public universities.
Kiplinger Magazine ranks UGA 15th in its 2013
list of the “100 Best Values in Public Colleges.”
Total enrollment in Fall 2013 was 34,536
undergraduate and graduate students.
Department of
Textiles,
Merchandising and
Interiors
Dawson Hall
305 Sanford Dr
Athens, GA 30602
(706) 542-4888
www.fcs.uga.edu/tmi
www.fcs.uga.edu/tmi
We are involved in research, consulting and service-learning
projects with industries such as fiber, textile and apparel
manufacturers and retailers. Our community involvement includes
museums, historic homes and government housing.
Expert Faculty
Furnishings and Interiors
Areas of expertise include functional fibrous Residential interior design with an
and polymeric materials, product design
emphasis in kitchen and bath design
testing and analysis, retailing in the global
Careers focus on creating spaces that are
economy, sustainable interior environments
functional, sustainable and aesthetically
and cultural aspects of dress and historic
attractive. It is a profession that combines
clothing with a collection of over 3,000
creativity, problem-solving and technical
pieces.
skills to meet a client’s needs.
State-of-the-art Labs
We maintain labs equipped with stateof-the-art instrumentation for research,
testing and teaching at Dawson Hall and the
nanostructured materials lab at Riverbend
North. A cooperative agreement with the
USDA Richard Russell Center provides access
to various research instruments.
Historic Collection
Students take courses in space planning,
construction documentation, kitchen
and bath design, materials and textiles,
presentation methods, CAD, business
practices and more. The Furnishings and
Interiors program is accredited by the
National Kitchen and Bath Association.
FACS Ed
FACS Education graduates help prepare
middle and high school students for careers
in fashion merchandising, retail, interior design and textile and apparel manufacturing.
Our Historic Clothing and Textiles Collection
features over 3,000 garments, accessories
and textiles which date from 1800 to the
early 21st century. Exhibitions (coordinated TMI GRADUATE PROGRAMS
by faculty, graduate and undergraduate
Our graduate programs help you hone
students) are installed at least once a
research skills in your area of interest
semester.
guided by leading faculty members.
TMI Undergraduate
Programs
Fashion Merchandising
Join the $100 billion fashion industry
M.S. curriculum
We offer a M.S. degree guided by expert
instructors, with the opportunity for you to
write a thesis on a topic of your choice.
Focus Areas
Fashion Merchandising prepares students
for the apparel and textile industries. The
We offer four focus areas:
Product Development and Design emphasis
„„Polymer, Fiber and Textile Sciences
adds a production and sourcing component
„„Merchandising and International Trade
to the major. Students can study abroad
in London, China and Ghana, or study in
„„Historic and Cultural Aspects of Dress
New York City: visiting showrooms, buying
and Textiles
offices and retail conventions. The program
„„Interior Environments
is accredited by the American Apparel and
Footwear Association.
Ph.D. curriculum
Polymer, Fiber, and Textile Sciences
Two options at the Ph.D. level allow you to
do cutting edge research in the lab for our
PFT sciences program or study consumers
and merchandising techniques in the
International setting for our International
Merchandising emphasis.
The IM emphasis provides opportunity for
concentrated study in the following topic
areas: international apparel and textiles;
retailing; international production and trade;
global sourcing; international business
practices; and e-commerce in a global
setting.
The PFT program is designed for those who
want to pursue research at the frontier of
the discipline. You will learn to initiate and
conduct research related to:
„„Polymers and fibers
„„Environmental chemistry
„„Fabrication of advanced multifunctional
fibers and their surface functionalization
„„Stimuli-responsive fibers and
nanostructured biomaterials
„„Biobased plastics/composites
„„Biodegradable polymer products
„„Enzymatic treatment of textiles
„„Smart textiles and apparel
„„Medical textiles
„„Analytical chemistry and characterization
of fibers and textiles
„„Product design and development
„„Environmental chemistry
„„Materials science