International Fashion Academy

Honest and insightful review of a fashion design & technology student who attended this academy. I have posted this review on June 9th of 2024, and now, 20th of April 2025, I am reposting this review again since it was mysteriously taken down by Google. I have a right to say and state my experience, I have the right to show and display what has happened during my three years at this Academy. I have been mistreated and bullied by the teachers, I truly can’t believe this. Let me start by saying that if I could I would give 0 stars. This has been the worst three academic years of my life and I fully regret it. I would not recommend this place to anyone. The lack of responsibility and lack of respect towards the student is just unimaginable. As stated on the Website it says "our students the values of rigor, elegance, precision and creativity", this has not been the case at all during my course. Diversity is there but this is not necessarily a positive aspect. The age gap and difference between the students in the classroom is very high, I was 21 and placed with people who were ten years older than me, difficult dynamic and ambience within the classroom. This academy is very far from the luxury sector, as wrongly stated on their website.("teaching them the best methods and practices in the luxury sector in general, and particularly in the fashion sector"). I have not experienced anything near luxury, while attending this academy, quite the opposite. At the start of my first year of Fashion Design & "Technology" there were four different classes, two in French and two in English, 25 people each. And by the end of the first academic year, the four classes had to be combined into one because most of the students had left, about a third of the student body. This reveals everything you need to know about this academy. -teachers and the academical aspects- First of all I would like to mention that the teachers are the same ones that you have throughout the three year program such as in Pattern Making (T.W), Sewing (J.G) and Fashion Design (L.P). This place has no pedagogical principles and this is clearly noticeable in the classroom, throughout the whole program, and especially between the student-teachers. Throughout the whole Bachelor, my creativity was questioned, pulled down and made fun of. It got to the point that the Fashion Design teacher was bullying me in front of my classmates and nothing was done against that, she still works there, to "solve" my situation (caused by IFA) they simply changed the teacher for me but at that teacher was pregnant and not even present in school, this was no help at all. The whole Staff such as the Director and the Teachers are very unprofessional when it comes to solving a problem, especially when the problem involves a Bachelor student in her final year of studies. As a student I felt unheard and very unfairly treated with no one to turn to. Here at IFA, you as a Student are discouraged and discarded.Most teachers in this Bachelor are very unmotivated, uneducated, rude and unhelpful. There is a lack of creativity, engagement and interaction with the students. The atmosphere in the school is also very discouraging and unpleasant. Most classes are very basic, as students we were told to copy the process and not shown how to do the "savoir-faire" nor how to develop our own strategy. If we asked "why" or "how" we were not given a detailed answer, this showed lack of motivation from the teachers towards the students. In Fashion Design it is crucial to have a teacher to turn to when working on the projects but I can assure you that at IFA you have to teach yourself and work closely with youtube because there is no help from the teachers, and I am talking about personal experience...(more on the photos) The non-existent hygiene is seen on the whole campus. The photos that are attached are from the woman’s bathroom, the Sink, underneath the sink and next to the toilet seat. I have added the review in photos since it exceed reviews limits.

Master’s and Bachelor’s Degrees Are Not Officially Recognized At no point was I informed that the degrees offered by IFA Paris – whether Bachelor, Master or MBA – are not state-recognized. I only found out three months into the program, after I had already paid the full tuition fee. They told me this degree could be used to work in the fashion industry, but failed to mention that it is not valid for further academic study, such as pursuing a PhD or enrolling at public universities. They also never admitted upfront that the diploma lacks official recognition. IFA Paris talks about "ECTS credits" and uses academic terms that make it seem like the degree is part of the European Higher Education system. It is not. None of their degrees – Bachelor, Master or MBA – is officially recognized by the French or any European education authority. I have already handed the case over to my lawyer. So far, there has been no reply. Even though IFA Paris has already changed parts of their website, I have full documentation from before March and will not let this go. I will escalate this case to French consumer protection authorities and any relevant oversight bodies. Updated Review – Response to IFA Paris I enrolled at IFA Paris in September 2023 believing it was a state-recognized higher education institution. That was clearly suggested on their website through terms like "Bachelor," "Master," "MBA," and "ECTS." At the time, no RNCP certification existed. Even now, RNCP is not equivalent to a university degree, but a vocational title. The director, Kamelia Salmon, only admitted this much later in a Teams call – unprompted and unclear. I also received a German Studienfonds, which is only granted for officially recognized universities. I’ve now informed the funding body and legal authorities, as this misrepresentation affects not just me, but also public funding. IFA Paris has asked for time – but I won’t let this go. The academic status was misrepresented, and I will escalate this further.

I completed my Bachelor's degree at IFA Paris Istanbul. Over the three years of study, the school relocated to a different campus each year, all in different parts of the city. This created a lot of instability and made it difficult to plan housing—especially on a student budget. While I was part of a class full of passionate and motivated fashion students, our experience did not match the expectations set by the university's marketing. We encountered challenges such as language barriers with instructors who often didn’t speak English well, and critiques that felt more discouraging than constructive. Career opportunities and support also fell short of what was promised. It was a disappointing experience for me as a 17-year-old who moved to Istanbul with big dreams of becoming a fashion designer, after convincing my parents to invest in what I believed was a Paris-based education. I wish I had had more clarity at the time, as it might have helped me make a different choice.

I emailed the school and also messaged them on Instagram (because no one had emailed me before). At first I thought they would reply late because of the time zone difference, but no one replied to me. I am a foreigner and want to study here, I am completely unfamiliar with the procedures in your country. It is sad that I cannot come to France exactly as I wanted.

Update: My review was taken down. I had to make an appeal to get my review back up. May 2025 Read @Mariechrislily’s review. P.s I wish I read her review. They like to get into the details of really who knows true or untrue information and change the narrative. That should be enough to tell you how the ‘school’ works. How the heck does the ‘admin’ feel comfortable airing out confidential information about students and call itself a professional institution is beyond me. This is for Marie: Hi! I joined later than you, we probably didn’t run into each other. Either way, I hope you’re doing well. It was absolute hell for me, I wish I had a Time Machine but lesson learned. Thanks for writing your review it was kinder than what it should’ve been I’m sure. Negative ♾️ stars.

My daughter went to IFA Paris. She was going for a one year programme plus a summer programme. As it was just after covid, the one year course was not running, so she did the first year of a fashion marketing degree. Not only did she completely mature in a wonderful way as a person, but she felt so welcomed and made really amazing friends from all across the globe. (We’re Australian). Although she decided fashion was not for her and has moved to English Literature, she loved IFA and has been using so much of what she learned in marketing on a business with her partner. (The marketing taught was completely transferable in skills as it can be applied beyond fashion). Overall for her, IFA was a great place and I am truly grateful to them for making her feel part of a big family. I could not have asked for more.

I can say that I am a fashion girl. When I was a child, my mother told me that one day I should study at a high and beautiful fashion school based on the pictures I drew. Years later, I am fulfilling my mother's dream and being a student here makes me happy. I will start MBA Luxury Brand Management in September and I am already very excited. This school definitely fulfills my future dreams. I know that it will play a high role in being a business woman and establishing my own personal image.