Max Mara is the most recent brand to fund a scholarship program with the Royal College of Art in London.

The 2 have come together to create a scholarship program that can offer students who face financial hardship the chance to enroll within the MA fashion program on the School of Design, starting next September.  

It should be offered to 2 students annually over the subsequent three years. Each recipient will receive 30,000 kilos, covering full tuition fees in addition to a contribution toward maintenance and materials.

Alongside the funding, there may be also a chance for the scholars to experience a paid design internship on the Max Mara headquarters in Reggio Emilia, Italy.

Ian Griffiths, creative director of Max Mara, said this initiative is near his heart because he has held a longstanding tie with the varsity, having graduated in MA fashion in 1987. One in every of his first projects on the time was a contest organized by Max Mara, which inspired his move to hitch the brand as a designer upon graduation.

“At a critical time for the style industry, Max Mara is proud to support the RCA and its students in exploring recent processes, methods and models. The designers on the RCA are redesigning fashion, rediscovering the enjoyment of fashion and identifying fashion as an instinctive human activity. I’m thrilled to have the chance to accompany them on their journey,” said Griffiths, who was appointed an honorary visiting professor at RCA on this occasion.

Zowie Broach, head of program of MA Fashion on the RCA, said, “Griffiths holds a deep passion for identity, culture and fashion. His support with the Max Mara scholarships shows great leadership and look after the longer term of study in and about fashion on the RCA, welcoming a wider representation, a community of voices to construct recent identities and cultures.”

While the RCA is one of the expensive art schools on this planet, it has a wide selection of initiatives to support talented students through the courses.

Last month, the school unveiled the RCA Virgil Abloh Scholarship, named for the late designer who served as a visiting professor on the London institution. The scholarship will probably be offered to a talented, yet financially restricted, Black British student in any program on the RCA’s School of Design.

Other scholarships the varsity offers include the Märit Rausing scholarships in ceramics and glass; the Sir Frank Bowling scholarship, which supports U.K. students from Black African and Caribbean diaspora heritage, or mixed Black African and Caribbean diaspora heritage; the RCA Logitech scholarships, which give scholarships for college students from underrepresented communities and facing financial hardship, and the Tony Snowdon Scholarship, which supports students with a physical or sensory disability.