“Former Union Square design school, now closed; the FIDM brand was acquired by Arizona State University in 2023.”
FIDM-Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising-San Francisco was the Union Square branch of FIDM, a private design college founded in 1969 by Tonian Hohberg in downtown Los Angeles. Located at 55 Stockton Street in the heart of San Francisco's retail and fashion district, the campus offered Associate of Arts and bachelor's-level programs in fashion design, fashion merchandising, interior design, graphic design, and visual communications. Students benefited from proximity to the Bay Area's design firms, retail headquarters (Gap, Levi Strauss, Williams-Sonoma), and a long-running industry mentor network that helped place graduates into apparel, retail merchandising, and visual display roles. The San Francisco campus was the smallest of FIDM's four California locations (Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, and San Francisco). Even at its peak it served only a few hundred students at a time, with most degrees concentrated in Fashion Merchandising, Interior Design, and Fashion & Apparel Design. Like FIDM as a whole, the SF campus emphasized portfolio-based admissions and project-driven studio courses over traditional academics; it never offered SAT-required admission and was a designated specialty (not a National University or Liberal Arts College). The San Francisco campus closed in 2024 as part of FIDM's broader wind-down. FIDM enrollment had fallen 58% from 3,288 students in fall 2012 to 1,381 in fall 2022, and the institution's satellite campuses were shuttered ahead of a planned sale. After a deal with France's Skema Business School fell through in early 2024, Arizona State University acquired the FIDM brand and Los Angeles operations for $15 million in 2024 (now operating as ASU FIDM). The legacy FIDM continued to teach out remaining students and officially graduated its final class on March 31, 2025. Prospective students should apply directly to ASU FIDM in Los Angeles; the San Francisco campus is permanently closed and is not accepting new applications.
Visa, OPT, H-1B alumni outcomes, and acceptance rates by country — sourced from FOIA, USCIS H-1B Hub, and DHS SEVIS.
Test Free — No test scores needed — they won't be reviewed even if submitted.
This university does not consider SAT or ACT scores in admissions.
The deep admissions playbook beyond the headline acceptance rate — round-by-round breakdowns, nationality data, requirements, and contact paths.
Tuition & Fees (All Students)
$31,000 – $36,000
/yr
Beyond the sticker price — every named scholarship, the financial aid policy, need-aware notes, and a personalized net-cost estimate.
How life on campus actually feels — clubs, sports, traditions, housing realities, and how the school integrates with its city.
Programs in fashion design, fashion merchandising, and apparel industry management — historically FIDM's flagship and largest school.
Studio-based residential and commercial interior design program preparing graduates for the Bay Area design and hospitality industry.
Programs in graphic design, digital media, and visual communications, with an emphasis on portfolio development.
2 years
FIDM-SF's most-awarded credential. Combined retail buying, marketing, and product development coursework with industry mentorship in San Francisco's fashion-retail corridor.
2 years
Studio-driven curriculum covering residential, hospitality, and commercial design — leveraging proximity to Bay Area design firms.
2 years
Hands-on apparel design program combining draping, pattern-making, and digital design.
Where alumni go after graduation — top industries, grad-school continuation, and the qualitative outcomes story.
