208

Development of Professional Competencies 
of The Future Costume Designer in the Design System 

Elvira Faizulina, Aliya Yessengaliyeva, Venera Jumagaliyeva

Makhambet Utemisov West Kazakhstan State University, Kazakhstan

Submitted: 2022-10-04. Revised: 2024-01-08. Accepted: 2024-06-12

Abstract

High requirements for specialists, specifically in the field of Design, who can quickly respond to 
modern socio-economic conditions and work effectively in a market economy necessitate a sub-
stantial upgrade of the professional education system for training costume designers. This study 
aimed to substantiate and implement the methodology for developing professional competencies 
of future costume designers in higher education institutions in Kazakhstan. The methodological 
approach of this experimental study was based on the development of a methodology for devel-
oping the professional competencies of the future costume designer and readiness components: 
motivational, cognitive-activity, creative, and reflective. The content of the basic terms “profes-
sional competence” and “designer’s professional competence” was determined; their signs and 
features were covered, and and a methodology for developing professional competencies of the 
future costume designer in the design system was developed and implemented. In the conducted 
experimental study at the ascertaining stage of the experiment at Makhambet Utemisov West Ka-
zakhstan University, methodological tools were developed to increase the readiness of the future 
costume designer to develop professional competencies in the design system. After conducting 
an experimental study, promising areas for improving the methodology for the readiness of a fu-
ture costume designer to develop professional competencies in the design system in higher edu-
cational institutions of Kazakhstan were formed. The practical value of the study lies in training 
a specialist who can implement scientific ideas and developments in the field of fashion design 
in Kazakhstan. 

Keywords: professional activity; labor market; clothing design; competence; design education  

How to Cite: Faizulina, E., Yessengaliyeva, A., & Jumagaliyeva, V. (2024). Development of Professional Competencies of 
The Future Costume Designer in the Design System. Harmonia: Journal of Arts Research and Education, 24(1), 208-220

Harmonia: Journal of Arts Research and Education 24 (1) (2024), 208-220
Available online at http://journal.unnes.ac.id/nju/index.php/harmonia
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15294/harmonia.v24i1.50298

Kazakhstan’s existing educational system 
for training costume designers faces seve-
ral challenges in keeping pace with these 
developments. One of the principal tasks 
of the modernization of higher education 
in Kazakhstan is the qualitative training of 
a professionally competent specialist ca-
pable of competing in the international la-
bor market. Due to the high requirements 
for specialists, specifically in the field of 

INTRODUCTION 

In recent years, Kazakhstan’s fashi-
on and design industry has been rapidly 
evolving, fueled by changing consumer 
demands, globalization, and technological 
advancements. This growth has necessi-
tated a transformation in the way fashi-
on designers are trained to meet the dy-
namic needs of the industry. However, 

Corresponding author: 
 E-mail: elvirafaizulina99@gmail.com 

p-ISSN 2541-1683|e-ISSN 2541-2426



Elvira Faizulina et al., Development of Professional Competencies of The Future Costume 209

Design, who are capable of quick reaction 
to modern socio-economic conditions and 
work effectively in a market economy, the-
re is a need for a substantial update of the 
system of professional education for the 
training of costume designers.

Many higher education institutions 
still rely on traditional teaching methods 
that emphasize theoretical knowledge 
over practical, hands-on experience. This 
approach often fails to equip aspiring de-
signers with the essential skills required 
to navigate the fast-paced and competi-
tive fashion landscape. Furthermore, the 
curriculum may not adequately address 
contemporary design trends, emerging 
technologies, and the evolving expecta-
tions of consumers and businesses. The 
rapidly changing nature of the fashion 
industry demands that costume desig-
ners possess a diverse set of professional 
competencies. These include artistic and 
creative abilities, technical proficiency, 
problem-solving skills, adaptability, and 
an understanding of market dynamics and 
consumer behavior. Failure to develop 
these competencies can severely limit the 
employability and success of fashion gra-
duates in the workforce. Moreover, the in-
tegration of Kazakhstan’s fashion industry 
with global markets necessitates training 
designers who can compete international-
ly. This requires a solid foundation in de-
sign principles, cross-cultural awareness, 
effective communication skills, and the 
ability to collaborate with diverse teams 
and stakeholders.

An analysis of the scientific achieve-
ments of specialists on the research prob-
lem suggests that improving the quality of 
higher education in Kazakhstan and the 
competitiveness of costume designers in 
the labor market is embedded in the for-
mation of their professional competencies 
(Diachenko, 2021). The researchers noted 
that the effectiveness of the development 
of professional competencies of future 
costume designers increases substantially 
when their educational activities are invol-
ved in professional activities (Mayer et al., 
2014).

Thanks to innovative policies and 
transformation strategies, considerable 
changes are taking place in the educatio-
nal sector of the national economy, clo-
sely related to the formation and practi-
cal implementation of new vectors of the 
individual’s professional development. 
Therefore, the purpose of this study was to 
form the readiness of future costume de-
signers to master professional competen-
cies in higher educational institutions of 
Kazakhstan based on the implementation 
of project activities. The higher educati-
on system in Kazakhstan is undergoing a 
transformation associated with a systemic 
change in the model of socio-economic 
and cultural development of society and 
the nation.

Sametova et al. (2022) believe 
that the current economic conditions of 
Kazakhstan’s development dictate the 
need for national support of design spe-
cialties. According to the researchers, the 
strategy of modernization of professional 
education defines the “competence-based 
approach” as one of the principal condi-
tions for its renewal, modernization, and 
transformation due to the new values of 
society of the 21st century, based on kno-
wledge, information, and innovation. It is 
assumed that the updated content of edu-
cation will be based on the development 
or formation of key professional compe-
tencies of applicants for education. The 
authors’ research indicates the importance 
of developing the mathematical readiness 
of future costume designers to study spe-
cial disciplines. Such readiness will simp-
lify the development of current computer 
technologies and means of intercultural 
communication and ensure competitive-
ness in the labor market.

Dzhusubalieva et al. (2019) think that 
competence includes intellectual and cog-
nitive components that are in constant in-
teraction, namely general cultural, social, 
communicative, cognitive, and special. 
Professional competence is integrative sin-
ce it includes several homogeneous or clo-
sely related skills and knowledge that cor-
respond to a relatively wide field of culture 



Harmonia: Journal of Arts Research and Education 24 (1) (2024): 208-220210

and activity (legal, informational). Accor-
ding to the researchers, with an integrated 
approach, institutions of higher education 
in Kazakhstan engaged in the training of 
costume designers should reconsider and 
rethink the content of the professional trai-
ning of future designers.

Tisch et al. (2016) believe that the 
basis for the development of design edu-
cation is the formation of a creative perso-
nality capable of possessing the full range 
of professional competencies. Cognitive 
and creative activity involves a constant 
search for new knowledge, artistic and 
design solutions, the study and use of ad-
vanced techniques and methods of work, 
the introduction of new, progressive, pre-
viously unused elements into the labor 
process. Researchers believe that, toget-
her with the active development of digi-
tal technologies and Design and technical 
communications, Design has a dominant 
role in increasing the competitiveness of 
all socio-economic sectors. Albers (2013) 
considers the competence approach to be 
one of the main conditions for the develop-
ment of the project culture of a future cos-
tume designer capable of project thinking, 
innovative Design. Such specialists are ai-
med at working for the benefit of the state, 
its enrichment and prosperity.

Aitbaeva and Shaihozova (2022) be-
lieve that the problem of improving the 
quality of higher education in the field of 
Design has acquired a special status and 
priority of development in recent years. 
The modern national educational policy of 
Kazakhstan pursues the goal of determi-
ning strategic priorities to develop design 
education by forming a national model of 
multi-level continuing education that in-
tegrates into the global educational spa-
ce and meets the needs of the individual 
and society. The professional training of 
designers should be directed towards the 
formation of readiness for the implemen-
tation of project activities using a creative 
approach. Thus, the professional compe-
tencies of a costume designer should be in 
an integral unity between practical profes-
sional skills, creative presentation of ideas, 

and the implementation of their analysis, 
as well as the ability to put them into prac-
tice.

Beetham and Sharpe (2013) believe 
that the professional competencies of fu-
ture costume designers should be formed 
while studying at higher educational insti-
tutions. Kiynova et al. (2021) and Natarajan 
et al. (2021) believe that in the conditions of 
modern development of globalization pro-
cesses, the principal task of design specia-
lists is the ability to develop projects. This 
approach is key in the educational process 
of preparing future costume designers and 
is the key to the development of professio-
nal competencies, the ability to creatively 
solve problems, and generate out-of-the-
box ideas.

Educational programs in higher edu-
cational institutions of Kazakhstan are 
mainly focused on learning outcomes and 
are aimed at expanding professional re-
cognition and mobility of a specialist in the 
labor market. Addressing these challenges 
is crucial for nurturing a new generation 
of talented and versatile costume desig-
ners who can contribute to the growth and 
competitiveness of Kazakhstan’s fashion 
industry. It is imperative to evaluate and 
revise the existing educational methodo-
logies to ensure they are aligned with in-
dustry demands and equip students with 
the necessary professional competencies. 
Higher education institutions can play a pi-
votal role in bridging the gap between aca-
demic training and industry requirements 
by conducting research and implementing 
innovative pedagogical approaches. This 
will benefit aspiring costume designers 
and contribute to the overall development 
and recognition of Kazakhstan’s fashion 
industry on the global stage.

In current conditions, developing 
and improving the methodology to mas-
ter the professional competencies of the 
future costume designer in the design sys-
tem in higher educational institutions of 
Kazakhstan becomes relevant. Thus, the 
purpose of this study was to substantiate 
and implement a methodology for the de-
velopment of professional competencies of 



Elvira Faizulina et al., Development of Professional Competencies of The Future Costume 211

future costume designers in institutions of 
higher education in Kazakhstan, based on 
the use of Design as a guarantee of their 
readiness to carry out professional activi-
ties.

Main objectives: To define the key 
professional competencies required for fu-
ture costume designers and identify their 
components and criteria; To develop and 
implement a comprehensive methodo-
logy for enhancing the professional com-
petencies of future costume designers, 
incorporating various teaching strategies, 
project-based learning, creative problem-
solving techniques, and involvement in 
exhibitions and competitions; To evalua-
te the effectiveness of the proposed met-
hodology in improving the motivational, 
cognitive-operational, creative, and reflec-
tive competencies of future costume desig-
ners through an experimental study; To 
provide empirical evidence and practical 
recommendations for educational institu-
tions in Kazakhstan to align their curricu-
lum and pedagogical approaches with the 
identified professional competencies and 
the proposed methodology for competen-
cy development.

METHOD

The main methods during the expe-
rimental study were aimed at investiga-
ting the problems of formation of the fu-
ture costume designer’s readiness for the 
development of professional competencies 
in the design system of higher education 
in Kazakhstan, which made provision for 
the development of a methodology for 
creating readiness components and cri-
teria for them, namely motivation-based 
(motivational-value), cognitive-activity 
(cognitive-operational), creative, reflexive, 
and relevant indicators. Assessment of the 
formation of readiness components was 
carried out at three levels: high, medium, 
and low.

The methodology of formation of 
the future costume designer’s readiness to 
develop professional competencies in the 
design system ensured the use of effecti-

ve methods that contribute to the impro-
vement of professional education with an 
artistic focus. Such methods included the 
use of modeling through completing pro-
jects by respondents to create clothes of a 
certain assortment with their subsequent 
defense, questioning, testing, conversati-
on, observation, surveying at the stage of 
ascertaining experiment to determine the 
input level of readiness of the future costu-
me designer to develop professional com-
petencies in the design system.

The experimental study was con-
ducted at Makhambet Utemisov West Ka-
zakhstan University. To ensure the repre-
sentativeness and reliability of the sample, 
the features of the formation of the control 
and experimental groups, age, and gender 
were determined. The control and research 
array was formed by pairwise selection. 
The condition was considered that at the 
end of the selection, the number of the ex-
perimental group met the requirements of 
representativeness. The sample consisted 
of 68 undergraduates. Thirty-six respon-
dents were involved in the control group, 
and 32 respondents were in the experi-
mental group. From among the selected 
respondents, 30 women and 38 men were 
selected for the experimental study.

At the ascertaining stage, it is neces-
sary to explore and analyze the literature 
on the subject under study, compare the 
opinions of scientists, systematize, classify 
and generalize theoretical data, compara-
tive analysis; modelling and generalizati-
on of the training methodology for future 
costume designers, the components of the 
future designer’s readiness to develop 
professional competencies in the design 
system are determined: motivation-based, 
cognitive-based, creative, and reflective. 
The study examines modern problems and 
conditions for increasing the formation of 
the future costume designer’s readiness to 
develop professional competencies in the 
design system, which can be effectively 
and efficiently solved by using this techni-
que in practice; the contingent of partici-
pants is determined, diagnostics of indivi-
dual levels of formation of components of 



Harmonia: Journal of Arts Research and Education 24 (1) (2024): 208-220212

the development of professional compe-
tencies of the future costume designer in 
the design system is performed, a questi-
onnaire of undergraduates studying accor-
ding to the educational program 7M02118 
“Design. Fashion design”, the necessary 
conclusions are made.

The formative stage of the experi-
ment involved the analysis of the effecti-
veness of the outlined components of the 
readiness of the future designer to deve-
lop professional competencies in the de-
sign system. The author’s courses “Project 
Graphics”, “Design Graphics,” “Methodo-
logy of Modern Scientific Research,” “Mo-
dern Technologies of design activity” and 
“Costume composition” were developed 
with their subsequent introduction into the 
educational process under the educational 
program 7M02118 “Design. Fashion de-
sign.” The students were involved in com-
petitions and exhibitions, which allowed 
the development of the creative abilities 
of future costume designers. Implementa-
tion of author’s projects using the system 
of creative search by Molyako is provided. 
A survey of undergraduates was carried 
out, diagnostic conversations, questioning, 
and testing were carried out to identify 
problems and solutions for training future 
costume designers. The data obtained was 
processed using mathematical statistics, 
processing the final indicators of the for-
mation of the level of readiness of future 
designers for the development of profes-
sional competencies in the design system. 
At the control stage of the experiment, the 
analysis of the results obtained, their gene-
ralization and conclusions were made.

RESULT  AND DISCUSSION

Key Components and Criteria for Profes-
sional Competencies of Costume Design-
ers

The development of modern Design 
in the field of clothing manufacturing is an 
integral component of the development of 
an innovative society of the 21st century. 
The implementation of high-quality trai-
ning of costume designers in higher edu-

cational institutions of Kazakhstan is the 
newest educational area which is actively 
developing. Since design education is a 
synthesis of art, science, and technology, 
presently Kazakhstan is actively searching 
for ways to develop the professional com-
petence of costume designers, new forms 
and technologies for their education, 
which requires the introduction of innova-
tions into the practice of higher education 
and their implementation in modern con-
ditions of training specialists (On approval 
of the…, 2019).

Considering the requirements of mo-
dern Kazakhstan society, the formation of 
professional competencies at a prominent 
level is the key to the successful introducti-
on of modern innovations into the practice 
of design education and their implementa-
tion in new economic and political condi-
tions. The formation of professional com-
petencies of the future costume designer 
in the design system is a prerequisite and 
an indicator of the readiness of specialists 
for professional activity. Specifically, the 
introduction of artistic disciplines into the 
practice of training a future costume de-
signer, the content of which is based on a 
competency-based approach, plays an im-
portant role in general education training 
(Wesselink et al., 2020).

The term “professional competence” 
refers to the willingness of a specialist to 
carry out their professional activities in 
a certain area at a high professional and 
methodological level, as well as to con-
duct self-assessment of the results of their 
activities. The study defines “designer’s 
professional competence” as readiness 
and ability to solve professional tasks and 
problems in the field of Design at a high 
methodological and organizational level, 
as well as to carry out self-assessment of 
the results of their activities. In the study, 
the professional competencies of the future 
costume designer are coordinated with the 
direction of their professional activity and 
consist of the following stages: 1. Acquisi-
tion of professional knowledge, skills, and 
abilities; 2. Acquisition and practical appli-
cation of a system of creative, artistic, and 



Elvira Faizulina et al., Development of Professional Competencies of The Future Costume 213

analytical abilities; the presence of a deve-
loped imagination and spatial thinking; 3. 
Integration of acquired competencies into 
modernity, which allows competition in 
the labor market.

Based on the results of the analysis of 
scientific achievements on the training of 
future costume designers in Kazakhstan, 
as well as based on a survey of students 
at the ascertaining stage of the experiment, 
studying at Makhambet Utemisov West 
Kazakhstan University under the educa-
tional program 7M02118 “Design. Fashion 
Design” defines the main professional acti-
vities of a costume designer, namely (Rei-
ser, 2001): 1. Artistic and graphic activity 
includes the mastery of design graphics, a 
variety of artistic and graphic techniques, 
and technical means; skills in artistic De-
sign, layout, and modeling; knowledge of 
the elements and laws of composition; and 
aesthetic taste; 2. Project activity consists 
of organizing the planning of the creati-
ve process, conducting exploratory sket-
ching when creating design projects, and 
implementing performing skills; 3. D e -
sign activity is aimed at the ability to use 
methodological, regulatory, technical, and 
other directive materials to design indivi-
dual elements and compositions, conside-
ring the requirements of ergonomics and 
aesthetics; 4. Technical activity. Its essence 
lies in possession of skills to implement 
project schedules at a quality level, apply 
graphic techniques and technical layout 
tools, possession of modern technical me-
ans of computer graphics ability to per-
form structural drawings and templates, 
carry out the development of technical and 
accompanying documentation for design 
projects with the professional use of com-
puter technology or conventional techno-
logies; 5. Technological activity includes 
knowledge of the technological features 
of sewing materials, using the latest de-
sign technologies, creating a technological 
map of the industrial replication of the de-
signed product, and carrying out projects 
using design engineering technologies; 6. 
Organizational and managerial activity in-
cludes the ability to build an algorithm for 

the technical implementation of the project 
and the manifestation of organizational 
abilities; 7. Controlling activity. It is based 
on the ability to control the compliance of 
production programs and work schedu-
les, aesthetics in production, ergonomics, 
scientific organization of labor, safety, in-
dustrial sanitation, and ecology provided 
for by the project; 8. Research and expe-
rimental activity. Its purpose is the high-
quality execution of experimental work in 
the design authorship.

Based on certain types of professional 
activity, the term “costume designer’s pro-
fessional competence” can be interpreted 
as the integration of theoretical and practi-
cal readiness to carry out project activities 
that characterize a specialist as a professio-
nal in their field. The designated types of 
professional activity of a costume designer 
underlie the components of the develop-
ment of professional competencies of a 
future costume designer in the design sys-
tem, namely motivation-based, cognitive-
operational, creative, and reflexive. Based 
on the analysis of scientific achievements 
in the field of training the future costume 
designer and the selected components of 
readiness, criteria are outlined that allow 
building a system for improving professio-
nal competence. The highlighted criteria 
include: 1. motivational-value – consists of 
goals, motives, needs, values, and profes-
sional interests; 2. cognitive-operational is 
manifested in the presence of knowledge: 
general professional, professional, special, 
methodical; skills and abilities to imple-
ment them in practice; 3. creative mani-
fests itself in the ability to generate new 
ideas and implement modern projects, fo-
recasting fashion styles and trends; 4. ref-
lexive, 5. manifests itself in the ability to 
analyze psychological characteristics and 
professional inclinations, predict and cont-
rol the results of their activities, and mo-
bilize personal potential, creative energy, 
self-expressiveness, self-development, and 
self-improvement.

Implementing and Evaluating the Com-
petency Development Methodology



Harmonia: Journal of Arts Research and Education 24 (1) (2024): 208-220214

During the ascertaining stage of the 
experiment, a set of adapted methods for 
studying the levels of development and 
formation of professional competencies 
of the definition under study at different 
stages of the experiment was designed. A 
comparative analysis of the scientific sour-
ces on the subject under study, systema-
tization, classification, and generalization 
of theoretical data was carried out, mode-
ling and summarizing the training met-
hodology for future costume designers, 
determining the components of the future 
designer’s readiness to develop profes-
sional competencies in the design system: 
namely, motivational, cognitive-activity, 
creative, and reflective.

The sample size was 68 Makhambet 
Utemisov West Kazakhstan University 
students studying under the educational 
program 7M02118 “Design. Fashion de-
sign”. Thirty-six respondents were invol-
ved in the control group, and 32 respon-
dents, including 30 women and 38 men, 
were involved in the experimental group. 
During the ascertaining experiment, a sur-
vey of undergraduates enrolled in the edu-
cational program 7M02118 “Design. Fashi-
on Design”, the contingent of participants 
was determined, the diagnostics of indi-
vidual levels of formation of the compo-
nents of the development of professional 
competencies of the future costume desig-
ner in the design system was performed. 
Makhambet Utemisov West Kazakhstan 
University provides training for the edu-
cational program 7M02118 “Design. Fashi-
on design”. During the training, students 
in this area learn to use modern trends, 
carry out technological preparation of 
garments, apply the method of construc-
ting clothes, consider the characteristics of 
the fabrics from which clothes are made, 
choose a rational technique when making 
sketches, decorating garments. Specialists 
in this field are engaged in the Design and 
construction of clothing.

During the training, students acquire 
knowledge of the principles of construc-
ting simple geometric fonts, font compo-
sitions, and fine-font compositions; ru-

les of technical safety in the execution of 
sketches; and properties and purpose of 
various working tools used in the work. 
The modeling method, one of the basic ap-
proaches to training specialists of a certain 
specialty, was used to determine the input 
level of development of future costume 
designers’ professional competencies at 
the experiment’s ascertaining stage in the 
control group. The role of the modeling 
method is to build clothing models using 
modern computer technologies, graphics, 
and materials. Since educational modeling 
is an important component in the design 
education system, during the experimental 
study, respondents were asked to design a 
project work according to the requirements 
for performing such work. At the defense 
of graphic works, first of all, the acquired 
professional competencies of future costu-
me designers were evaluated.

Testing was also carried out in the 
disciplines “Project graphics”, “Design 
graphics”, “Methodology of modern scien-
tific research”, “Modern technologies of de-
sign activities”, “Costume composition” to 
assess the professional competencies that 
students have, interviews, observations, a 
survey among respondents to determine 
the level of their training and prospects 
for improving the content of the outlined 
disciplines. The results of the evaluation 
of completed projects and the survey of 
students allowed concluding that the res-
pondents are mainly at an average and 
low level of development of professional 
competencies. The results are presented in 
Figure 1.

At the formation stage of the experi-
ment, the methods to develop professional 
competencies of future costume desig-
ners in the design system were selected. 
To form professional competencies in the 
experimental group, the author’s courses 
“Project Graphics,” “Design Graphics,”  
“Methodology of Modern Scientific Rese-
arch,” “Modern Technologies of Design 
Activity,” and “Costume Composition” 
were developed. They were taught the 
methods of enhancing creative activity: 
modeling, problematic, heuristic, “case 



Elvira Faizulina et al., Development of Professional Competencies of The Future Costume 215

method”, and “brainstorming” (individual 
and collective). This approach ensured the 
qualitative formation of motivational and 
cognitive-creative readiness components.

Figure 1. The Results of Diagnostics of the 
Future Costume Designer’s Readiness to 

Develop Professional Competencies at the 
Ascertaining Stage of the Experiment

The content and topics of scientific 
research provided for by the educatio-
nal program 7M02118 “Design. Fashion 
Design” Makhambet Utemisov West Ka-
zakhstan University. The requirements for 
final creative works have been increased, 
the involvement of respondents in exhi-
bition and competitive activities has been 
strengthened, to ensure the activation of 
creative processes, which will open new 
prospects for creative work and the imple-
mentation of design projects in practice. 
Due to the involvement of students in ex-
hibition activities, according to the results 
of the initial stage of the experiment, the-
re was a considerable increase in the de-
velopment of the creative and reflexive 
component of readiness by forming an 
informational and practical mechanism of 
interaction between future costume desig-
ners and the manufacturer.

The creative projects were imple-
mented through the creative search system 
by V. Molyako, the purpose of which is to 
activate the process of working out five 
main strategies, including combinatorial 
actions, search for analogs, reconstructive 

actions, universal strategy, spontaneous 
substitution strategy (Wasson & Kirsch-
ner, 2020). At the same time, it is ackno-
wledged that the problem of the formati-
on of professional competencies of future 
fashion designers cannot be solved within 
the framework of a course of academic dis-
ciplines. It is necessary to involve future 
costume designers in creative and project 
activities. During the implementation of 
the experimental methodology, the res-
pondents’ knowledge and practical skills 
gained when studying the history, artistic 
features, composition, and manufacturing 
technology of the national Kazakh costu-
me were considerably updated. This sti-
mulated the development of the creative 
imagination of future costume designers.

During compositional search for 
a costume upon learning the discipline 
“Composition of a costume”, namely the 
model-image (model-idea), students sum-
marize all their preliminary considerations 
and express them in sketched ideas. Ac-
cording to one of the most expressive for 
scenarios, interestingly solved plastically, 
compositionally, graphically and reflec-
ting the theme, the completed composition 
is performed. The finished work is a multi-
plot composition. The results of the data 
obtained at the initial stage of the experi-
ment are presented in Figure 2.

Based on the conducted experimen-
tal research, it was established that the 
formation of professional competence is 
an important component of the professio-
nalism of a specialist in the design profile. 
Implementing the competence approach 
in the preparation of the future costume 
designer forms the ability to carry out ef-
fective practical activities, provides a cre-
ative approach to solving professional 
tasks, and has a work culture. It is consi-
dered expedient to base the professional 
competencies of future costume designers 
on specialized competencies, which is an 
important indicator of their readiness to 
carry out professional activities. The spe-
cialized competencies include artistic ae-
sthetic and visual ones. Thus, the deve-
lopment of professional competencies of 



Harmonia: Journal of Arts Research and Education 24 (1) (2024): 208-220216

the future costume designer in the design 
system is a system that takes place in the 
educational environment of training such 
specialists. The continuity of the educatio-
nal component is an important condition 
for the expansion and deepening of profes-
sional competencies and opportunities for 
professional growth. As a result of the con-
ducted experimental study, a methodolo-
gy was developed to improve the formati-
on of professional competencies of future 
costume designers in higher education in-
stitutions of Kazakhstan based on the use 
of project activities. The results of the data 
obtained in the control and experimental 
groups confirm the relevance of the propo-
sed methodological tools.

Figure 2. The Results of Diagnostics of the 
Future Costume Designer’s Readiness to De-
velop Professional Competencies at the Initial 

Stage of the Experiment

Discussion
Modern socio-economic changes 

are taking place in Kazakhstan today; its 
entry into the world economic communi-
ty has led to the need to modernize social 
institutions, namely the system of higher 
education, directly related to the system of 
training artistic and Design personnel.

Aitbaeva and Shaihozova (2022) be-
lieve that the strategy of modernization 
of education defines the “competence ap-
proach” as one of the basic conditions for 
its renewal, modernization, and transfor-
mation due to the new values of society 
of the 21st century, based on knowledge, 

information, and innovation. In our study, 
the identification of the key professional 
competencies required for future costume 
designers in Kazakhstan were categorized 
into four components: motivational, cog-
nitive-operational, creative, and reflective. 
This comprehensive framework addres-
ses the multifaceted nature of the costume 
designer’s role, encompassing not only 
technical skills but also cognitive, creative, 
and self-reflective abilities. By delineating 
these competencies, the study provides a 
clear roadmap for educational institutions 
to align their curriculum and pedagogical 
approaches with the specific requirements 
of the profession. 

It is assumed that the basis of the up-
dated content of education as the main go-
als will be the development or formation 
of key competencies of future costume de-
signers (Ulendeeva, 2015). Our study also 
outlined specific criteria for assessing each 
of these competency components, such as 
motivational-value, cognitive-operational, 
creative, and reflective criteria. These cri-
teria serve as valuable tools for evaluating 
the effectiveness of educational programs 
in developing the necessary competencies 
among aspiring costume designers. Insti-
tutions can use these criteria to assess their 
students’ progress and identify areas that 
require further attention or improvement.

Beetham and Sharpe (2013) stated 
that people should not limit themselves 
solely to professional competencies ac-
quired during formal education since self-
education, professional development, and 
participation in exhibition activities also 
play a significant role. In our experimen-
tal study, the competence-based approach 
in higher professional education of trai-
ning future costume designers should be 
focused on the comprehensive develop-
ment and training of applicants for educa-
tion throughout the educational process, 
as well as the work of students on their 
self-improvement, self-education, creati-
ve decision-making and the development 
of humanistic values. The results from the 
ascertaining stage of the experiment revea-
led that the current level of professional 



Elvira Faizulina et al., Development of Professional Competencies of The Future Costume 217

competency development among costume 
design students at Makhambet Utemisov 
West Kazakhstan University was predomi-
nantly low to average. This finding under-
scores the need to implement the proposed 
methodology and highlights the existing 
gap between the industry’s demands and 
the current educational practices. By iden-
tifying this gap, the study justifies the 
necessity for educational reform and the 
adoption of innovative approaches to bet-
ter prepare future costume designers.

Mynbayeva et al. (2017) believe that 
in educational practice, competence as an 
educational goal has recently become one 
of the central concepts, and the inclusion 
of the formation of key competencies to 
educational goals and related changes in 
teaching methods is the main area of refor-
ming (modernization) of educational ac-
tivities. The authors of this study support 
the opinion of the mentioned scientists 
and believe that the term “competence” is 
ambiguous: opportunities for applicants 
for education in the field of their specialty 
questions on which applicants for educa-
tion have experience. This study is an at-
tempt to clarify this ambiguity by defining 
the term “professional competence” in the 
context of costume design education and 
specifying the components (motivational, 
cognitive-operational, creative, and ref-
lective) that constitute professional com-
petencies for future costume designers. 
The current study aligns with the idea of 
competence being a central concept in edu-
cational practice. It focused on identifying 
and developing the professional compe-
tencies required for future costume desig-
ners, which is essential for their success in 
the field.

According to Reinmann et al. (2022), 
in the training structure of a future costume 
designer, there should be not only structu-
ral components of the designer’s professio-
nal competence, but also functional ones, 
among which development is distinguis-
hed: cognitive-operational, motivational-
value, individual-personal components. 
Nevertheless, the present study identifies 
the following components of the future 

costume designer’s readiness to develop 
professional competencies in the design 
system, namely: motivation-based, cog-
nitive-operational, creative, reflexive. The 
current findings offer a practical imple-
mentation of this approach within the spe-
cific context of costume design education 
in Kazakhstan. goes beyond just identi-
fying the necessary components; it also 
proposes and implements a methodology 
for developing these components among 
future costume designers. This methodo-
logy, which includes project-based lear-
ning, creative problem-solving techniques, 
and involvement in exhibitions and com-
petitions, provides a practical framework 
for enhancing functional competencies.

The authors of this study support the 
opinion of Bartlett and Burton (2020), who 
believe that design activity in education is 
becoming a considerable subject area, the 
basis of which is the system of continuous 
design education, the core of a new subject 
area is a competency-based approach to 
the formation of the content of education. 
Modern concepts of design education are 
based on the following ideas: 1. It is im-
portant to ensure the effect of using design 
and design education as important factors 
in improving the welfare of the populati-
on; 2. Improving the efficiency of the use of 
design and design education as key factors 
in the growth of competitiveness of pro-
ducts and services of enterprises in various 
sectors of the economy; 3. Promoting the 
development of design education and de-
sign enterprises, factoring in the growing 
contribution of marketing and design ser-
vices to the company’s structure – the cost 
of both consumer and industrial goods.

The purpose of the designer’s activi-
ty is the qualitative implementation of the 
Design and creation of a human subject 
environment. The subject of the costume 
designer’s work lies in the implementati-
on of the artistic and technical Design of 
the garment and the creation of working 
documentation. The current research is 
contextualized to the specific needs and 
challenges of costume design education 
in Kazakhstan, making current findings 



Harmonia: Journal of Arts Research and Education 24 (1) (2024): 208-220218

more relevant and applicable to the local 
context than the opinions of Bartlett and 
Burton (2020).

Chyrchyk (2017) believes that a cos-
tume designer should have the following 
skills: the desire to create new things and 
constantly improve and develop, master 
color theory, have their own professio-
nal style, and be empathic and disciplin-
ed. The researcher, conducting research 
on the process of training future costume 
designers, noted that academic disciplines 
in the training of costume design specia-
lists should be aimed at the development 
of creative thinking. In terms of the results 
obtained in this study, the use of the propo-
sed approach may be correct, namely, the 
purposeful design-imaginative thinking 
of costume designers should be develo-
ped throughout the entire training period 
in practical and theoretical activities. The 
essential condition for the development of 
professional competencies of future cos-
tume designers is the use and adaptation 
of Kazakhstan’s national culture and folk 
crafts to the needs of modern design.

Rooij et al. (2020), conducting rese-
arch on the development of project activi-
ties in the modern fashion industry, noted 
that a future costume designer, along with 
professional competencies, should have 
programmatic competencies in the field of 
fashion design, the use of which will cont-
ribute to the development of general and 
professional competencies in the field of 
Design. Focusing on modern technologies 
of design activity in work allows a costu-
me designer to realize their creative poten-
tial through the following competencies: 
1. The ability to demonstrate the presen-
tation of professional knowledge methods 
of designing spatial structures of complex 
design projects of clothing; 2. The ability 
to independently solve issues and conduct 
research on the development of creativity 
as a type of design activity; 3. Assimilation 
of skills, methods, and knowledge of the 
criteria for the characteristics of the main 
heuristic methods of design activity; 4. The 
ability to carry out a campaign to search for 
an informative base to investigate research 

information in project work; 5. Mastering 
the skills of scientific and methodological 
transformation of heuristics; 6. Mastering 
the skills of applying scientific and Design 
analysis methodology in design activities; 
7. Summarize the results of pre-project and 
project studies conducted within the fra-
mework of design activities.

While Rooij et al. (2020) focus prima-
rily on programmatic competencies rela-
ted to fashion design and project activities, 
the current research proposes a more com-
prehensive framework that encompasses a 
broader range of professional competen-
cies essential for future costume designers. 
In the study, the specific challenges and 
needs of training future costume designers 
are taken into account, ensuring our fin-
dings are more directly applicable to this 
specialized field. The study identifies the 
necessary professional competencies and 
introduces and implements a comprehen-
sive methodology for developing these 
competencies. This methodology incorpo-
rates various teaching strategies, project-
based learning, creative problem-solving 
techniques, and involvement in exhibiti-
ons and competitions, offering a practical 
and actionable approach.

The improvement of the ways of 
forming the professional competencies of 
future costume designers should be en-
sured by introducing updated forms and 
methods of training, methods of training 
such specialists, the implementation of 
the readiness components outlined in the 
study. The methodology of training futu-
re costume designers should make provi-
sion for modelling the process of develo-
ping the professional competencies of the 
aforementioned specialists in the design 
system. Thus, the improvement of profes-
sional training of future costume designers 
will solve a number of problems related to 
the development of design education in 
Kazakhstan and will create conditions for 
the rapid professionalization of future cos-
tume designers in the labor market.

CONCLUSIONS 



Elvira Faizulina et al., Development of Professional Competencies of The Future Costume 219

The terms “professional competen-
ce” and “designer’s professional compe-
tence” were defined during the study. 
Promising areas for improving the process 
of formation and development of profes-
sional competencies of the future costume 
designer in the design system in Kazakhs-
tan have been formed. Upon conducting 
the ascertaining stage of the study, it was 
found that future costume designers’ trai-
ning level and the competencies they ac-
quire during such training are at a low 
and average position. This trend requires 
the creation of the necessary methodologi-
cal tools, which will increase the training 
of future costume designers and, as a re-
sult, the development of their professional 
competencies. The study outlined the com-
ponents of the readiness of future costume 
designers to develop professional compe-
tencies in the design system, namely mo-
tivation-based, cognitive-activity, creative, 
reflexive, as well as criteria: motivational-
value, cognitive-operational, creative, and 
reflexive and indicators for them; the met-
hod of their formation has been developed 
and implemented. The generalized data of 
the results of the initial stage of the experi-
ment after the introduction of the proposed 
methodology allows concluding on the ef-
fectiveness of the implemented methodo-
logical materials. In this regard, the policy 
of educational institutions of Kazakhstan 
should be aimed at updating the methodo-
logy of training future costume designers 
in the design system.

A promising area for further research 
is the consideration of modern internatio-
nal-level programs for future designers 
with the possibility of their involvement 
in design competitions both in Kazakhstan 
and abroad through the introduction of 
the results of their research. Scientific rese-
arch, as well as the conclusions formulated 
on its basis, can be used in the future as an 
effective basis for improving the training 
of undergraduates and ways to increase 
the level of professional competence using 
the practices of foreign countries. A pro-
mising area for improving the professional 
training of future costume designers is also 

the introduction of digital resources for or-
ganizing research activities of applicants 
for higher education, designing clothing 
collections, and expanding the study of 
the structure of professional competencies 
of future costume designers in the design 
system.

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