<Li> A residential designer is hired by a specific theatre, dance or opera company for an extended series of productions . This can be as short as a summer stock contract, or may be for many years . A residential designer's contract may limit the amounts of freelance work they are allowed to accept . Unlike the freelancer, a residential designer is consistently "on location" at the theater--at hand to work with costume studio and other collaborators . Residential designers tend to be more established than strict freelancers, but this is not always the case . </Li> <Li> An academic designer is one who holds professorship at a school . The designer is primarily an instructor, but may also act as a residential designer to varying degrees . They are often free to freelance, as their schedule allows . In the past, professors of costume design were mostly experienced professionals that may or may not have had formal post-graduate education, but it has now become increasingly common to require a professor to have at least a Master of Fine Arts in order to teach . </Li> <P> Both residential and academic designers are generally also required to act as Shop Master or Mistress of an onsite costume shop, in addition to designing productions . In a resident theatre, there is almost always a shop staff of stitchers, drapers, cutters and craft artisans . In an academic environment the shop "staff" is generally students, who are learning about costume design and construction . Most universities require costume design students to work a specified number of hours in the shop as part of their course work . </P> <P> There are two unions that costume designers can belong to: </P>

Drapers are a part of what team theatre