Chicago IL

Bachelor of Fine Arts
180 quarter credit hours

The Interior Design program provides a course of study that leads to the development of a professional that will be able to enhance the function and quality of interior spaces. Students graduating from this program will have an understanding that the intent of interior design is to improve the quality of life, increase productivity and protect health, safety and welfare of the public.

Tampa FL

The Interior Design departmental mission is to prepare students for professional opportunities in the field of Interior Design in order to enhance the function, quality and safety of interior spaces. The Interior Design Program attracts students who want to be challenged both creatively and technically, people who have aesthetic sensitivity and who understand the importance of using space effectively and efficiently. The student is guided through a balanced curriculum that provides him/her with the expertise to design and communicate his/her ideas.

Associate of Science degree in Interior Design
During the studies leading to the Associate of Science degree in Interior Design, emphasis is placed on technical development, intellectual disciplines, communication skills, cultural enrichment and creative sensitivity. Basic areas covered include drafting and detailing, specialized knowledge of interior visual communication and design, space planning and environmental design and general education.

Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Interior Design
In the profession of Interior Design, a Bachelor's degree is often a requirement for upper management positions and, as a result, the Academy offers a program leading to a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Interior Design. The program is designed so that students are able to gain additional professional experience and internships while adding depth and breadth to their knowledge of Interior Design.

Toronto ON

Interior Design Diploma Programs

Two-Year Diploma
Graduates of the International Academy's Interior Design Program become specialists in the relationship between people and spaces.

Attracting creative and detail-minded individuals with a desire to improve the condition of our built environment, students discover how interiors, designed properly and inventively, can influence human interaction, emotional response and improve the quality of our lives. The curriculum encourages the student to experiment with form, space, texture and colour, drawing on holistic and cultural references, technical expertise, intellectual disciplines, creative sensitivity, and environmental and global awareness.

Course work examines the basics of two-dimensional design and three-dimensional thinking; the study of space planning and human factors in design; colour, lighting and material knowledge; and historical reference. Visual communication skills are developed and perfected to transmit our ideas into reality for our clients. Technical drawing skills begin with manual drafting, leading to AutoCAD, R2000 competency in the second year. Students relate design theory and conceptual skills to the development of simple one room and minimal dwellings to complex residential, retail, corporate, and hospitality projects intended for diverse social and economic populations throughout the two-year program.

The program consists of six terms divided into ten-week quarter terms of course-specific interior design education. Students may complete the program in two years or in eighteen months of continuous study. The curriculum includes all interior design theory, technical and supporting courses necessary for entry level into the profession. The program is accepted by ARIDO (Association of Registered Interior Designers of Ontario) as entry level for Intern membership, leading to the recommended sequence including formal education, entry level experience, and satisfactory completion of the NCIDQ (National Council for Interior Design Qualification) qualifying examination for registered or licensed professional status in the province or state of residence.

The program provides a foundation for the third year study and the FIDER (Foundation for Interior Design Education Research) first professional degree level program.

Third Year
The third year Diploma in Interior Design is a separate program and may be entered immediately after graduation from the second year interior design program, or in subsequent years following practical experience. The program is also open to Interior Design students who have an equivalency in interior design studies from another institution.

In addition to the Three Year Diploma bestowed to Graduates, students who have successfully completed thirty semester credit hours of diverse college-level liberal arts credits prior to entering the third year program, or who obtain the general education credits concurrent with their interior design studies will have satisfied the academic requirements for the FIDER (Foundation for Interior Design Education Research) first professional degree level program. The intent of requiring liberal arts and sciences credit hours to graduate from a FIDER Professional Level Program is to ensure students develop a broadening of quantitative reasoning and critical thinking skills.

Accreditation at the professional level of education is awarded to programs that provide academic preparation that is recognized by the interior design profession as meeting the highest educational requirements for entry into the profession. This preparation, in the U.S.A. and Canada, is the first component of a recommended sequence including formal education, entry level experience, and satisfactory completion of the NCIDQ (National Council for Interior Design Qualification) qualifying examination for registered or licensed professional status in the province or state of residence.

The program provides expanded research and studio time to accomplish portfolio work and includes additional support courses that add to the graduates range of knowledge. Studies lead to increased technical ability in AutoCAD as well as exploring Macintosh platform capabilities in presentation techniques and other software applications. It provides a curriculum-based internship to articulate the transition from student to professional interior designer. When possible, students are placed in a professional office in the industry segment of their practicum topic. Students may elect to complete their internship during term breaks or at the end of the final year.

The Third year studio design project consists of a three-term practicum in a project selected by the student in consultation with a faculty advisor. The project must be of sufficient size and extent to provide complexity and breadth of scope in interior design theory and application. The topic is reviewed with faculty to generate a project that is manageable and challenging within the time available.