Becoming an Interior Designer

by Stanley Rubenti stanley.rubenti@careerschoolguide.com
Career School Guide Columnist

Have you ever walked into a home or office and thought to yourself, “I could have designed this better?” Probably everyone thinks this at some time or another. But if you find that you have this thought quite frequently, perhaps you should explore a career in interior design.

Launching a Career in Interior design

Before you can actually launch into a career in interior design, it is important to define what this career actually is. Too many people confuse interior design with interior decorating. While the two fields share many similarities, interior design is a little bit more involved than traditional interior decorating.

Instead of dressing up the surface (paint, furniture, carpeting, etc.), an interior designer actually changes structural elements of the room. For example, he or she might add a staircase, move some pillars, or knock out a wall or two. Interior designers take function, safety, and aesthetics into account when designing, and increasingly, many designers are accounting for the environment by developing eco-friendly designs. Popular interior design niches are:

• Elder design (design for older individuals’ needs)
• Ergonomic design
• Green (environmentally-friendly) design

Interior design Training

Because a career in interior design is so involved, it is essential that you receive formal training and instruction. A bachelor’s degree in interior design is often recommended. Depending on what level of expertise you want to achieve, your interior design training can last anywhere from several months to several years. Many of your modifications will require a fair degree of architectural knowledge, so you’ll want to be sure that the interior design program you enter has courses on architecture. After the completion of your interior design training, you’ll most likely need to become licensed (at least in 24 states and the District of Columbia).

A little creative flair and education will have you designing and enhancing buildings and homes in no time.

Source

U.S. Department of Labor: Bureau of Labor Statistics. “Interior Designers.”

About the Author

A freelance writer and researcher, Stanley Rubenti currently lives and works in Bangkok, Thailand. Stanley holds a B.A. in history