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Why did you become an Interior Design Director?
Hello! My name is Jenny and I am a current high school student. I'm conducting an interview with any professional in Applied Physical Arts field for a Foundations in Health Science Class project about careers! I have created a total of 13 questions. Comment on this post, answering all 13 questions to be apart of my assignment
1.What profession did you choose? Why?
2.How many years of college did you need to go through?
3.What jobs did you work before you landed your present professional job?
4. What are classes like?
5. Were you in a college program?
6. Did you have to pivot and go back to school at a later date?
7. Did you shadow another professional in the field?
8. Did you join any school clubs related to your current profession?
9. Was there a particular subject you struggled with during your school years?
10. What skill sets did you learn or gain while pursuing your career?
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2 answers
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Amber’s Answer
1.What profession did you choose? Why? I choose Interior Design because of the interaction of people and buildings. Everything that goes on inside a building has an impact on a person; paint, flooring, even how walls are placed! It is such a fun challenge to me to figure out how to evoke emotions or actions due to my designs.
2.How many years of college did you need to go through? I went through 4 years of undergraduate schooling. I will have to complete a licensure test at some point though.
3.What jobs did you work before you landed your present professional job? I did a few sales type jobs but then jumped into interning at a small interior design firm. This really helped to expose how the design world works and allowed me to gain lots of experience!
4. What are classes like? For me, I had a combination of architecture classes and then interior design. In the first two years, there was more conceptual design elements, such as building models and hand drawing. The last couple of years were more technical, getting into how to draw floor plans and how buildings elements would be constructed.
5. Were you in a college program? Yes, I majored in Interior Design with a minor in Architectural Studies. This was an undergraduate program.
6. Did you have to pivot and go back to school at a later date? I did not. For my field of work, you do not necessarily need to go back to school, unless you would like to teach Interior Design, that would require a Masters degree.
7. Did you shadow another professional in the field? With my internship at the smaller design firm, I was able to work closely with the owner. I gained lots of experience and knowledge.
8. Did you join any school clubs related to your current profession? I joined IIDA, which is the International Interior Design Association. They events, mentor programs, and grants available to students.
9. Was there a particular subject you struggled with during your school years? I struggled with my Woodshop class and then later, my Rhino/Grasshopper Digital Software class. There are so many different skills involved with design!
10. What skill sets did you learn or gain while pursuing your career? I developed a good sense of leadership and mentorship, while also having confidence in my work. There are many different people that you will come across that may disagree with your design concepts, you will have to be ready to defend your reasoning.
2.How many years of college did you need to go through? I went through 4 years of undergraduate schooling. I will have to complete a licensure test at some point though.
3.What jobs did you work before you landed your present professional job? I did a few sales type jobs but then jumped into interning at a small interior design firm. This really helped to expose how the design world works and allowed me to gain lots of experience!
4. What are classes like? For me, I had a combination of architecture classes and then interior design. In the first two years, there was more conceptual design elements, such as building models and hand drawing. The last couple of years were more technical, getting into how to draw floor plans and how buildings elements would be constructed.
5. Were you in a college program? Yes, I majored in Interior Design with a minor in Architectural Studies. This was an undergraduate program.
6. Did you have to pivot and go back to school at a later date? I did not. For my field of work, you do not necessarily need to go back to school, unless you would like to teach Interior Design, that would require a Masters degree.
7. Did you shadow another professional in the field? With my internship at the smaller design firm, I was able to work closely with the owner. I gained lots of experience and knowledge.
8. Did you join any school clubs related to your current profession? I joined IIDA, which is the International Interior Design Association. They events, mentor programs, and grants available to students.
9. Was there a particular subject you struggled with during your school years? I struggled with my Woodshop class and then later, my Rhino/Grasshopper Digital Software class. There are so many different skills involved with design!
10. What skill sets did you learn or gain while pursuing your career? I developed a good sense of leadership and mentorship, while also having confidence in my work. There are many different people that you will come across that may disagree with your design concepts, you will have to be ready to defend your reasoning.
Thank you, this helped so much! What would you do differently if you could go back in time? Did you get any interships? If so what did you do and how were you able to get the internship?
Jenny
I think if I could go back, I would look more thoroughly into the schools that offered interior design. My school that I went to was just starting an interiors program, so I was the second class of interior design to graduate. In this instance, I probably did not get as much of a great education in design since the program was so new.
I did have an internship with a small interior design firm. I was researching interior design firms in my area online and found that firm. I wrote up and email to strike up a conversation and to say I was interested. I also realized that I was connected with people that knew the owner, so that helped. Always good to make connections!
Amber Drenth
Updated
Carmen’s Answer
1.What profession did you choose? Why?
Answer: I chose Interior Design. Two reasons why? 1. As a first time buyer I was broke and needed to figure out how to create an affordable space. 2. My daughter loved making houses out of furniture boxes and each box was a box waiting to reveal itself. Therefore, I figured if I can design a layout from empty space in a house and create structures from card board boxes, then I can do this as a career.
2.How many years of college did you need to go through?
Answer: I am an non traditional student which means I went at a later time frame in my life. It took me longer than a traditional student. I started going part time then eventually transitioning into a fulltime student for a total of six years. Due to my determination, I graduated top with honors.
3.What jobs did you work before you landed your present professional job?
Answer: I was a full time mom.
4. What are classes like?
Answer: The basic classes are very rudimentary, english , math, etc. However, once enrolled into the interior design curriculum they are very daunting. Studio Classes are 4 hours long and are mixed with Architects and Interior Designs. Projects require a lot of time management skills. Once accepted into the program we were a group of 20 -30 students. The later two years were a mix of hybrid courses with Architect Firms, architect and interior design students with real scenario projects. The big thing to consider when choosing this curriculum, is time management. There will be many days with very little time for sleep or anything outside of school.
5. Were you in a college program?
Answer: Yes.
6. Did you have to pivot and go back to school at a later date?
Answer: Yes, I did not know what I wanted to be when I grew up. Then suddenly I was all grown up.
7. Did you shadow another professional in the field?
Answer: Not so much shadow, but did on the job training. Plus our university held firm crawls. This is when local firms open up their offices for a day to invite students enrolled in the program. This is good for potential students to network and secure internships.
8. Did you join any school clubs related to your current profession?
Answer: Yes, I joined IIDA and ASID. Both are interior design organizations which are beneficial. Both offer student enrollment discounts to aid with the membership fees. Also a good networking venue.
9. Was there a particular subject you struggled with during your school years?
Answer: YES, YES, YES. I struggled with environmental systems. There was so much physics involved to determine thermal radiant loss and prevention to design energy efficient structures. This consisted of, structure placement on parcel, exterior shading, placement of windows, and ventilation! Yes, it sounds boring, but is very beneficial information to learn. NO M.E.P involved.
10. What skill sets did you learn or gain while pursuing your career?
Answer: Listening Skills! Sometimes I realized I was hearing the feed back, but not listening to the feedback. Could of been my lack of sleep, LOL! Patience: I had to give a lot of patience to myself and those in my group because I required the same patience. Which goes back to listening, you have to listen to your team to hear what the team needs.
Overall, I would not do it any different. I get to design beautiful spaces and watch the impact I had on individuals. To me, it is like wrapping a gift and watching others unwrap their gift.
Enjoy,
Carmen Castillo
Answer: I chose Interior Design. Two reasons why? 1. As a first time buyer I was broke and needed to figure out how to create an affordable space. 2. My daughter loved making houses out of furniture boxes and each box was a box waiting to reveal itself. Therefore, I figured if I can design a layout from empty space in a house and create structures from card board boxes, then I can do this as a career.
2.How many years of college did you need to go through?
Answer: I am an non traditional student which means I went at a later time frame in my life. It took me longer than a traditional student. I started going part time then eventually transitioning into a fulltime student for a total of six years. Due to my determination, I graduated top with honors.
3.What jobs did you work before you landed your present professional job?
Answer: I was a full time mom.
4. What are classes like?
Answer: The basic classes are very rudimentary, english , math, etc. However, once enrolled into the interior design curriculum they are very daunting. Studio Classes are 4 hours long and are mixed with Architects and Interior Designs. Projects require a lot of time management skills. Once accepted into the program we were a group of 20 -30 students. The later two years were a mix of hybrid courses with Architect Firms, architect and interior design students with real scenario projects. The big thing to consider when choosing this curriculum, is time management. There will be many days with very little time for sleep or anything outside of school.
5. Were you in a college program?
Answer: Yes.
6. Did you have to pivot and go back to school at a later date?
Answer: Yes, I did not know what I wanted to be when I grew up. Then suddenly I was all grown up.
7. Did you shadow another professional in the field?
Answer: Not so much shadow, but did on the job training. Plus our university held firm crawls. This is when local firms open up their offices for a day to invite students enrolled in the program. This is good for potential students to network and secure internships.
8. Did you join any school clubs related to your current profession?
Answer: Yes, I joined IIDA and ASID. Both are interior design organizations which are beneficial. Both offer student enrollment discounts to aid with the membership fees. Also a good networking venue.
9. Was there a particular subject you struggled with during your school years?
Answer: YES, YES, YES. I struggled with environmental systems. There was so much physics involved to determine thermal radiant loss and prevention to design energy efficient structures. This consisted of, structure placement on parcel, exterior shading, placement of windows, and ventilation! Yes, it sounds boring, but is very beneficial information to learn. NO M.E.P involved.
10. What skill sets did you learn or gain while pursuing your career?
Answer: Listening Skills! Sometimes I realized I was hearing the feed back, but not listening to the feedback. Could of been my lack of sleep, LOL! Patience: I had to give a lot of patience to myself and those in my group because I required the same patience. Which goes back to listening, you have to listen to your team to hear what the team needs.
Overall, I would not do it any different. I get to design beautiful spaces and watch the impact I had on individuals. To me, it is like wrapping a gift and watching others unwrap their gift.
Enjoy,
Carmen Castillo