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Interior Design: Education, Schools and Jobs

Khushnuma Irani
From curtains to furniture and paints to lights, if all these things in home décor excite you, then maybe you should be leaning towards interior design as a career. Here's some help...
You have decorated your room at the age of 12, you helped decorate your parent's home at 14, and aunts, relatives, and friends have been coming to you for decorating tips. You know what colors look good together, you know how placement of furniture works, you know how to arrange furniture aesthetically, and you know what kind of lighting works the best.
So, have you thought of the very obvious career choice? Interior designing is obviously your forte, and something that can be very lucrative for you.

Interior Design Schools and Education

Just some experience in decorating homes is not going to help you, if you want to become an interior designer. You need some formal education too. These schools are going to deal with technical stuff that you never knew.
They will also teach you about the history of this profession, computer-aided drawing and designing, architecture, and space planning. There are certain rules and regulations that all students need to be aware of, such as those about fire laws, handicap access, sound and lighting design, and building regulations.
Every student needs to clear the National Council for Interior Design Qualification or NCIDQ Exam. This exam is of extreme importance, as it gives the student the required credentials to become a qualified designer.
The schools prepare the students for this exam. But remember, there are some qualification criteria for this exam. The student has to have six years of experience including the education, and must include two years of post secondary education.
If you cannot go to a regular school, there are always other options, and these days, the Internet makes anything possible. There are countless online degrees available, and many of these are accredited
They give lecture and studio lessons from a school close to you. You can choose to do this if you are working and do not want to quit for a full-time job.

Interior Design Jobs

In the yesteryears, not a lot of people used designers, but these days, almost every person wants their space and environment to be appealing and different.
There are millions of clients out there who do not mind shelling out big bucks for something different and classy.
The television is also not far behind―see the talk shows and reality shows, at least one out of every ten will have a decorating piece included.
Home and office interiors are just a small section in the mix―hotels, restaurants, law firms, etc., are all places that need to be visually enhanced, which means, what you see is what you get.
Even clinics, spas, and salons are not far behind on this decorating bandwagon. Ad agencies, art galleries, and corporate head offices are always a step ahead in the game of interior design.
And it's not just the creativity that is important, which doesn't mean that you undermine the creativity involved, but skill is a big factor involved in getting exciting jobs.
If you want to own your own firm, what is stopping you? Just remember to take an extra course in marketing, merchandising, and business psychology, to give you that extra edge in the market.