Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc)
Pratt Institute
Tulane University
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
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University of Oregon
Cranbrook Academy of Art
Architecture, Interior Architecture, or Interior Desisn?
Hello everyone,
I'm a high school student, looking for help and explanations regarding college majors and career path to follow. I really like making/ drawing floor plans and design rooms. I'm pretty good at math, especially geometry, and also good at CAD programs. My goal for my future job is to make plans and design small houses for families, not really into large constructions or urban planning
I'm confused between Interior Architecture and Interior Design, how are they different from each other. And what is the reason that many people would prefer Interior Architecture rather than Architecture itself?
Thank you in advance.
Architecture > Interior Design
also, interior architecture is just interior design re-branded. It's the same thing.
Architects can always do interior design, and lots of times they do, either as stand-alone projects, or as part of their scope of services. Interior Designers (self-labeled) cannot stamp buildings for permit or construction. Also close to 0% of the interior designers I've worked with know anything about building or accessibility code when it comes to space layout, finishes, fixtures, etc., which makes them a PITA to work with. Don't be a PITA. Don't become an interior designer.
I work a lot with interior designers, and yes, some of them are a PITA to work with - mostly because of bad technical skills or being unable to navigate a drawing set. That being said, after working with some amazing interior talent, I've come to learn that a lot of architects are TERRIBLE interior designers. Like, really really bad. We are not trained at all to think about interiors the way interior designers are.
"Interior Architect" is not recognized as a distinct profession anyplace that I'm aware of - an interior architect is an architect who chooses to specialize in interiors, and must meet all of the same licensing requirements as any other architect.
Some states/provinces recognize "Interior Designer" as a profession, some don't. In some states, an interior designer is permitted to do more than a totally unlicensed person but less than and architect or engineer; in others, an interior designer can only do the same work as an unlicensed person.
Very roughly:
Interior Architect is used in several EU countries, and can have 5 years of degree study mandated as with architecture. Depends on location.
If you go the architecture route, just know that few, if any, undergraduate architecture programs in the US will teach you much about the furniture, window coverings, and finishes you would use in designing the interior of a home. You will have to seek out that information either in classes in the interior design department of a university or some kind of on-the-job training. That said, it is still easier to move from architecture into interior design than going the other way.
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