Woman sitting on a couch writing, Dakota Design Company, Dear Dakota, Should I go back to interior design school

Dear Dakota,
I am contemplating obtaining a 2-year interior design degree from a community college and would love your thoughts on whether the extra schooling would be worth my time. Although I am strong in many skills and have a Bachelor’s degree in another field, I do think I could benefit from the extra practice and knowledge that would be gained from school. How can I decide whether going back to school would be right for me?

This is a great question, and one many people consider over their careers, whether it be for a first degree or an additional one. So we asked our resident interior design professor, Dr. Gloria, to weigh in. If you’ve been around here for a while, you know Gloria was a longtime practicing interior designer before transitioning her career to college teaching thirteen years ago.

Here is Gloria’s response to this interior designer considering going back to school:

As an educator, I am very pro-education. And I have pursued advanced education myself because I value knowledge. Gaining additional education is always a good thing. But that does not mean it always makes sense to go back to school. There are many circumstances that may mean pursuing additional education is NOT the right path.

Yes, an interior design degree is a very worthwhile credential to have. I will never refute that. To anyone reading this who has an Associate’s, Bachelor’s, or Master’s degree in Interior Design - kudos to you! Your design education is a thing of value! (Think about this—a degree is something no one can ever take away from you. You can lose your money, you can lose a job, a marriage may fall apart, and a business may fold. But an education? That is yours until the day you die!)

But here’s the thing:

Although I think a design degree is mandatory for a commercial interior designer (designing commercial and public building interiors), I don’t fully believe this is true for residential interior designers—especially those who already have some related experience and industry knowledge, or who have already completed a good deal of higher education in another field.

I am aware of so many very successful residential interior designers—many who have worked with Dakota Design Company—who do not have a degree. Instead, they have developed skills and knowledge through internships, apprenticeships, and on-the-job training. They know their stuff, and are very successful.

To those of you who fall into this category, hats off to you; your determination and your self-discipline have allowed you to achieve success through many focused efforts.

And smart business owners know it always makes sense to build their team based on their own credentialing assets and gaps. If an interior design business owner does not hold a degree in interior design, it may be wise to hire a team member who does have that education. This is a very effective strategy for balancing strengths across a team, and is a logical solution that does not involve a tuition (or time) investment for the business owner.

So, how can you determine whether and when additional education is right for you personally?

There are both financial and time considerations to contemplate. For many practicing interior designers, it simply does not make sense to invest in the cost of additional education. There is both the cost of tuition to consider, but also the cost of delaying or declining revenue-generating work. This may be a consideration to discuss with a financial advisor. And if you would need to take out a student loan to pay tuition, consider the interest rate and payback terms very carefully.

Remember this: there are other educational pathways and opportunities to expand your knowledge other than college programs. Don’t underestimate the value of more informal sources of good information.

For this very reason, we at Dakota Design Company recently created a twice-monthly information source—The Design Brief™—which provides content around topics that are taught in college design courses. We have also created a concise summary of all building codes related to residential interiors. There are many other high-quality sources of information and textbooks written on interior design topics (let me know if you need a recommendation).

Some additional considerations:

Yes, there are some industry credentials that are out of reach for those designers without a degree in interior design.

To qualify to take the NCIDQ exam—the highest level professional examination in the interior design field—a designer must have, at minimum, a certificate, diploma, or associate’s degree that includes at least 60 semester hours in interior design coursework. Passing the NCIDQ exam opens many other professional credentials, noted below.
To achieve licensing as a commercial interior designer in states that have a Practice Act in place (Louisiana, Nevada, and Washington DC), a designer needs to have passed the NCIDQ exam, which in turn requires education (as noted above). However, single-family homes are considered an exempt building type that do not have the same professional credentialing requirements, largely relieving the licensing practice requirements for residential interior designers.
For states that have Title Acts, the requirement for using a title such as Certified Interior Designer or Registered Interior Designer is passage of the NCIDQ exam, which in turn requires formal education. But, the fact is, if you earn even a penny providing any interior design services, you are in fact a professional interior designer.
Membership levels in professional organizations, such as the American Society of Interior Designers, depend on educational achievement and passing the NCIDQ exam
In states where Permitting Privileges exist for interior designers (the ability to stamp and sign construction documents for non-load-bearing construction projects, for the purpose of applying for a building permit), the requirement is passing the NCIDQ exam. However, in many states, single-family homes are an exempt building type, not requiring the stamp of a licensed design professional for building permits, negating the consequence of this privilege for residential interior designers.

Some of these constraints and requirements get a bit complex, but it really boils down to this: these credentialing stipulations affect commercial interior designers to a far greater degree than they do residential interior designers. This is in large part due to how single-family homes and duplexes are regarded in the building codes—that they are considered a distinct building type with different codes applying to them.

And I do find that the benefit (of the NCIDQ exam, and state credentialing) is far more on the professional side than on the client-facing side. An interior design degree and the NCIDQ exam open doors to membership levels in professional organizations, the use of a state-specific title (where title acts exist), and certain networking opportunities for sure.

But I don’t think clients care, or even understand, what these mean for the most part. They will be more attuned to your level of professionalism, your client experience, examples of your work, and how you operate your business. I don’t believe potential clients are highly mindful of a designer’s academic credentials when they choose a designer.

Pursuing additional college-level education has to align with your financial goals, your professional development goals, your business goals, and your life-stage and family-stage circumstances.

If you do determine that pursuing a degree in interior design is right for you, I applaud your aspirations. 👏

The Council for Interior Design Accreditation (CIDA) lists accredited 4-year programs that culminate in a bachelor's degree in interior design on the CIDA website.
Two year interior design programs, or master’s-level programs are not listed there, but can be found through a google search for your area.
And there are also some great online/distance programs that allow you to pursue a degree or take courses from a college or university not in your area.

If additional education is not in the cards for you, you can continue to devote efforts to business and personal growth. Dakota Design Company is here to support you through its educational programs and business resources.

Regardless of where you are in your personal or professional development as an interior designer, you have skills and talents the general public just doesn’t possess. Homeowners, in general, simply cannot do what you do. As with someone who is talented in music or art, your innate abilities set you apart and make you enormously valuable to others. You are able to create environments that are stunning, inspiring, and life-enhancing.