Interior Design

Discover how interior design responds to and reflects our ever-changing society. You’ll work with industry leaders to gain hands-on skills and experience through a range of live commercial and community projects – from retail, workspace and hospitality projects to education and healthcare. Covering every aspect of interior design, you’ll gain all the skills you need to succeed in your career. The teaching on this course received a 95.5% student satisfaction rate in the 2018 National Student Survey.

Interior design is an exhilarating practice responding to the rapid pace of the interiors industry. It involves an exciting range of projects embracing commercial, social and temporary projects such as workspaces, hotels, retail, museums, exhibitions, and health and educational spaces. This Interior Design BA will introduce you to the latest research as well as industry professionals who will bring their knowledge and experience to the course.

Your first year – through an active and holistic learning and teaching programme – is designed to develop your thinking, key skills and understanding of the industry and related practice, allowing you to produce a portfolio and discover your career aspirations through explorative approaches. You’ll explore sketching, drawing, sketch-modelling and the production of scaled accurate models through workshop practice and orthographic techniques, with digital software also used to strengthen your ideas and skills. This will guide you into your second year where we ask you to choose a studio in which to cultivate your design philosophy, sector specialisms and professional skills. The course also offers an opportunity to work within the industry and gain real life work experience with an interior design company, which is assessed as part of your degree. We then build on this in the third year and advance your individuality and expertise through both studio specialisms and a mentoring scheme leading you towards successful employment.

Our studios are run by practitioners and experts in their field who develop a series of year-long projects covering contemporary and relevant design issues and topics. We work with well-known businesses, associations, and museums and galleries running live projects. This gives you the opportunity to discuss and exhibit your projects, which in turn helps you to develop a range of professional presentational skills.

The course takes place in the heart of London's creative district, which gives you access to an abundance of live projects and industry mentors. You’ll be surrounded by the best interior practices in London from Shoreditch, Clerkenwell, the West End and Mayfair. We also promote an entrepreneurial spirit, which leads to students participating in national and international competitions and taking advantage of volunteering opportunities.

Assessment

A variety of assessment methods are used throughout the course. These range from formative, summative, diagnostic, peer and self-assessment methods, through to studio based work, workshops, and CAD and digital projects and exercises. Feedback is given throughout the course.

Entry requirements

In addition to the University’s standard entry requirements, you will normally be expected to obtain:

• A minimum grade BBC in three A levels from relevant subject areas such as the arts, humanities and social sciences (or a minimum of 112 UCAS points from an equivalent Level 3 qualification in relevant art and design subjects)
• a portfolio review
• English language GCSE at grade C/grade 4 or above

We encourage applications from international/EU students with equivalent qualifications. We also accept mature students with diverse backgrounds and experiences. Suitable applicants living in the UK will be invited to a portfolio interview. Applicants living outside the UK will be required to submit a portfolio of work via email. If you do not have traditional qualifications or cannot meet the entry requirements for this undergraduate degree, you may still be able to gain entry by completing the Art and Design Extended Degree (with Foundation Year). All applicants must be able to demonstrate proficiency in the English language. Applicants who require a Tier 4 student visa may need to provide a Secure English Language Test (SELT) such as Academic IELTS. For more information about English qualifications please see our English language requirements.

Portfolios and interviews

Your portfolio should be selected but have enough work to show the range of your interests and talents. We are interested in seeing how you develop a project from beginning to end, not only finished work. Interior designers make models as well as flatwork, so 3D work may be relevant as well as 2D. If you cannot bring it to portfolio interview, take photographs and include them. We always want to see traditional drawing whether observational, life or concept generating, so please include this, even if you have good CAD skills already. Finally, be ready to talk about your work and how you see your future as an interior designer.

After the course

You’ll graduate from the course with all the skills and confidence you need to succeed in commercial practice. Past graduates have found work as interior designers, interior architects, retail and exhibition designers, and many now work for some of the most successful practices in London representing leading high street brands and international companies. Others have gone on to work in TV and film set design, animation, lighting design and journalism.

As part of your course, you’ll also have the opportunity to undertake a work placement at a leading London design practice, helping you develop the skills and contacts you need to succeed in your future career. In 2016 students were placed at 50 design companies including Foster + Partners, Gensler and turnerbates.