Program: Interior Design
Location: New York
Degree offered: BFA
CIDA accredited: No
Local opportunities: Abundant. Parsons’s excellent connections and location give students access to influential firms and showrooms, museums, galleries, and auction houses.
Cost: $26,446
Job placement: 80% employment for Parsons School of Design graduates at large
Notable alumni: Victoria Hagan, Jamie Drake, Mario Buatta, Albert Hadley, Angelo Donghia, Bob Williams
Cornell University
At Cornell, interior design is taught through the Design and Environmental Analysis program, part of the College of Human Ecology. The STEM-certified program offers a flexible curriculum that requires students to complete foundational courses before focusing on electives that support individual educational goals. These specializations are organized around three primary research themes: design strategy and innovation, sustainable futures, and health and well-being. Alongside their chosen area of expertise, students may also pursue a minor, honors thesis, or off-campus study. The D+EA program boasts faculty from a wide spectrum of disciplines and emphasizes innovation.
Program: Design and Environmental Analysis
Location: Ithaca, New York
Degree offered: BS
CIDA accredited: Yes
Local opportunities: Some. Many students participate in off-campus study or summer internships, typically in New York, Washington, D.C., or abroad.
Cost: $56,550 out-of-state; $37,880 in-state. Because the College of Human Ecology is a state contract college within the university, New York state residents are eligible for the in-state fee.
Job placement: 65% employment and 100% acceptance to graduate school for Design and Environmental Analysis graduates
Notable alumni: Art Gensler, Richard Meier
New York School of Interior Design
With its comprehensive interior design education and focus on the liberal arts, NYSID produces apt critical thinkers who are culturally, socially, and historically aware. Students learn about presentation as well as business, legal, and administrative necessities, garnering effective communication skills and technical proficiency. NYSID’s curriculum also satisfies educational requirements for membership in industry associations and prepares them for the National Council for Interior Design Qualification Examination. With required internships, study-abroad programs, and more than 100 faculty members who are practicing designers (with firms that include Gensler, HOK, and Perkins + Will), NYSID amply prepares graduates to enter the real world of interior design.
Location: New York
Degree offered: BFA
CIDA accredited: Yes
Local opportunities: Many. NYSID’s extensive network of connections means internships and professional networking is easy to access.
Cost: $35,771
Job placement: 100% employment for NYSID graduates
Notable alumni: Rose Tarlow, Penny Drue Baird
Many faculty members at the New York School of Interior Design are practicing designers at firms such as Gensler, HOK, and Perkins + Will.
Photo: Courtesy of the New York School of Interior DesignSyracuse University
At Syracuse, Environmental and Interior Design students explore the art and architecture of design in a studio environment that mimics professional settings. The focus here is on cross-disciplinary philosophies and projects in addition to a broad liberal arts education. Syracuse’s interior design department also teaches visualization and communications skills alongside in-depth technical methods. Students are encouraged to study abroad in their junior year in London or Florence, and to pursue internships in Syracuse, New York City, and beyond.
Program: Environmental and Interior Design
Location: Syracuse, New York
Degree offered: BFA
CIDA accredited: Yes
Local opportunities: Yes, though students are also encouraged to look for opportunities beyond Syracuse.
Cost: $53,849
Job placement: 83% employment for Environmental and Interior Design graduates
Notable alumni: Thom Filicia, Ian Schrager, Sol Le Witt
Drexel University
The interior design program at Drexel, part of the Westphal College of Media Arts & Design, focuses on human experience, materials and form, and sustainability, while providing rigorous professional preparation. General education requirements, combined with art, art history, and core interior design courses, set the stage for complex design studios. Experiential learning is also paramount here, and is executed through a professional co-op program. Drexel also emphasizes sustainable practices as inherent to contemporary design, and offers a minor in Sustainability in the Built Environment. Opportunities to study abroad abound, with programs in Prague and London, seven-week studios in Denmark, and shorter tours to Barcelona, Paris, and Rome on offer.