Is the Uf Interior Design Degree Goof
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| I was wondering how difficult it is to be accepted into the Interior Design Degree program at UF? I currently attend St. Petersburg College, achieving stellar grades every semester and a member of the Honor Society. Recently, I met with my academic advisor who informed me that I might not be able to get into the program because it's very competitive (aren't they all?). |
12-10-2009, 04:10 PM 
I was somewhat confused by this because Hillsborough Community College, a neighboring school, has an easier A.A. curriculum than SPC for those students who want to transfer to UF. It is my ultimate goal to attend UF. Indeed, FSU and FIU have the Interior Design program with easier requirements, however, these schools are too far. I'm feeling very discouraged. Could someone please give me some advice? 
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| Yes all college admissions are competitive, but the quality of the education determines how competitive. UF's ID program is pretty high up there, as far as competitiveness goes. It isn't the hardest program to get into in the country, but it is probably the most competitive of all schools in Florida. If I recall correctly, FIU is in the process of eliminating their bachelor's degree and implementing an accelerated Master's degree program for transfer students. The master's degree is not accredited by CIDA. Their bachelor's degree was, but the new master's is not. That makes the master's degree virtually worthless in the marketplace. Employers don't want a graduate from an unaccredited institution, you won't ever be eligible to take the NCIDQ exam, nor will you eligible for state licensure or registration if you wish to work in a regulated state. Because there is little demand for graduates of this program, fewer applicants are interested in the program and thus fewer will be rejected. So there is less competitiveness. FSU's Interior Design program has both Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees, both accredited by CIDA. Like all BA and BS degrees, students in these programs will complete a variety of general studies coursework, with a concentration of courses related to interior design. Approximately half of all courses to receive a degree are related to interior design. The degrees do have value in the marketplace. But these aren't top ranked schools, so students aren't as in-demand as other students may be. With less demand for these degrees comes less demand for seats within the program, and thus less competitiveness. By comparison UF's program is neither a BA nor a BS but a Bachelor of Interior Design--because they require that students complete a much heavier course load. Nearly all of the coursework required for UF's Bachelor of Interior Design is an interior design (or architecture) course. Students complete almost no general courses (like Comp I or Algebra). Like all of the nation's top-ranked programs, a graduate of this program will have far more knowledge of interior design than someone who has completed a mere BA or BS degree elsewhere. This places UF's graduates in greater demand than their peers. Because the school has an outstanding reputation to defend, they will only accept applicants with the greatest potential. Now, as far as your likelihood of getting accepted, that's a matter for speculation. Most of the top ranked interior design schools accept around 25% or fewer applicants but they don't make public their actual stats. UF has a mid-degree completion portfolio review process that sophomores must complete and pass to proceed on to upper-level coursework and degree completion. As a transfer student, you will be competing against these students, but transfer admissions are based only on transcripts, not on a portfolio review, so you will have to convince a jury that you are qualified to be admitted to upper-level courses based on your transcript and application alone. That is obviously a big hurdle. But don't get too discouraged. An academic advisor would be remiss if they didn't warn you of the difficulties of getting admitted to this program. That doesn't mean you shouldn't apply. The only way you'll pass muster is if you try. It sounds like the academic advisor you are referring to is from SPC, not from UF. If I were you, I'd try to speak with someone from UF, specifically from the Interior Design program, about their selective admissions process. Best of luck! |
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| FSU's ID program accepts around 20% of students into the higher-level curriculum. So if UF is more difficult to get into... |
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| Florida is one of the states that regulates Interior Design and because of that, I think the first thing you should consider is if you want to practice in Florida (Personally, I wouldn't, but hey, that's just me.). As one of the other posters mentioned, Florida is not the best in the country, but it is probably the best in the state of Florida. Now, this is the thing about Interior Design, you really only have to worry about the CIDA accreditation if you want to practice commercial interior design. And that goes back to the NCDIQ exam. It's the exam that is used to determine licensure and I think in Florida, you have to have a license regardless, but the NCDIQ is truly only necessary for those intending to practice commercial design. Kodaka gave you some great information, but it's not correct. You could get a masters from Savannah College of Art and Design and be able to work anywhere you desired and it's not accredited either. There are very few graduate level programs that are accredited in the first place, so it's kind of a moot point. Most of the top interior schools either don't have a graduate level degree or if they do, it's not accredited. A graduate interior design degree is mainly for those wanting to enter academia. Also, it doesn't matter if it's a Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Fine Arts, or Bachelor of Interior Design. These are not in any specific order, but here are the top interior design schools and their respective degree: Cornell - BS, Cincinnati -BS, Pratt - BFA, Auburn - BS, Kansas State - BS, SCAD - BFA, FIT - BFA, Syracuse - BFA, NYSID - BFA, Florida - BID, Harrington - BFA, Arizona State - BS, and Michigan State - BA. That is by no means a comprehensive list, but those are considered the top CIDA accredited schools. Other than those, Parsons and Rhode Island School of Design are considered better than the majority of those, but do not have accredited interior programs. So, just because Florida offers a BID does not necessarily make it more competitive than FSU or FIU. If I had any advice to give, it would be to consider going out-of-state. One of the reasons why it's so hard to get into the design program at Florida is because of the regulation and the regulation is basically a method of keeping people out of the profession. Designers tend to be a selfish bunch and don't want to mentor someone who will potentially become their competition. If you wanted to stay in the South, you'd be better off going to Auburn or SCAD. They are the two best ID schools in the South. Of course, the three biggest cities for ID are, New York, San Francisco, and Chicago and going to school in one of those cities would be the absolute best choice. |
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| Quote: Now, this is the thing about Interior Design, you really only have to worry about the CIDA accreditation if you want to practice commercial interior design. And that goes back to the NCDIQ exam. It's the exam that is used to determine licensure and I think in Florida, you have to have a license regardless, but the NCDIQ is truly only necessary for those intending to practice commercial design. Kodaka gave you some great information, but it's not correct. You could get a masters from Savannah College of Art and Design and be able to work anywhere you desired and it's not accredited either. There are very few graduate level programs that are accredited in the first place, so it's kind of a moot point. Most of the top interior schools either don't have a graduate level degree or if they do, it's not accredited. A graduate interior design degree is mainly for those wanting to enter academia. I think you've misunderstood my point and not really helping OP. FIU doesn't have any accredited program at this point in time. They used to, and it was a bachelor's program. They no longer offer a bachelor's degree, they only offer a Master's. And that degree is not accredited. The reason I mentioned their master's degree was not to compare it to other graduate degrees but because it is the only option for a student wishing to enroll there. The reason most schools don't have accredited master's degrees is that CIDA only oversees first professional degrees. That is, they review and accredit the lowest degree that a particular school offers in the field. If the school offers higher degrees, CIDA doesn't even look at them. No college can have more than one degree accredited. If however, the school only offers advanced degrees, that is what CIDA looks at. This is what FIU is doing. Some day, their master's degree will likely be accredited because it is the first professional degree they offer, and after CIDA has had time to review the curriculum and quality of student work it will probably win accreditation. Kansas State University did the exact same thing a few years ago. They used to have a 5-year Bachelor of Interior Architecture, they changed it to a Master of Interior Architecture. For a few years of transition the program wasn't accredited, now it is. We'll have to agree to disagree on the difference in value between a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Interior Architecture or Bachelor of Interior Design. I've met no designer who didn't feel a student graduating with merely 75 credits in interior design has the same qualifications as a student graduating with 120 credits in the subject. |
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| Quote: Originally Posted by kodaka I think you've misunderstood my point and not really helping OP. FIU doesn't have any accredited program at this point in time. They used to, and it was a bachelor's program. They no longer offer a bachelor's degree, they only offer a Master's. And that degree is not accredited. The reason I mentioned their master's degree was not to compare it to other graduate degrees but because it is the only option for a student wishing to enroll there. The reason most schools don't have accredited master's degrees is that CIDA only oversees first professional degrees. That is, they review and accredit the lowest degree that a particular school offers in the field. If the school offers higher degrees, CIDA doesn't even look at them. No college can have more than one degree accredited. If however, the school only offers advanced degrees, that is what CIDA looks at. This is what FIU is doing. Some day, their master's degree will likely be accredited because it is the first professional degree they offer, and after CIDA has had time to review the curriculum and quality of student work it will probably win accreditation. Kansas State University did the exact same thing a few years ago. They used to have a 5-year Bachelor of Interior Architecture, they changed it to a Master of Interior Architecture. For a few years of transition the program wasn't accredited, now it is. We'll have to agree to disagree on the difference in value between a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Interior Architecture or Bachelor of Interior Design. I've met no designer who didn't feel a student graduating with merely 75 credits in interior design has the same qualifications as a student graduating with 120 credits in the subject. I don't think FIU has that great of a program, but as I said, two of the best interior design/architecture programs in the country, Parsons and RISD, are not accredited and I'm 100% sure a graduate of those programs could find a job if there were diligent and worked hard enough. I understood your post and I wanted to give the OP a different viewpoint. I didn't even mention that most of the leading designers in the country are not graduates of interior design programs. So, if the talent is there, I don't think one needs a degree from a CIDA accredited school. Further, one can still take the NCDIQ even if they don't have a CIDA accredited degree. It's just much harder to do so. Also, there are 8 schools with both CIDA accredited bachelor and master degrees. So, yes, CIDA does look at both degrees, and a college can have more than one certified program. Actually, Kansas State's has a bachelor's program in interior design AND master's program in interior architecture. |
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| All of your information is so fragmented and out of context so as to be deliberately misleading. The correct and accurate explanations are all spelled out on CIDA's website, as well as each university's website, if you took the time to look and/or reported all of the information completely. KSU's two programs are in different colleges. The Master's degree does not build upon the Bachelor's degree. They are both first professional degrees. Schools that offer both Bachelor's and Master's degrees within the same department serve different audiences. The Master's degree is intended for students with undergrad degrees in different subjects. Such is the case with the degrees offered by Marymount University, for example. None of your arguments help the OP in any way. I provided the information about FIU's program because that is what the OP asked about. They specifically said that even other schools in another part of the state aren't an option so comparing schools in other parts of the country is undoubtedly not going to be an option. Graduate school isn't relevant except in the case of FIU because it is the only program they have. Arguing for the sake of arguing without offering any relevant information to the OP is stupid. Last edited by kodaka; 12-14-2009 at 11:17 AM.. |
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| My intent was to have the OP really think about pursuing a career in interior design. And, honestly explain that limiting oneself to Florida is not a very good idea. Mainly becuase Florida is unnecessarily restrictive when it comes to the practice of interior design. Furthermore, UF is one of the more selective public universities and getting admitted is not an easy feat. Plus, as we both know interior design is a competitive major at UF. Therefore the OP is definitely going to have to have a back up plan. I didn't intend to leave any information out, but my main point is that even though it's best to attend a CIDA accredited school, one also needs to do their research. CIDA, NCDIQ, and ASID are all in cahoots. |
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| And I get the feeling you're trying to talk down to me and explain to me things I already know. |
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| Thank you kodaka and pennquaker09 for your insights. All this information has been tremendously helpful. I want to make the right decisions now, so my dream of becoming a successful interior designer someday will inevitably become a reality. Specifically, I am interested in commercial and hospitality design. It is my intention to attend a CIDA accredited university with a great program (preferably UF), however, if I do not get accepted then I will have to consider other options. In any case, due to interior design being a highly competitive profession, would you suggest a person achieve a master's degree right after they complete their bachelor's??? Does that allow an individual to be more qualified in the field and opening up better job prospects? I am in the process of applying for internships and becoming a student member of IIDA, which is my plan to rectify being "green" to this field. Thanks again for the great input!! |
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Is the Uf Interior Design Degree Goof
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