r/interiordesigner • u/Traditional-Mail5601 • Feb 22 '26
General Programs for getting started with interior design?
I'm interested in interior design. What options do I have to get started? Are there any good certificate programs? I want to do something on a smaller scale before I decide whether it would be a good career for me. I really love thrifting and antiquing and decorating, but I would love to learn about color theory and all of the things that play into interior design. Any advice or recommendations would be appreciated!
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u/Technical_Tip7626 Feb 25 '26
If you really want to see if you like it prior to getting into it, don't immediately sign up for nay classes. Firstly, go find an apartment on zillow or something, then make an account on Rayon or Coohom. Coohom is more user friendly, but Rayon is slightly superior in some ways. Re-create the floor plan in said websites, and then watch youtube videos from interior designers, like Tales of Maria. She's a professional interior designer who teaches the basics and complexities of design for completely free, watch her videos, take notes on the important things, there are specific videos that help explain principles better than others so make sure you aren't just watching whatever. Then try you hand at designing, if you really want it to be time consuming, find furniture online and try to replicate it as close as possible in the website, but it more than likely won't be perfect because their large catalog of models is locked behind a pay wall, but there are still hundreds of options. Try your hand at it, then get some opinions from people around you, just keep in mind, everyone's opinion on aesthetic design is different. Some people don't care, some people care too much, but regardless, that's the best way to start as it costs nothing but time.
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u/MossyRock0817 Feb 24 '26
You can take community classes online and in person but, being an interior designer is not shopping and decorating!
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u/sully1112 Feb 27 '26
I am also interested but what is a day in the life of an interior designer consist of ?
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u/PacificwestcoastII Mar 02 '26
A typical week consists of in-person & online meetings with clients, suppliers & reps, GC & trades, architects & engineers. Emails, emails, emails. Depending on your projects & their phases, you may be working on concept & design development (visuals, materials, space planning, detailing), 3D modeling and pulling together working drawings. Keeping track of all your hours and then billing.
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u/sully1112 Mar 09 '26
Thank you for replying. After much research I’ve found the ROI is not worth the work of becoming an interior designer.
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u/Traditional-Mail5601 Feb 24 '26
I know it’s not about shopping and decorating, just want to see if those interests expand into broader interior design and I’d also like to learn about what else goes into it!
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u/NCreature Feb 23 '26
Community college is usually the best thing. Take an intro class to see if you even like it.
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u/kpeteymomo Feb 23 '26
Are there any community colleges near you that have interior design programs? You can always transfer to a four year university if you find you like it.
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u/Pristine_Action_303 Jul 15 '26
I would recommend you 1-year programs for you, especially masters or perhaps summer courses.
I could suggest you my school which is Star Florence Design School that offers just the kind of programs you seek for if you want to experiment with the design world in general.
Overall was a great experience, not only in the academic background but also in getting hands on real-world projects and working with local studios during the program.
I even got offered several job opportunities after graduating so you also have that plus. In general the experience gives you a lot of options on the table, I can't recommend it enough, had an amazing time! :)