Interior Design

As a student in our Council for Interior Design Accreditation (CIDA) accredited program, you’ll be able to answer those questions by becoming a creative, socially responsible interior designer. You’ll develop design skills that emphasize imagination while taking into account the needs of the space and your future clients.

Interior Design Program Mission Statement

The interior design major prepares women to be creative and responsible designers. The curriculum stresses the broad intellectual development needed for leadership in the professions and the fundamental skills to enter the profession.

“Interior Design is much more about the carving of interior space. We deal with floors, walls, ceilings and the volumetric space between. How people use the intended space is of the utmost importance. The health, safety and well-being of the occupants, building codes, along with the aesthetics of a space are all taken into account.”

Francine Martini
AIA, IDEC, IIDA, NCIDQ
Assistant Professor, Interior Design

New for 2022

You can now submit an essay instead of a portfolio when you apply as a first year student as an Interior Design major.

Interior Design Program Philosophy

Faculty share a commitment to a philosophy of an integrated curriculum that demands that the student be simultaneously and sequentially involved with diverse disciplines and concepts, faculty and other students. The program is rooted in design and is supported by a foundation program and a broad spectrum of liberal arts courses. The interior design curriculum is structured to enable the program to teach the fundamentals of interior design and to reflect changes in the profession.

Interior Design Program Goals

• Think critically, analytically and conceptually to solve spatial problems
• Acquire the technical knowledge base that is fundamental to interior design
• Communicate effectively in written, oral and graphic form
• Develop a personal value system based on social responsibility and professionalism

The Council for Interior Design Accreditation (CIDA)

The interior design program leading to the Bachelor of Fine Arts is accredited by the Council for Interior Design Accreditation, 206 Grandville Avenue Suite 350, Grand Rapids, MI 49503.

The CIDA-accredited program prepares students for entry-level interior design practice, for advanced study, and to apply for membership in professional interior design organizations. The Bachelor of Fine Arts degree granted by Moore College of Art & Design meets the educational requirement for eligibility to sit for the National Council for Interior Design Qualification Examination (NCIDQ Exam). For more information on NCIDQ Exam eligibility, visit: cidq.org/paths

Interior Design Student Retention, Attrition, Graduate Rate, Employment and Graduate School Data (PDF)

Moore Interior Design students have interned or worked after graduation for companies like...

• Barbara Eberlein Design Consultants
• Bernardon
• Floss Barber
• Jacobs Wyper
• Marguerite Rodgers LTD.
• The McMullin Design Group
• Nelson
• RD Jones
• ROHE Creative
• Studio Heimat

Testimonials – Internship Employers

"She’s great. Hardworking/reliable and honest. Great team player. We would love to have her as part of our design team."
—RD Jones & Associates, Inc., Baltimore, MD

"Casey is responsible, diligent, detail-oriented, and flexible. Casey has been a great asset to our firm this summer."
—SFCS Architects, Philadelphia, PA

"She had consistent engagement and willingness to seek out new work and opportunities to learn."
—Czarnowski Display Service, Inc., Atlanta, GA

She is a "very bright intern with good design, organization, and communication skills."
—Raymond R. Rola, Architect, Philadelphia, PA

"Lauren's energy, professionalism and organization were a great asset to our firm. Lauren's creativity was very helpful… Her understanding of color trends was an asset."
—Nelson, Philadelphia, PA

She has "a great attitude, diligent, productive, responsible and respectful, eagerness to learn technical ability using 3D rendering software. She has a great attitude and approach. Her personality enhances her interaction with her peers. A real joy to work with."
—Ni Design, Farmington, CT

INTERIOR DESIGN ADVISORY BOARD

• Carol Reitter Elia, ASID, LEED-AP, NCIDQ, SAGE | Principal, CR DESIGN
• Al Holm, AIA | Principal, Alvin Holm AIA Architects
• John Kelly, ASID | Principal, John Kelly Interior Design Inc.
• Bridget McMullin ASID, NCIDQ CAPS REGREEN | Principal, McMullin Design Group
• Michelle Reese NCIDQ | Interior Designer, Francis Cauffman
• Min Park NCIDQ | Senior Designer, Meyer Design Inc.
• Marguerite Rodgers | Principal, Marguerite Rodgers Interior Design
• Lee D. Waldron | President, Grenald Waldron Associates
• Sophia Le | Interior Designer, JocobsWyperArchitects
• Paula Behrens | Professor of Architecture & Interior Design, Community College of Art & Design

Interior Design Computer Requirements

Recommended Laptop Specifications for Interior Design Students
Due to software requirements, Interior Design students are required to purchase a PC laptop.
DO NOT PURCHASE AN APPLE COMPUTER.

HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS:

PROCESSOR: Multi-core processor (6 or more Cores are recommended)
MEMORY (RAM): 8 GB (minimum requirement), 16-32 GB (recommended)
GPU / GRAPHICS CARD: NVIDIA or AMD GPU w/ 4 GB VRAM (minimum requirement), NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 or AMD equivalent w/ 8 GB VRAM (recommended)

SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS:

All students are provided (at no cost) Microsoft Office and an Adobe Creative Cloud Membership where they can access all Adobe programs including: Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign.

AutoCAD and Revit can be downloaded for free by all students using their moore.edu email address from the Autodesk website.

A 1 year student license for SketchUp can be purchased on the SketchUp website.
A 2 year student license for Enscape can be obtained for free on the Enscape3d website.

TO AVOID OBTAINING THE INCORRECT VERSION, PLEASE DO NOT DOWNLOAD, PURCHASE OR INSTALL ANY PIECE OF SOFTWARE UNTIL FIRST CONFIRMING WITH THE COURSE INSTRUCTOR.