What do you mean by Interior Designing?
Interior Design is a profession that deals with designing the interior of a room or a building. It is a multi-faceted profession which involves designing, creative thinking, communicating with clients, and management & execution of a requisite design. An Interior Designer has to decorate a room or building keeping in mind its functional aspects, comfort and effective use of a space. He/she has to work with stakeholders and design executives from time to time, to create a design as per client’s requirements.
Interior Designing as a Career
What does Interior Designers do?
Interior Designers are highly creative professionals who possesses the ability to visualize a design conceptually before designing an area. He/she generally have great understanding of materials, furniture, colors, and lightning aspects, that helps create attractive interior spaces. There are Interior Designers who need to work along with architects while a building or a room is under construction. There are designers who works only on completed buildings or rooms.
Following are the job description of an Interior Designer:
- Find and bid on new interior design projects
- Communicate with clients to have clear understanding of what the client is expecting
- Conceptualize on how to design a space for maximum comfort, better functionality and pleasing design cues
- Sketching up the entire design concept plans before start working on it
- Decide on materials such as – lightning, furnishing, flooring, wall finishing, electrical wiring and plumbing fixtures
- Create final plans using computer tools such as CAD
- Fix a budget for the project with the client
- Prepare a dateline for completing the project
- Select and place orders for electrical products, furniture and flooring materials
- Work with design & other professionals to check installation of the products
- Constantly communicate with the client to deliver a design that suits their taste and requirements
Key Skills of an Interior Designer
Creative bent of mind: The ability to think design elements creatively is of high importance while working as an Interior Designer
Sense of Style: Interior designer should have a great sense of style so as to create design that is pleasing to the senses
Visualization: Interior designing professionals must have the power to visualize an entire design of a space appropriately well before working on the project
Interpersonal Skills: Interpersonal skills is a critical parameter in becoming a successful Interior Designer. As they need to discuss with clients, deal with different groups, vendors, design professionals and other workers on a regular basis, to create an impeccable living or working space.
Time Management: Interior Designer may face multiple challenges due to unavailability of desired accessories, limited manpower and delays in construction. He/she needs to coordinate with everyone and solve the problems to complete a project on time. Time management plays a crucial role to succeed in any career.
Is Interior Designing the right career choice for you?
If you have been frequently appreciated for designing a space i.e. maybe your room for your sense of design and style, then perhaps you could be great as an Interior Designer. However, this creative profession is just limited to beautifying a space, rather it includes an in-depth understanding of various materials (their nature & how they react in a particular environment).
If you have an eye-for-detail for trending fashion in living space and identify the connection and contrast of materials and colors, then Interior Designer might be just right for you!
Educational Qualification required to take up an Interior Designing course
Students who have passed or about to appear in the qualifying 10+2 Standard (Higher Secondary) exam or equivalent IB/ISC/State Board exams are eligible to take up Interior Designing course. Students are also eligible to apply for Interior Design diploma course, if they have passed their 10th Class qualifying exam. Aspiring candidates can also take up an Interior Designer course after completing their graduation.
Interior Designing Course Fees
There are short-term and long-term Interior Designing courses e.g. 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, 2 year and 3 years. So the Interior Design course fees varies from course to course and institute to institute. On an average the course fees range between INR 25,000 – INR 1,00,000 and above. If you plan to take up the Interior Design course in abroad, the fees would be much higher.
Top Interior Designing Institutes in India
Vogue Institute of Fashion Technology, Bengaluru
Sai School of Interior Design, New Delhi
Where to look for Interior Designer jobs?
Interior Designing is a growing field in India. In recent years, there is a surge in demand for Interior designers for creating beautiful offices and living areas in Indian cities. However, job scope for Interior designers are not limited to cities, it has extended even to towns and Tier-II and Tier-III cities. With growing number of construction groups or builders in India, demand for Interior Designers are growing.
Interior Designer can work on an individual basis or work under a company. Given below are few places to look out for Interior Designing jobs:
- Builder Firms
- Architecture Firms
- Government Projects
- Interior Design Agencies
- Hotels and Resorts
- International Interior Design Firms
It is advisable to work as an intern to understand the process of Interior Designer’s workflow before joining any of the above.
Interior Designer Payscale
Payscale of Interior Designers depend on their expertise and experience. The average salary of an Interior Designer ranges between INR 2,50,000 p.a. – INR 6,00,000. On the higher side it can reach up to INR 12,00,000. For highly successful Interior Designers – Sky is the Limit!
Work Timings
Generally, Interior Designers work on a full-time basis. However, depending on clients’ requirements he/she may need to travel to clients’ sites and meet up clients even on holiday and weekends.
Scope of Interior Designers
With rapidly shrinking residential and commercial space, people are looking for professionals who can make their homes and working space comfortable, beautiful and functional. Demand for Interior designers are growing as people put great emphasis on the design and layout of their living or working space. As per a survey report, employment opportunities for Interior Designers in India are expected to grow up to 19% – 20% by the year 2018.
Unlike traditional careers, Interior Designing does not have fixed clientele or regular work. Often Interior Designers need to look out for new projects and work on an individual basis where he/she is responsible for finding clients or new projects, building relationships with various groups – suppliers and contractors and different design executives, to create an attractive interior space within the client’s budget and taste.
If you are looking for Interior Designing courses in India, post your learning requirements here.
