Interior design major one of most selective

In a time when home decorating shows seem to be taking over television, suddenly interior design majors at IU find themselves having to reiterate the meaning of interior design and what it actually means to be an interior designer.\n"What's the worst part of the program? That's easy," said junior Chelsea Breed, an interior design major. "Having to feel like I have to justify myself to people in other majors. To be an interior designer does not mean a 'glorified decorator.'"\nThanks to shows such as The Learning Channel's "Trading Spaces," many incoming freshmen find themselves drawn to the interior design program because becoming an interior designer seems to be so much fun. However, as Reed explained, interior design is not about matching pillows to a sofa.\nStudents in the interior design program have one of a few very coveted spots at IU. After the first year, with about 80 to 100 students enrolled in the program, no more than 34 are admitted into the second year.\n"After their freshman year, students' portfolios are examined, which is how we choose who is admitted into the following years," said Reed Benhamou, director of the interior design major.\nTo add to the selectiveness of the program itself, IU's interior design program is one of only two accredited by the International Interior Design Association in all of Indiana, with Purdue University being the second. This accreditation is a very important part of the program because it allows graduates to be considered for jobs over other applicants who have come from schools which were not accredited.\n"There is a movement in the profession now to see first if the school is accredited," Benhamou said. "This is important because the accreditation is a set of standards created by professionals and educators."\nAs many students can attest, the standards of the major are not easy ones to follow.\n"The entire major is based on a structured syllabus in which all classes are somewhat sequential and cannot be taken out of order," Breed said. "The job allows for creativity, but is also structured," Breed said. "The program is elite. Few students are chosen to follow through with the program, and not all of them stick with it."\nWhile the intense quality of the program may be challenging to follow for many students, the end results and rewards seem to make up for it all. Students often spend countless hours working toward a large project, but the end result is something to be very proud of, senior Jenna Fribley said.\n"Each project is an experience -- the sense of accomplishment you feel upon completion of each huge project is great," she said. "And the nap you take when you go home after turning a project in (because you haven't slept for three days) is the most fantastic sleep ever!"\nBenhamou said the program at IU has such an incredible volume to it that many students find themselves taking a fifth year of classes before graduating. This is a growing trend at IU because the interior design program is specifically focused on an immediate track.\n"It's important to realize that the undergraduate program is really an undergraduate professional program," Benhamou said. "Students are prepared for the profession and the working world right after graduation and because of this, there is immediate payback."\nFribley recognized this factor of the program and described the rigor and structure of the program as only making her a stronger job candidate after she graduates.\n"The best aspect of the major is that it really prepares you for the job world. The projects are very rigorous, and there is a lot of focus on learning specific skills that are used in professional practice (and are less-frequently taught in school)," she said.\nTodays' interior designers are finding their job has become more and more challenging. Students are learning the realities of the profession, in which designers are forced to incorporate not only creativity in a space, but also to follow building codes and accessibility laws.\n"We work with the interior structure of a space, we plan in terms of aesthetics and function, we work to create spaces that inspire and work for people," Reed said. "We work closely with building codes including those to protect the environment, the safety of the people who work, visit or live in the space, wheelchair accessibility, and so on."\nBut, as Fribley explained, the rewards of the profession are what motivate students to work so hard as undergraduates. \n"It's awesome to be able to stand in the actual built space after you have spent countless hours designing it on paper," she said. "In addition to the self gratification of 'I made this,' it is also fulfilling to know that other people will experience and (hopefully) appreciate the space."\n- Contact staff writer Cassidy Flanagan at ceflanag@indiana.edu.