UW-Stout's CIDA-accredited Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.) in Interior Design blends fine art, design and technical disciplines to prepare you for a career creating meaningful, life-enhancing and safe interior environments. Our program provides a learning environment that fosters creativity and collaboration between art, design and technical disciplines. You will develop the sensibilities, techniques, and methods related to residential and commercial space planning, lighting design, sustainable design, construction documentation, and to collaborate with architects and construction professionals.
97% of Graduates Employed or Continuing Education Within 6 Months
Career-Defining Curriculum
At UW-Stout, we offer a strong and comprehensive curriculum taught by expert, experienced faculty. Students in this program are interested in art and architecture as well as in interior design. Course work includes preparation for:
- Professional Best Practices
- Materials Specifications
- Budgets & Contracts
- Lighting Systems
- Historical & Theoretical Considerations
- Human Factors
- Presentation & Communication Skills
Program Overview
Use the Request Information form to receive a program summary and learn more about the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Interior Design.
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The B.F.A. in Interior Design is accredited by the Council for Interior Design Accreditation (www.accredit-id.org 206 Grandville Avenue, Suite 350, Grand Rapids, MI, 49503) and prepares students for entry-level interior design practice, for advanced study, and to apply for membership in professional interior design organizations. The B.F.A. Interior Design granted by the University of Wisconsin-Stout meets the educational requirement for eligibility to sit for the National Council for Interior Design Qualification Examination (NCIDQ Exam). For more information about NCIDQ Exam eligibility visit: https://www.cidq.org/eligibility-requirements.
UW-Stout's School of Art & Design is accredited by the National Association for Schools of Art and Design.
Through theory, practice and history you will gain creative and critical thinking skills to successfully problem-solve in the interior design field.
"Stout was one of the best things that ever happened to me. I met some of my best friends, had the most amazing educators, tons of fun, and of course, received a quality education."
~ McKenna HeckB.F.A. Interior Design
Industry-Experienced Faculty Instruction
Forget TA-taught classes and 200-person lectures. At UW-Stout, building close relationships with our industry-experienced and academically accomplished interior design faculty will play a key role in your polytechnic education and your career. Learn more about your future instructors!
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Professional Internship Placements in Interior Design
Take your education into industry and earn while you learn through UW-Stout’s award-winning Cooperative Education & Internship Program (CEIP) and other placements. Unlike traditional internships, our professional paid and pro bono credit-earning experiences connect you with leaders in your field, including national brands and boutique interior design and architecture firms, to ensure you’re set up for success long before you graduate. More than a third of Stout students accept positions after graduation with their internship employer.
- Adorned Homes
- Ashley Furniture Industries, Inc.
- Cuningham Group Architecture, Inc.
- Decori Designs/At Home and Co.
- DeMars Construction
- Draper House Design Co.
- Fluid Interiors
- Jodi Gillespie Interior Design
- Mood Interior Designs, Inc.
- RAMLOW/STEIN Architecture + Interiors
- The Samuels Group, Inc.
- Sketchworks Architecture LLC
- True North Contracting
- Willow Tree Design
Showcase of Student Work
Careers
The Interior Design program will prepare you for a career in interior design that encompasses residential and commercial space planning, lighting design, research, construction documentation and sustainable design.
It is the integration of knowledge accumulated through studies in general education, technology, art and design that prepare interior design students to create meaningful, safe and life-enhancing interior environments that contribute to the cultural, social and environmental well-being of society. Interior designers are responsible for budgets, materials specifications, contract documents and lighting systems within interior design projects, and they often work collaboratively with architects and construction professionals.
Goals of the B.F.A. in Interior Design
- Nurture thoughtful, independent, and creative thinkers.
- Promote an interactive studio culture where students explore innovative design solutions, both independently and collaboratively.
- Educate future professional interior designers through theory, practice, research, and history.
- Teach relevant curriculum in support of our accreditation.
- Develop articulate practitioners and advocates with sensitivity to social, environmental, and cultural issues.
- Prepare successful communicators in speaking, writing, and graphic methods and technical systems.
- Establish and maintain industry connections and relationships.
Enduring Values of the B.F.A. in Interior Design
• Student-focused
• Respect, Compassion & Empathy
• Function & Safety
• Beauty & Meaning
• Sustainability & Stewardship
• Community & Inclusivity
• Health & Well-Being
• Ethics & Professional Integrity
• Evidence-Based & Conceptual Design
• Purposeful Problem-Solving
• Lifelong Learning
New First-Year Students
Students admitted as Pre-Bachelor of Fine Arts (Pre-BFA) students will join an exciting community of first-year art and design students with classes and events geared towards preparing you for a successful application to the intended BFA program.
As a student accepted into one of the six BFA programs, please be aware of the following:
- You will be required to submit a portfolio in the spring semester of your freshman year to apply for acceptance into the intended BFA program. Portfolios will be evaluated by School of Art and Design faculty. Through your first-year experience, you will be given the tools and skills required to prepare and submit the portfolio, and the necessary support to navigate the application process.
Transfer Students
- All transfer students will be admitted as a Pre-Bachelor of Fine Arts (Pre-BFA) student. Upon acceptance information will be provided on how to submit a portfolio and essay to be reviewed by a committee of School of Art & Design faculty, who will determine direct admissions into the BFA major of your choice.
- Priority Deadlines:
- Spring Admission: October 1 at 9 a.m. CST
- Fall Admission: March 1 at 9 a.m. CST
- Submissions may be made after the priority date; however, there is no guarantee when it will be reviewed for a decision nor what art-specific coursework you may be able to get into after the review is completed and whether or not registration for the next semester has begun. There is a $10 application fee assessed at the time you electronically submit your portfolio.
Transfer students are considered for both fall and spring. This includes portfolio and essay submission by the priority deadline. Students applying for one of the BFA programs will remain admitted as a "Pre-BFA" student if you:
- do not submit a portfolio/essay
or - apply after the BFA program has closed
or - are not approved for the BFA program after submission of a portfolio/essay.
You may then apply for a change of major in subsequent semesters, depending upon available openings in the program. If needed, BFA Foundations courses will be available to "Pre-BFA" students pending seat availability.
Mission
The mission of the B.F.A. in Interior Design is to provide a positive and dynamic learning environment that fosters creativity, design thinking and collaboration. It is the integration of knowledge accumulated through studies in design, art, the humanities, technology, aesthetics, and design theory that prepares the interior design student to skillfully create meaningful, safe, and human-centered interior environments that contribute to the cultural, social and environmental well-being of society. It is our goal, through academic rigor and carefully constructed curriculum, to educate the future leaders in the interior design industry. Project based and hands on learning are at the core of the educational experience, which aligns with University of Wisconsin-Stout’s Polytechnic values.
Positions
- Residential Interior Designer
- Office/Corporate Interior Designer
- Space Planner
- Retail Designer Interior Designer
- Sustainability Specialist
- Hospitality Interior Design
- Health Care Interior Design
Employers
- BWBR Architects
- Target Corporation
- Nordeen Design Group
- Cedar Corporation
- Fenson Construction, LLC
- MS&R Architecture & Interior Design
- 20 Below Studio
- HDR
- Walsh Design Group
Program Advisory Committee
| Emily | DeGallier | Territory Sales Manager | Forbo Flooring Inc. |
| Lisa | Kirkbride | Senior Account Manager | Milliken & Company |
| Sara | Kunnick | Interiors Section Leader | Hennepin County Facility Services |
| Rochelle | Maresh | Principle | Woo Consulting Firm |
| Veronica | McCracken | Associate | MSR Design |
| Brittany | Blunt | Senior Interior Designer | Sustainable 9 |
| Lorrie | Albers | Interior Project manager | RSP Architects |
| Tina | Branstad | Senior Interior Designer | BWBR Architects |
| Krista | Tesky | Lead Designer | Target |
| Amy | Saarem | Interior Design Senior Manager | Ashley Furniture |
| Laiken | Green | Lighting Designer | IMEG |
| Olivia | Heitke | Student | UW-Stout |
| Julie | Peterson | Professor | UW-Stout |
| Nicolette | Brehm | Professor | UW-Stout |
| Shelley | Pecha | Professor; Program Director; Chair, Design Department | UW-Stout |