Mission

The mission of the Interior Design program is:

• To CREATE globally engaged, environmentally sensitive professionals who possess artistic sensibility, intellectual ability, and hands-on technical proficiency;
• To PREPARE interior designers for a lifelong process of interdisciplinary exploration, reflection, development and an acute understanding of human relationships and the built-environment; and
• To STIMULATE creativity and ENGENDER personal self-confidence, which is the earmark of leadership.

Accreditation

The interior design program leading to the Interior Design, B.F.A. is accredited by the Council for Interior Design Accreditation, accredit-id.org, 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 Interior Design, B.F.A. granted by New York Institute of Technology School of Architecture and Design 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: cidq.org/eligibility-requirements.

The Interior Design program at New York Tech has been accredited by the Council for Interior Design Accreditation (CIDA) since March 1984. The 2019 CIDA visit resulted in a six-year professional level accreditation through 2025.

Job Placement

Program graduates from the past three years have found employment at the following firms and companies:

Student Recognition/Scholarship

Students regularly apply and win scholarships at the national, local, and department level.

National Level

• Angelo Donghia Foundation Scholarship: Six New York Tech students have won this award in the past six years, including two winners in 2016 ($30,000 per award).
• NEWH Scholarships: Two New York Tech students have won in past five years (up to $5,000 per award).

Local Level

• Decorators Club: Ten Certificates of Recognition in the past five years.
• ASID/ELF Awards: Fifteen in the past five years.

Department Level

• Friends of School of Architecture and Design Scholarship: Six students in the past six years ($2,500 each).
• Brendalyn Stempel Scholarships: A total of $90,000 awarded to nineteen recipients over the past five years.

Community Participation and Extracurricular Involvement

• Aging in Place, Home Modification
• Habitat for Humanity
• Hurricane Sandy, Home Renovation—Victim Assistance
• Meals on Wheels
• NeoCon (Chicago, IL/Philadelphia, PA)
• Operation Resilient Long Island
• Sunrise Day Camp
• Town of North Hempstead Clean Energy Project: Renovation of the Solar House
• U.N. Food Garden Design & Signage

Program Attrition and Retention Rates

The following data was collected using institutional records and the Graduating Student Survey (GSS), which is administered to all alumni within six months to one year after graduation. Among the classes of 2021, 2022, and 2023 who graduated, six alumni responded to the survey.

• Student Attrition and Retention
  On average, 78% of students enrolled in the fall (2020, 2021, 2022) returned in the fall of the next year, putting attrition at 22%.
• Graduation Rates
  On average, of the students who graduated in 2021, 2022, and 2023, 83% of them graduated in four years. The remaining 17% graduated between four and five years.
• Acceptance into Graduate Programs
  50% of students who graduated between the years of 2021, 2022, and 2023 applied for graduate school, and all 50% were accepted into continuing education programs.
• Job Placement Rates
  17% of students who graduated between the years of 2021, 2022, and 2023 are employed in interior design or a related profession.

According to the Graduating Student Survey, 100% of New York Tech Interior Design graduates entering the job market were employed within a year of graduation with some pursuing an additional degree or course of study.