|
Chaminade’s comprehensive B.F.A. program is the first step toward a rewarding career in Interior Design.
Interior Design professionals are visionaries that draw upon trained artistic, technical, and interpersonal skills to create spaces that are efficient, safe and aesthetically pleasing. Skilled interior designers can effectively create successful environments that are in high demand, from commercial spaces that turn over more revenue, to hotels and restaurants that enhance an experience and make guests want to return, to residential designs that appeal to an occupant’s taste and needs.
Interior designers manage the collaborative process involving designers, clients, and design industry-related professionals such as architects, product distributors and suppliers. Fruitful collaborations are the key to a successful project, portfolio, and career.
A design education, such as Chaminade provides, enables students to master the many skills employers seek from emerging design professionals. Chaminade University offers the only Interior Design program in the state of Hawaii.
The program offers a strong academic foundation. The sequenced curriculum leading to a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interior Design develops design knowledge and encourages exploration and experimentation. A diverse faculty of reputable, practicing professionals and distinguished educators offer challenging and engaging courses. Students also benefit from individual college and career counseling throughout their education. This foundation prepares students for post-graduate studies, assimilation into the profession, and satisfies the educational requirement for professional licensing.
Degree information:
Catalog/course information
BFA four-year plan
AA three-year plan (see advisor for details)
Program contact information:
Joan Riggs, ASID, IIDA, IDEC, CAPS
Interior Design
Program Coordinator
(808) 739-8574
jriggs@chaminade.edu
Interior Design education information, associations:
IDEC website (Interior Design Educator's Council)
NCIDQ website (National Council for Interior Design Qualification)
Aloha,
On behalf of the students, faculty and administrators of the Chaminade University-Honolulu Interior Design Program (CUH-ID), I’d like to welcome you to our website and encourage you to visit our campus in person. Located in the heart of Honolulu yet set apart on the slopes of Kalaepohaku overlooking Diamond Head and Waikiki, Chaminade is the only BFA (Bachelor of Fine Arts) Interior Design degree-granting institution in the State of Hawaii. CUH-ID offers students the opportunity for an outstanding liberal arts education in an environment unmatched in beauty and culture.
The CUH-ID Program is a rigorous, 4-year degree program metaphorically framed like a building through foundational learning (200 level courses); structural [concentration] support (300 level classes) and roof [capstone] encapsulation (400 level courses). Milestone achievement points include a 200 level written exam and practicum which a candidate must pass to be admitted to the major; a 300 level professional juried portfolio review in preparation for upper division studios and internship; and a 400 level public portfolio exhibit in celebration of student designers’ academic achievements.
In recognition of our mission to educate, engage and empower students, we understand that a career in design demands creativity and discipline; organizational and interpersonal skills; artistic and technical drawing skills; planning and management skills and a collaborative work ethic. As defined by the National Council for Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ) the work of a designer …“includes a scope of services performed by a professional design practitioner, qualified by means of education, experience and examination, to protect and enhance the health, life safety and welfare of the public”. Our BFA-ID curriculum satisfies the educational requirements to qualify for the NCIDQ exam.
We look forward to assisting you in preparing for a design career that creatively addresses: individual, corporate and global issues; social and moral obligations to the world’s cultural and natural resources and adaptation for all-inclusive environments for all generations.
Mahalo nui loa,
Joan Riggs
CUH-ID Program Coordinator
Design faculty:
Interdisciplinary Studies:
Student projects provide an opportunity to explore the design process from concept to execution. Students explore a range of design challenges, from imaginative, abstract creative projects to practical residential and commercial design solutions including universal and sustainable design paradigms. In addition, students participate in service-learning opportunities involving local non-profit groups which hone people skills as well as professional skills. Students have opportunities for site visits to see real-world design projects develop through to completion. Students must fulfill an internship requirement. The senior capstone project involves developing a portfolio that will be judged by a panel of professionals on Senior Portfolio night.
The Chaminade Interior Design Studios and Resource Center are designed for individual or collaborative study and support all levels of the curriculum. Newly remodeled facilities include dedicated classrooms and a resource center for the design program.
A comprehensive learning environment:
Students in our Programming and Space Planning course contributed greatly to the design inspiration for our newly-renovated ID facilities. Plans were submitted through a class project that required students to explore renovation ideas for Eiben Hall. Much of the design incorporates concepts for a living design laboratory.
The classrooms feature:
The resource center includes:
The Chaminade design facilities are located on the beautiful Chaminade University campus. The location of Honolulu, Hawaii contributes to the global character of our program, providing design influences and products from the Pacific Islands and Asian/Pacific Rim nations, as well as concepts from multiple cultures, inspiring and informing our students’ design outlook.
Personalized instruction (12:1 student-faculty ratio) and direct, professional networking and mentoring through the student IDpro professional organization connects students to local and national professional organizations and support students’ readiness for required internships and eventual job placement.
Links:
Notable firms in which our graduates have secured positions include:
A detailed career description, data, and earnings information for the Interior Design profession can be found on the U.S. Dept. of Labor website.
Interior Design career opportunities include:
