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In response to professional industry trends, the WVU Interior Design program has expanded its curriculum to include building and construction systems and changed its major name to Interior Architecture beginning with the incoming 1st year class of 2021. Graduates still practice interior design and can be certified by the National Council for Interior Design Qualification exam but will have a wider range of skills.

Major Learning Outcomes

Interior Architecture

Interior designers create architectural interiors that improve inhabitants’ quality of life and protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public. Upon graduation from the interior design program at WVU, students will be able to demonstrate entry-level professional competencies that include:

• applying the elements and principles of design to the analysis and development of architectural interiors;
• understanding relationships between architecture, architectural interiors, interior artifacts, and the human condition – through historical, theoretical, social, and scientific lenses;
• utilizing hand and computer drawing and modeling technologies, techniques and conventions in the study, visualization, and presentation of architectural interiors;
• selecting and integrating appropriate building materials and construction assemblies; building systems; finishes, furnishings & equipment (FFE); and codes during the design of architectural interiors;
• understanding professional and ethical responsibilities, opportunities, and constraints associated with interior design practices.

Career Opportunities

Recent alumni of the program are employed by interior design and architecture firms and work in the hospitality, education, office, healthcare, and real estate development sectors, while others have pursued graduate degrees in fields including architecture, historic preservation and sustainability studies. Some have followed paths in design publishing, product sales, social media, and entrepreneurship, to name a few.