How to Get your first project in Interior Design Industry

WallsToHome Interiors
4 min readJul 24, 2021

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Looking to make a career as an Interior Designer but have no idea where to start? Fret not, we will tell you all about what you need to make a career in Interior Designing. Whether you are new to designing or making a career switch, we will help you put your best foot forward when it comes to designing.

Photo by KOBU Agency on Unsplash

Why Interior Designing?

The Interior designing Industry is witnessing a remarkable growth in the demand for interior designers. As the property prices are reaching the sky, people are learning to manage with smaller homes. They are looking for a solution to the space crisis and Interior Designers are being a great help for them.

Interior Designing is expected to see exponential growth by the year 2025 all over the world. The estimated potential (CAGR) growth rate is calculated to be 8.5%. As more and more people are opting for interior design, the demand for interior designers will significantly increase in the years to come.

With an evolving lifestyle and fast-paced urbanization, interior designing is one of the most sought after professions in India today.

What Core Skills Are Required To Build An Interior Design Career?

  • Spatial Awareness: An Interior Designer must have a good understanding of the spaces and how to properly utilize them while planning home interiors, home ambience and room functioning.
  • Technical Knowledge: Interior Designer must know to digitally create designs for their clients. Having hands-on knowledge of designing software will be of great help. The most common tools used by Interior designers are:
  • Vector works
  • Autodesk Revit
  • 3D Max
  • Archicad
  • AutoCAD
  • Sketch Up
  • 3D Homeplanner
  • Chief Architect
  • Budgeting: Interior Designers must be well-versed in budgeting by forecasting expenditure, identifying hidden costs, negotiating as well as be good at bookkeeping to ensure efficient use of money.
  • Time Management: Designers must be diligent with the managing of their time, calendars, and at delegating to enable work completion before deadlines approach.
  • Dynamic Creativity: An interior designer must be creative and knowledgeable about artistic styles, colours, fabrics, and new emerging trends.

What Soft Skills Are Needed By An Interior Designer?

  • An interior designer must possess excellent communication skills because communicating ideas well is the major part of their job.
  • An Interior Designer should be good at problem-solving which leads to effective process management, know how to prioritize tasks as well as troubleshooting.
  • Interior designers must be critical thinkers and very proactive to solve problems as soon as possible.
  • An interior designer must be organized which is essential to be able to complete projects on the decided time and within the assigned budget.

Tips To Get An Interior Design Job

Research About The Field

Do your homework and research well. Learn everything there is to know about your chosen field of work. It helps to understand the various aspects of interior design. Gather relevant information and choose a specific area of work based on your information.

Some self-reflection helps whether you are new to the designing industry business or making a career switch. Ask yourself why you chose to design, what attracted you to designing, what do you love about designing and being a designer. It will help you understand where you would fit best in terms of designing in a variety of cities.

Learn The Necessary Tools And Educational Qualifications

Qualifications requirements of an interior designer:

Generally, any creative and passionate person who has a basic knowledge of designing properties is liable to become an interior decorator.

However, it isn’t as easy as it sounds to build an interior design career.

To become a professional interior designer you need the following qualifications:

  1. 10+2 with any stream with a minimum 50% aggregate.
  2. Take All India Entrance Examination for Design also referred to as AIEED which is a requirement for some colleges to allow admissions to select candidates based on their AIEED rank for undergraduate courses in interior design.
  3. Complete Bachelor’s of Science (B.SC) in Interior Design degree from a recognized university.
  4. Diploma in interior design
  5. MBA in Interior Design if you have completed a Bachelor’s or Master’s from a recognized university with a minimum 45% aggregate.

Develop Your People Skills

The work of interior designers cannot be accomplished without communication and connection with people. So, it is a necessary skill to hone as an interior designer. Show your ability to listen and communicate ideas thoughtfully and poignantly to get the edge.

Put Your Best Foot Forward By Making A Portfolio

An Interior Design portfolio is an asset to your career. A portfolio showcases your best work. Make a portfolio for yourself and include before and after images of the work you have done. This proves your credibility as an interior designer.

Having a social media design page is also a significant medium for conveying your unique ideas and attention to detail. A professional presence on all social media channels is a definite plus.

Intern To Train

A design degree alone isn’t enough to get you the job. Your best bet for success is to get involved in internships. They are highly beneficial for career development in terms of gaining professional skills.

In any profession including interior design, having relevant work experience counts.

Do an internship for at least 6–12 months to be able to understand the critical aspects of interior design.

Conclusion:

If you’re having trouble getting the job, we recommend requesting an informational interview with the recruiters. It will help you understand what is missing from your portfolio. You may not always get a response but the initiative will be noticed. Eventually, you will get honest feedback which you can use to course-correct.

Meanwhile, don’t just sit back waiting for a response. Look for intern opportunities in the market to develop your Revit skills to stay involved with the interior design industry.

If you have any more questions regarding the entire process, write to us at hello@wallstohomeinteriors.com or visit us at WallsToHome Interiors. Do follow us at Instagram, Facebook

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WallsToHome Interiors

Bangalore based Interior designing firm with design experience of 100+ projects.