BFA Interior Design

The 120-credit Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interior Design degree program is designed for students who wish to achieve expertise in this broad-based and fulfilling profession, channeling their creative talents to this important component of the built environment. The program addresses both commercial and residential design while ensuring students have an equally strong background in the humanities, including the essentials of the history of art and design.

Gain Experience in the Real WorlD

The field of interior design offers a wide and challenging range of professional opportunities, allowing the designer to transform living and working environments. The Corcoran’s Career Services Center works closely with students to arrange internships in the greater D.C. metropolitan area. In recent years our students have interned in such locations as the Marriott Corporation, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, U.S. Patent & Trademark, and the Kathleen Ewing Gallery.

Sample Courses

Perspective and Interior Rendering—Undertake an exploration of linear, two-, and three-point perspectives, and rendering of interior space in various media. Learn to observe, analyze, interpret, and reproduce what you see.

Interior Lighting Design – Explore an introduction to the effects of light on interior space, as well as to various lighting products and lighting systems. The basics of lighting layout design, lighting terminology, and the lighting designer's role in the interior design process is covered.

Materials, Methods, and Finishes – Discover the major materials available to designers and architects, including their structure, properties, potential expressive qualities, and their use. Students learn how to integrate materials into the design and construction of interior spaces, and become familiar with the selection of appropriate materials for various uses based on function, aesthetics, safety, comfort, and maintenance.

Sample Curriculum*

YEAR 1 COURSES

Art History I + II
Writing I + II
Resources
Drawing
Communications Design
Design Concepts
Studio Electives

YEARS 2, 3, and 4 STUDIO COURSES

Sophomore + Junior Studios
Perspective and Interior Rendering
Digital 3D Design
Interior Lighting Design
Materials, Finishes, and Methods
Interior Design Senior Thesis
Professional Practices for Design
Studio Electives

YEARS 2, 3, and 4 ACADEMIC COURSES

20th Century Art
History of Design
History of Architecture and Interior Design
Humanities I + II
Electives

TOTAL: 120 Credits

Sample elective courses                 

Elements of Design
Color Theory for Interiors
Page Layout: InDesign
Art and Architecture of Washington DC
Photography Technique and Practice
Psychology of Creativity

*Courses subject to change.

Students may also elect to pursue a combined five-year BFA/MAT (Master of Arts in Teaching) degree, a program which prepares you to work as an art educator in secondary schools, museums, and community art centers.

Interior Design Faculty

Antonio Alcalá
Adjunct Faculty

Robin Bell
Adjunct Faculty

Jessica Bonness
Adjunct Faculty

John Carmody
Visiting Assistant Professor of Digital Media

Melinda Cunningham
Adjunct Faculty

Carol Donnelly
Adjunct Faculty

Carmel Greer
Adjunct Faculty

Matthew Guastaferro
Adjunct Faculty

Francheska Guerrero
Associate Professor, Interim Chair of Undergraduate Design, Graphic Design, and Digital Media Design

Andrea Hartranft
Adjunct Faculty

Nathan Hill
Adjunct Faculty

Ramona Hutko
Associate Faculty

Antje Kharchi
Associate Professor

Robert Lasater
Adjunct Faculty

Gail Lazio-Xavier
Adjunct Faculty

Brian Lemen
Adjunct Faculty

Raymond MacDonald
Adjunct Faculty

Robert McVearry
Adjunct Faculty

Juana Medina
Adjunct Faculty

Erin Miller
Adjunct Faculty

Charles Mitchell
Adjunct Faculty

Jim Mole
Adjunct Faculty

Joshua Moores
Adjunct Faculty

Maria Morga
Associate Professor

Karen Mulder
Adjunct Faculty

Michael Pacheco
Adjunct Faculty

Alice Powers
Adjunct Faculty

David Ramos
Adjunct Faculty

Elizabeth Raycroft
Adjunct Faculty

Camden M. Richards
Adjunct Faculty

Alice Roberts
Adjunct Faculty

Johan Severtson
Professor

Samuel Shelton
Adjunct Faculty

Charlie Turner
Adjunct Faculty

Examples of Student Work

Related Student Groups and Organizations

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