Co-op and Career Opportunities

Cooperative Education

Through the cooperative education system, students gain salaried practical experience to complement their expanding academic understanding of the discipline. Bachelor of Science in Interior Design students integrate six quarters of work experience in their five-year curriculum in cities all over the country and overseas. Most are employed by interior design and/or architecture firms, but they also work in other design-related offices, public agencies, and commercial companies.

Career Opportunities

The term "interior design" is often confused with interior decoration. The latter generally deals with the selection of finishes and furnishings for existing spaces and is concerned with the application of surface treatments. UC graduates enter the practice of interior design, which addresses interior space volumes and spatial sequences, designing each space, including the planning of furnishings and specifying surfaces.

Interior designers may focus on specialized roles such as design, space programming, office administration, marketing and public relations, computer applications, or historic preservation. An Interior Design degree can also lead to a career as a facility programmer, computer software designer, facility manager, product sales representative, or university professor.