Interior Design Schools and Programs in The United States
48 schools in The United States teach Interior Design.
Abilene Christian University
University Abilene, The United States In an official register
Abilene Christian University (ACU) is a private university, founded in 1906. The school is based in Abilene, Texas and is also affiliated with Churches of Christ. The university is organized into the colleges of Arts and Sciences, Biblical Studies, Business Administration…
Academy of Art University
University San Francisco, The United States In an official register
The Academy of Art University is a private university owned by the Stephens Institute. The institution was established in San Francisco, California in 1929 by Richard S. Stephens. Receiving about 18,000 students per year the Academy of Art University is the largest art and…
Alexandria Technical & Community College
Vocational school Alexandria, MN, The United States In an official register
Alexandria Technical & Community College (ATCC) is a public two-year college in Alexandria, in the lake country of West Central Minnesota, about two hours northwest of Minneapolis/St. Paul. It was founded in 1961 as Alexandria Area Vocational Technical School, has carried its…
American River College
Vocational school Sacramento, The United States In an official register
American River College (ARC) is a community college in the Los Rios group of four colleges, with a 153-acre main campus in the suburbs of Sacramento, California. Its history goes back to the American River Junior College District, created in the fall of 1955. ARC enrols…
Bellevue College
University Bellevue, The United States In an official register
Bellevue College is a public US university, based in Bellevue, Washington, a suburb of Seattle. The school welcomes 35,000 students yearly, which means it is the second largest institution of higher education in Washington state. Bellevue College has made available two…
Boston Architectural College
University Boston, The United States In an official register
The Boston Architectural College (BAC) is a college of architecture and design located at the corner of Newbury and Hereford streets in Boston's Back Bay, in the US state of Massachusetts. It teaches four areas of study: architecture, interior architecture, landscape…
Broward College
Vocational school Fort Lauderdale, The United States In an official register
Broward College, formerly Broward Community College, is a public college serving Broward County and South Florida in the United States. It opened on 6 September 1960 as the Junior College of Broward County and became Broward College when it added bachelor's programmes; its…
Century College
Vocational school White Bear Lake, The United States In an official register
Century College is a two-year community and technical college in White Bear Lake, Minnesota, in the Twin Cities metro area of the United States. It opened in 1967 as Lakewood State Junior College, with 503 students. It has an East and a West Campus, and according to the…
Chaminade University of Honolulu
University Honolulu, The United States In an official register
Chaminade University of Honolulu is a Catholic university in Honolulu, on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. It was founded in 1955 by five Marianists and describes itself as the only Catholic university in Hawaii and one of three Marianist higher-education institutions in the…
College for Creative Studies
University Detroit, The United States In an official register
The College for Creative Studies (CCS) is a nonprofit, private art and design college in Midtown Detroit, Michigan, authorised by the Michigan Education Department to grant bachelor's and master's degrees. It was founded in 1906 as the Detroit Society of Arts and Crafts and…
Colorado State University
University Fort Collins, The United States In an official register
Colorado State University (CSU) is a public research university in Fort Collins, in Northern Colorado, about an hour north of Denver. It is the flagship institution of the Colorado State University System and the state's land-grant university. Total enrolment in the 2025-26…
Concordia University Wisconsin
University Mequon, The United States In an official register
Concordia University Wisconsin (CUW) is a private Lutheran university in Mequon, Wisconsin, about 20 minutes north of Milwaukee, on a 200-acre campus on the shore of Lake Michigan. It has been educating students since 1881 and is part of the Concordia University System, a…
Delaware Technical & Community College
Vocational school Dover, The United States In an official register
Delaware Technical & Community College (DTCC) came into existence in 1966, comprising of 4 campuses. The campuses include Owens campus in Georgetown, Delaware, Stanton Campus in Newark, Terry campus in Dover and Wilmington campus in Wilmington. DTCC offers more than 140…
Des Moines Area Community College
Higher education centre Ankeny, The United States In an official register
Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) is a two-year community college in Central Iowa, with its main address in Ankeny and 13 locations in the region. It began on 18 March 1966 as a vocational and technical learning centre in metro Des Moines. The college states that it…
East Carolina University
University Greenville, NC, The United States In an official register
East Carolina University came into existence in 1907 as a public research university at Greenville, North Carolina, United States. ECU offers more than 200 programs, catering bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral and certificate students. ECU comprises of 9 undergraduate academic…
Florida International University
University Miami, The United States In an official register
Florida International University (FIU) is a public research university in Miami, Florida, designated a Preeminent State Research University. It has been operating for more than 50 years and, according to the university, has more than 54,000 students. The main campus, the…
Florida State University
University Tallahassee, The United States In an official register
Florida State University is located in Florida, USA. The school offers top undergraduate, postgraduate and professional programs in the fields of physics, chemistry, psychology, sociology, political science, criminology and many more. They also have professional schools such…
Illinois State University
University Normal, IL, The United States In an official register
Illinois State University is a public university in Normal, Illinois, in the United States. Established in 1857, it describes itself as the oldest public university in Illinois. It was originally called Illinois State Normal University, "normal" being a term for a…
Kirkwood Community College
Vocational school Cedar Rapids, The United States In an official register
Kirkwood Community College is a community college based in Cedar Rapids, eastern Iowa, with its main campus at 6301 Kirkwood Boulevard SW and further regional and county centres across the region. It has served students in eastern Iowa for more than half a century. Two-year…
Lansing Community College
Vocational school Lansing, The United States In an official register
Lansing Community College (LCC) is a community college in Lansing, Michigan, founded in 1957. From its main campus in downtown Lansing it has grown to six locations in the mid-Michigan area, including sites in Delta Township, East Lansing and Mason, and the college states…
Miami University
University Oxford, The United States In an official register
Miami University is a public research university founded in 1809, with its main campus in Oxford, Ohio. It also has polytechnic campuses in Hamilton and Middletown, a learning centre in West Chester, the Dolibois European Center in Luxembourg and a fully online option, Miami…
Montgomery College
Higher education centre Germantown, The United States In an official register
Montgomery College is a public, open-access community college, which was established in 1946, when its first classes were held in the evenings at a local high school. It is located in Montgomery County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C. in the United States. The college…
Mount St. Joseph University
University Cincinnati, The United States In an official register
Mount St. Joseph University (formerly the College of Mount St. Joseph) is a Catholic university in Delhi Township, a suburb of Cincinnati, Ohio, with a campus overlooking the Ohio River. It was founded by the Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati and opened in 1920 as the first…
Onondaga Community College
Vocational school Syracuse, The United States In an official register
Onondaga Community College (OCC) is a two-year public college in Syracuse, New York. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system and is locally sponsored by Onondaga County. OCC opened in 1962; its 280-acre main campus overlooks Syracuse and Onondaga Lake…
Piedmont Technical College
Vocational school Greenwood, The United States In an official register
Piedmont Technical College (PTC) is a comprehensive two-year college in South Carolina, United States, founded in 1966 and accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. It has locations in each of the seven counties it serves…
Purdue University
University West Lafayette, The United States In an official register
Purdue University is a public land-grant university with its main campus at 610 Purdue Mall in West Lafayette, Indiana, and a second campus in Indianapolis. Its roots go back to the Morrill Land Grant College Act of 1862, and it has more than 150 years of history. According…
Richard Bland College
Higher education centre South Prince George, The United States In an official register
Richard Bland College (RBC) is a two-year college in Virginia, in the United States, with its campus at 11301 Johnson Road, South Prince George. It offers a liberal arts education in the tradition of William & Mary and awards associate degrees that cover the first two years…
Sam Houston State University
University Huntsville, TX, The United States In an official register
Sam Houston State University (SHSU) is a university in Huntsville, Texas, founded in 1879 and named after General Sam Houston. Besides the main campus in Huntsville, it has campuses in The Woodlands and Conroe, and offers online programmes through SHSU Online. Its students…
Savannah College of Art and Design
University Savannah, The United States In an official register
The Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) is a private, nonprofit art and design university founded in 1978 in Savannah, Georgia, to offer degree programmes not previously available in southeast Georgia. In 1979 it renovated the Savannah Volunteer Guard Armory, an 1892…
Suffolk University
University Boston, The United States In an official register
Suffolk University is a private university founded in 1906, with its campus in the heart of downtown Boston. It offers undergraduate, graduate and law degree programmes, with flexible options such as part-time and evening schedules, certificates for working professionals and…
SUNY Buffalo State University
University Buffalo, The United States In an official register
Buffalo State University (SUNY Buffalo State University) is a comprehensive public university in Buffalo, New York, and part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. It was founded in 1871 and is known for teacher education and for its arts and professional studies…
Tennessee Tech University
University Cookeville, The United States In an official register
Tennessee Tech University is a public university in the US state of Tennessee. Around 10,000 students are enrolled in its eight academic schools and colleges, which include Agriculture and Human Ecology, Arts and Sciences, Business, Engineering, Fine Arts and Nursing. The…
Texas Tech University
University Lubbock, The United States In an official register
Texas Tech University is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas, in the United States. It is one of 94 public universities with the Carnegie classification of very high research activity. Its main campus covers 1,839 acres and has more than 40,000 students, 10…
The University of Alabama
University Tuscaloosa, The United States In an official register
The University of Alabama is a student-centered research university and an academic community united in its commitment to enhancing the quality of life for all Alabamians. Founded in 1831 as Alabama's first public college, The University of Alabama is dedicated to excellence…
The University of Arizona
University Tucson, The United States In an official register
Located in the city of Tucson, the University of Arizona (UA) is a place without limits, a place where teaching, research, service and innovation merge to improve lives in Arizona and beyond. Back in 1885, establishing Arizona's first university in the middle of the Sonoran…
The University of Texas at Austin
University Austin, The United States In an official register
The University of Texas at Austin was founded in 1883. It is one of the largest and most prestigious universities in the world and hosts some 51,000 students.The University of Texas is a public research university, which campus is located only 0.25 km away from the Texas…
University of Bridgeport
University Bridgeport, The United States In an official register
The University of Bridgeport (UB) is a university in Bridgeport, Connecticut, founded in 1927. Its main campus covers 56 acres on Long Island Sound and houses 14 schools, colleges and institutes and seven residence halls. Students come from more than 80 countries, and the…
University of Florida
University Gainesville, The United States In an official register
The University of Florida (UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. Its roots go back to 19th-century predecessors such as the East Florida Seminary (from 1853) and the Florida Agricultural College; the present university took shape after the…
University of Minnesota
University Minneapolis, The United States In an official register
The University of Minnesota is a prestigious institution, founded in 1851, and considered among the best in the world.
University of New Haven
University West Haven, The United States In an official register
The University of New Haven is a private, coeducational university with no religious affiliation, founded on the Yale campus in 1920. Since 1960 its main campus has been in West Haven, Connecticut, between New York City and Boston: a residential campus of 82 acres overlooking…
University of North Texas
University Denton, The United States In an official register
The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public research university in Denton, Texas, a town of about 150,000 people 36 miles north of Dallas-Fort Worth. Founded in 1890, it is classified as an R1 research university by the Carnegie Classification and, with nearly 44,000…
University of Wisconsin-Madison
University Madison, The United States In an official register
The University of Wisconsin–Madison (UW–Madison) is a public land-grant university and major research institution founded in 1848. Its lakeside campus is in Madison, the state capital of Wisconsin, and it belongs to the Universities of Wisconsin, a system of 13 universities…
Virginia Western Community College
Vocational school Roanoke, The United States In an official register
Virginia Western Community College is a public institution, which services the area of Roanoke, Salem, Roanoke County, Craig County, southern Botetourt County, and northern Franklin County. It is a two-year college, offering day, evening, and weekend classes on its main…
West Virginia University
University Morgantown, The United States In an official register
This is a public learning institution located in Morgantown city along the Monongahela River and it was established in 1867. West Virginia University offers over 200 undergraduate, graduate, doctorate and professional programs across its 15 colleges. Some of the graduate…
NYU School of Professional Studies
University New York, The United States
The New York University (NYU) School of Continuing and Professional Studies offers its students a high-class professional education. Some of the common undergraduate degrees in professional fields include Digital Media, Real Estate, Business, Health Management, and Hotel and…
ASU FIDM
Vocational school Los Angeles, The United States
Fashion Institute of design and Merchandizing was established in Los Angeles, in 1969 by its President TonianHohberg. The faculties include Business Administration, Fashion Design, Textile Design, Interior Design, Graphic Design and many more. FIDM takes pride in its four…
SUNY, The State University of New York
University Albany, The United States
SUNY is a system of public universities in New York, USA. It was established in 1948, and represents the largest system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the world. Overall, it has 64 campuses around the state, including four University Centers…
The Ohio State University
University Columbus, The United States
Ohio State University is a public research university, and currently has the third largest university campus in the United States. Located in Columbus, Ohio, it was founded in 1870 as a land-grant university. Now the university has also established regional campuses in Lewis…
Interior Design Studies in The United States
Interior design is the planning of indoor spaces so that they are functional, safe and pleasant to use. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) describes interior designers as professionals who determine space requirements and select essential and decorative items. It is a technical subject as much as a creative one: students learn drawing and computer-aided design (CAD), building systems, materials, lighting and professional practice. In the United States the subject is taught at universities, art and design colleges and community colleges, under the names interior design or interior architecture.
How the programmes are organised
According to the BLS, programmes in interior design are available at the associate's, bachelor's and master's degree levels.
- Associate degree (two years), mostly an Associate of Applied Science at a community or technical college
- Bachelor's degree (four years): Bachelor of Fine Arts, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Design or Bachelor of Interior Architecture, depending on the school
- Master's degree, with tracks for graduates of interior design and for people entering from other disciplines
Examples from the schools' own pages: the University of Florida's Bachelor of Design requires 120 credit hours and is typically completed in four years; its Master of Interior Design has one track for students with a prior degree in interior design and one for students from other disciplines. At Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, students of the Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interior Design share a first-year core of environmental design and graphic media with architecture majors. Boston Architectural College offers a Bachelor and a Master of Interior Architecture. Among the two-year colleges, Alexandria Technical & Community College in Minnesota offers an Interior Design AAS degree and a diploma, with a focus on kitchen and bath, residential or commercial design, and Century College in White Bear Lake awards an AAS degree.
Accreditation and licensing
The specialised accreditor for the subject is the Council for Interior Design Accreditation (CIDA), which accredits professional-level programmes and updates its list twice a year. Its list, checked in October 2026, includes programmes at several schools on this page, among them the Savannah College of Art and Design, Florida State University, The University of Texas at Austin, Purdue University, The Ohio State University, Texas Tech University, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Colorado State University, Suffolk University and Boston Architectural College. The University of Florida states that its programme has been accredited by CIDA since 1974.
Whether a licence is needed depends on the state. The BLS explains that in some states only licensed designers may do interior design work, in others only licensed designers may use the title "interior designer", and in others there is no restriction. Where the title is restricted, candidates must pass a state-approved exam; eligibility includes at least a bachelor's degree in interior design and two years of full-time work experience. The certification body for the profession is the National Council for Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ).
Admission and visa
Applicants to interior design programmes may need to submit sketches and other examples of their artistic ability, according to the BLS, in addition to the usual school transcripts and proof of English. EducationUSA notes that requirements vary greatly between institutions and that undergraduate applications are typically due between November and January for a start the following September. Community colleges may have a more flexible admissions process, and the "2+2" route combines two years of community college with two years at a university to earn a bachelor's degree.
International students apply for a student visa after being accepted by a school certified by the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP). The F visa is for study at an accredited US college or university; the M visa is for non-academic or vocational study.
Costs
Each institution sets its own tuition. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, average tuition and fees in 2022-23 were $9,800 at public four-year institutions (the in-state rate; non-residents usually pay more), $40,700 at private nonprofit four-year institutions and $4,000 at public two-year colleges.
Where to study interior design in the United States
The schools are spread over the whole country. Boston has two, Boston Architectural College and Suffolk University. Specialised art and design colleges include the Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia, the College for Creative Studies in Detroit and the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. Large public universities with interior design programmes include the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida International University in Miami, The University of Texas at Austin, Purdue University in West Lafayette and the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. Teaching is in English.
Careers
Many interior designers work in specialised design services or in architectural and engineering firms, the BLS reports. It gives a median annual wage of $67,190 for interior designers in May 2025 and projects employment to grow 3 percent from 2025 to 2035.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to study interior design in the United States?
An associate degree takes two years and a bachelor's degree four years. A master's degree follows the bachelor's.
What is CIDA accreditation?
CIDA is the Council for Interior Design Accreditation. It accredits professional-level interior design programmes and publishes the list of accredited programmes on its website.
Do interior designers need a licence in the United States?
It depends on the state. Some states restrict the work or the title "interior designer" to licensed designers, who must pass a state-approved exam; others have no restriction.