Job description:

The job of an interior designer comprises planning, design and furnishing interiors of residential, commercial, or industrial buildings like homes, hotels, ships, hospitals, and office buildings. They can be classified by the following general categories: (1) designers who own and operate design studios (2) designers who work as assistants or associates in design firms (3) designers employed by retail or office furnishings stores (4) designers employed by architectural firms (5) designers employed in the design departments of large firms and institutions. A designer must formulate a design that is practical, aesthetic, and conducive to intended purposes, such as raising productivity, selling merchandise, or improving lifestyle. May specialise in a particular field, style, or phase of interior design.

Experience :

A minimum of two to four years of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for an individual to be considered qualified.

Tasks:

Interior designers usually work directly with clients and must consider their requirements, tastes, preferences and budget. They must keep form, colour, scale, and arrangement in balance, and at the same time be concerned with utility, construction, economy, and client satisfaction. Designers should be familiar with the nature of woods, textiles, and decorating products such as paint and wallpaper. They should be knowledgeable about the historical periods that have influenced the development of furniture style and room design. Designers often work from blueprints, make detailed floor plans, and draw furniture to scale. They shop in wholesale markets to locate furnishings and accessories, and, when necessary, design original pieces to be made to order. They often work closely with both building and landscape architects in planning the interiors of new buildings or remodeling old ones. Presentations for client approval usually include a sketch or scaled floor plan showing furniture arrangement, colour charts, and samples of upholstery, draperies, and wall coverings. The complete proposal includes an estimate of the cost for the installation. After the proposal is accepted, Interior designers assemble furnishings and act as agents for their clients by contracting and supervising the services of craft workers. Some interior designers may specialise in colour coordination, lighting, furniture or fabric designs. Others may teach at universities, art schools, or adult education facilities.

Work conditions:

The work environment is usually quite pleasant; however, much time is spent away from headquarters, meeting with clients, contractors, or shopping. Designers must drive in all types of weather and sometimes work in buildings under construction. They often carry heavy, bulky sample books and sometimes have to climb ladders. Designers have to cope with administrative details and masses of paperwork such as specifications, estimates, and purchase orders. They must be able to deal tactfully with clients and supervise craft workers. Work is often performed under the pressure of deadlines and budget limitations. The job involves work indoors, frequent assimilation of objective or subjective information, ability to face consequence of error, frequent social interaction and an overriding need of being exact or accurate.

Employment outlook:

Continuous use of design services in residences and commercial establishments has increased the demand for qualified interior designers. Many consider the employment of an interior designer a luxury expense, so job opportunities are more frequent in prosperous times even though the pay, by itself, is not poor. When the economy turns down, chances of employment decrease markedly. Competition is very keen in this occupation, as there are more applicants than available job openings. Consequently, employers are becoming more selective and prefer to hire experienced job seekers instead of the trained but inexperienced. Additional job opportunities result from the need to replace workers who leave the labour market. Creative persons who are already autonomous and do not need to support a family usually take up the job of an interior designer. It is also a fact that usually the freelancers and self-employed designers earn more than the formally trained ones.

Finding the job:

Interior designers find jobs through their school and by direct application to employers, private employment agencies. It is advisable to prepare a portfolio of work for presentation.

Career growth:

The interior designer typically starts as a junior designer or officer and finally gets to own his company if he makes it really big.

National Average Salary:

According to Amita Shakya, one of the top interior designers of the country, the salary of an intern or a new recruit will be not more than Rs 3,000. She says that after an year of experience, one’s salary can even shoot up to Rs 10,000. Careers related to this field of work are art directors, civil drafters, commercial and industrial designers, costume attendants, custom tailors, exhibit designers, landscape architects and set designers.

An interior designer typically:

• Formulates an environmental plan to be practical, aesthetic, and conducive to intended purposes, such as raising productivity or selling merchandise.

• Confers with client to determine factors affecting planning interior environments, such as budget, architectural preferences, and purpose and function.

• Advises client on interior design factors such as space planning, layout and utilization of furnishings and equipment, and color coordination.

• Estimates material requirements and costs and presents design to client for approval.

• Renders design ideas in form of paste-ups or drawings.

• Subcontracts fabrication, installation, and arrangement of carpeting, fixtures, accessories, draperies, paint and wall coverings, artwork, furniture, and related items.

• Plans and designs interior environments for boats, planes, buses, trains, and other enclosed spaces.

• Selects or designs and purchases furnishings, art works, and accessories.

Important abilities required on the job include:

1. Visualisation

2. Originality

3. Oral Expression

4. Fluency of Ideas

5. Oral Comprehension

Important skills needed on the job comprise:

1. Coordination

2. Speaking

3. Idea Generation

4. Operations Analysis

5. Active listening

General work activities comprise:

1. Thinking creatively

2. Establishing and maintaining relationships

3. Drafting and specifying technical devices, etc.

4. Getting information needed to do the job

5. Communicating with persons outside the organisation

Education and training:

Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training. Related majors comprise:

• Consumer Economics/Housing

• Environmental/Interior Design

• Housing

• Housing/Environmental Design

• Human Ecology

• Human Environmental Sciences/Business

• Human/Environment Relations

• Interior Architecture

• Interior Architecture/Design

• Interior Design

• Interior Design/Housing

• Interior Environmental Design

• Residential Interior Design

There aren’t many institutes in Nepal that offer long term courses on interior design but those that are offer diploma courses which range from five months to a year. The good news is that India Education Centre will soon be coming up with a bachelor degree course this July for interested candidates. Some of the institutes offering courses are:

• Exterior Interior Nepal Pvt. Ltd Thapathalli, 4228833

• India Education Centre Bagbazar, 4247475

• IMT Vancouver University Bhaktapur, 6614909

• The Kristal Institute of Professional Management Kamaladi, 4417952