The Role of Business and Communication Skill Preparation for Interior Design Graduates

Abstract

This study investigates whether preparation in business and communication skills in FIDER–accredited programs influences graduates’ employment in the interior design profession. Findings from a 1991 survey of interior design graduates indicate that a focus in the curriculum on intercommunication skills was related to design employment; focus on business skills, however, was not found to be significantly related to employment. When graduates rated their program's degree of focus on business skills as low, they compensated by learning needed skills on the job. Many communication skills were similarly learned on the job. Skills in public speaking and oral presentations learned in the undergraduate curricula were especially transferable into the work field. Several indicators suggest that a transferable knowledge of business skills can best be achieved through early work experience.