Abstract
In the professions of interior design and architecture, standards of education, experience, and examination provide a system for measuring quality, responsibility, and service. These standards establish criteria for professional competence and development and establish a framework for legal registration requirements and professional definitions. Although the standards have recently been updated, they have not been formally compared to assess their similarities and differences. This article addresses this comparison, as well as the relationship between these standards and recognized legal registration requirements and professional definitions.
The overall goals are to clarify how the standards shape each profession and to determine whether the standards in interior design support the licensing of interior designers. Responding to allegations, conflicts, and restrictions in the two professions, this article addresses the underlying question of whether interior design standards compare favorably when measured against architectural standards.
To facilitate a comparison, published and unpublished documents were obtained from various sources and the primary professional organi–zations–the Foundation for Interior DesignEducationResearch(FIDER), the Entry Level Monitored Internship Program (Jackman, Harwood, and Veitch, 1990), the National Council for Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ), the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB), the National Council for Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB), and from various state and provincial licensing bills.
Reviewing this material shows that different knowledge is acquired in each profession. Interior designers are not educated, trained, or tested to be architects. Conversely, architects are not educated, trained, or tested to be interior designers. The professions are, however, complementary.
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