Herzing Blog

The purpose of an interior design portfolio is to showcase your skills and abilities. Whether you’re looking to work for an established firm or strike out on your own, you need to demonstrate that you’re a talented and capable professional who can be trusted to produce quality work.

An intimidating task, to be sure! But not to worry. We put together this comprehensive guide to explain how to make an interior design portfolio that represents you and your work in a professional, visually appealing way.

Read on to discover how to put your best foot, and designs, forward.

If you’d like to focus on creating spaces that are both functional and appealing, a career in interior design could be an excellent choice.

Interior designers do much more than choose fabrics and furnishings. They design and plan every detail of a space from scratch.

Interior designers consider lighting, textures, acoustics, accessibility, building codes, and more.

They analyze client needs, consider structural changes, create blueprints, order materials, and oversee the construction or installation process.

So how do you get started in this career? What exactly does it take to become an interior designer in Quebec?

Keep reading for some helpful tips and advice.

You may be familiar with the basic interior designer job description: create indoor spaces that are safe, functional, and attractive. But you may not realize the full scope of the role.

Interior design is a broad and varied field, with many potential specializations and career paths. You could work on all kinds of spaces, including condos, hotels, restaurants, factories, hospitals, airport terminals, retail stores, and more.

At the same time, there are many misconceptions about what interior designers actually do. (Hint: it's not all about picking pretty fabrics!)

In this post, we provide an inside look at the job of an interior designer and debunk some common myths about the role.

Find out what this career really involves so you can decide if it's right for you.

Interested in becoming an interior designer? You've probably noticed that there are plenty of training programs to choose from, at both the college and university level.

So how do you know which option is best for you? What's the difference between an interior design diploma and an interior design degree?

Both types of programs cover design concepts, technical skills, and industry software. Both typically offer internship opportunities to help students get real-world experience as part of their training.

But degree programs spend a lot more time on design theory while diploma programs are built around practical design skills. Degree programs are longer and more in-depth; diploma programs are shorter and more streamlined.

In this post, we help you understand the big difference between interior design diplomas and degrees so you can decide which one is right for you.

Photo: Interior design team discusses design plans for a bathroom project

Updated December 2022

So, you’re thinking of becoming an interior designer and you’re wondering what it’s really like to work in this field. 

The good news is you’re already asking the right questions. Getting a realistic idea of life at work is crucial when choosing a career path. And you need this information before you invest in training. 

Let’s face it, no job is perfect. There are always ups and down, benefits and challenges. Interior design is no exception! Knowing what to expect (the good and the bad) will help you decide if interior design is your true calling—or if you’re better off pursuing something else. 

So, let’s get down to it. These are the most common pros and cons of becoming an interior designer.  

Take a look, consider your goals, and decide if this career is right for you. 

Updated December 2022

This is such an exciting time to start a career in interior design. There are so many new software tools, tons of inspiring designers out there pushing boundaries, and a wide variety of job options in this field.

But let's take a step back. Your first priority is to find an interior design course that will actually get you hired.

There are many options out there, from DECs and AECs to bachelor's degrees in interior design.

This post is for people who want to bypass the theory and get straight to designing. So we'll be focusing on college-level interior design training, which is more practical and hands-on.

We’ve been offering an interior design program at Herzing for several years now. When we put together the curriculum, we looked very closely at hiring trends and the specific skills employers are looking for in new designers. 

What kinds of companies are hiring interior designers? What creative and technical skills are most in demand right now? Who is hiring our graduates? 

There are a lot of different Interior Design programs out there, from DECs to AECs to university degrees.

Longer programs tend to delve deeper into the theory, philosophy, and history of interior design, while shorter programs focus more on practical design skills.

The interior design students we work with at Herzing are an incredibly diverse group, coming from different backgrounds and all ages. Some are recent high school graduates, others are working parents, and quite a few are international students.

Imagine leaving your home, and travelling across the globe to study in a foreign country, in a foreign language, and build a career from scratch? With no family or professional contacts to help you?

That's exactly what Herzing Interior Design graduate, Sergkei Theocharis, did last year. He travelled all the way to Montreal from Greece, with the dream of starting a design career here in Montreal.

Sergkei just graduated from Herzing last month, and has already landed a pretty amazing interior design job at Primo International.

We interviewed him to learn more about his story, his experience at Herzing, and what he's doing now.

Here are the highlights from that conversation.

Design students busy working on projects at the Herzing College Montreal campus

Updated November 2022

You have a natural talent for arranging rooms, choosing furniture, and selecting paint colours. Your Instagram or Pinterest is full of amazing design ideas and inspiration. You're constantly re-organizing your own living space.

It sounds like you'd fit right in at interior design school! But let's take a step back for a minute. There are a few more things to consider before you invest your time and money...