Interior Architecture BA (Hons)

From the first year all the way through, this programme is designed so you don’t just sit in lectures — you make, design, explore, test, visit and display. You’ll work in studios, on live briefs, with real places, sometimes real clients; you’ll get access to physical workshops, digital tools, and collaborative learning throughout. The facilities support everything from sketching and model-making to full-scale proposals, reuse projects and exhibitions.

Here are the key details of how you’ll gain practical skills and what you’ll be using / doing:

• Design Studios & Dedicated Space: Each student gets individual studio space in a large shared design studio (with students across different years). This means you’ll learn from staff and your peers. The studios are central hubs for critique, iteration and hands-on work.
• Model-Making Workshops, Rapid Prototyping, CAD & IT Labs: You have access to specialist workshops (for example for physical model making), rapid prototyping facilities, IT service workshops, and large-format plotting/printing services. These enable you to move your design from concept sketches to tangible prototypes.
• Live Projects & Regional / National Partnerships: The course includes work on live and directed design projects, some in partnership with bodies like the National Trust, where you adapt or reuse existing buildings etc. These aren’t hypothetical—they involve real sites, contexts, history and constraints.
• Site Visits, Field Trips & European Study Trip: You’ll go on site visits locally. There is also a European study trip to help you see different architectural contexts, experience heritage, adaptation and spatial culture in other places.
• Self-Directed & Directed Design Project Work: Throughout the years, you’ll alternate between more guided briefs and projects where you set your own path. Especially in later years you’ll build up a portfolio of self-directed work. This helps you find your own aesthetic / signature approach.
• Presentations, Exhibitions & Professional Exposure: At the end of the degree you present your final project at an exhibition in Newcastle and as part of the Interior Educators event in London. This gives you exposure to the public and to the professional design/architecture community.
• Digital Tools & Learning Platforms: You’ll use CAD (computer aided design), IT workshops, plotting/printing technologies, rapid prototyping hardware. There’s also an electronic learning platform (eLP) where project info, module materials and assignments are shared.
• Option for Study Abroad or Placement Year: Before final year you can either do a year abroad or a placement (sandwich) to deepen experience and build international or professional contacts.
• Support for Creative Reuse / Building Adaptation Expertise: Special emphasis is placed on adapting and reusing existing structures / spaces, understanding contexts, histories and integrating interior proposals into existing fabric. So your learning isn’t just new-build, but also how to work sustainably and imaginatively with what’s already there.

Graduates from this programme tend to move into roles that combine creative design, spatial thinking, and building adaptation. Typical job roles include:

• Interior Architect (designing interior spaces with both aesthetic and functional concerns)
• Architectural Technician or Drafter (producing technical drawings, 3D models, and collaborating with architects/designers)
• Project Coordinator / Project Manager within design or architecture firms
• Specialist in adaptive reuse, historic/building conservation, or sustainable interiors

Here’s how the programme supports these futures:

• University services & support for employment
  • Live design projects and regional/national partnerships (e.g. working with the National Trust) allow you to get authentic, real-world experience.
  • Exhibition opportunities (both in Newcastle and in London via Interior Educators) where you can show your portfolio to industry professionals.
  • Dedicated studio facilities, model-making workshops, CAD/digital tools and rapid prototyping labs.
• Employment / Career stats & salary indicators
  • While specific post-graduation data for this course isn’t fully published, for all Architecture courses at Northumbria:
   – ~£21,000 median salary at about 15 months after graduation
   – ~£23,500 at 3 years out
   – ~£25,500 at around 5 years out for those with growing experience.
• University-industry partnerships
  • Collaborations with the National Trust for projects in creative reuse of historic structures.
  • Participation in “Interior Educators” (a society/collective for interior architecture) which helps connect students to the wider profession.
• Accreditation & long-term value
  • The degree + the Postgraduate Certificate in Interior Architecture allow graduates to satisfy ARB Part I criteria (i.e. for architects registration) when combined. This adds strong professional credibility.
  • The programme is “prescribed” by the Architects Registration Board (ARB) for a period, meaning it's formally recognized.
• Graduation outcomes
  • Graduates are well equipped to work in leading architectural and design practices.
  • Also viable are roles in broader creative fields: exhibit/set design, retail interiors, visualization, historic building conservation, property development.

Further Academic Progression:

After completing the BA (Hons) Interior Architecture, here are paths you can take:

• Postgraduate Certificate in Interior Architecture at Northumbria: A one-semester course which, combined with your undergraduate degree, lets you meet ARB Part I criteria. This strengthens your credentials for professional registration.
• Master’s programmes related to architecture, interior design, adaptive reuse, conservation, or sustainable design (UK or abroad) — depending on your portfolio and interests.
• Specialized diplomas or certifications in areas like historic conservation, building information modelling (BIM), sustainable interiors/environmental design, or project management in the built environment.