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Academics
- (MFA) Design
- (BA) Art History
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BFA Interior Design
Why study Interior Design?
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Interior designers create functional spaces
They create functional and appealing spaces where people can live, work, and play;
They study the theoretical principles of environment and behavioral sciences, such as space and form, color and light, sustainability, communication, codes and regulations, as well as business practices;
They learn how art, architecture, design, and technology informs interior design and learn how to collaborate effectively across disciplines;
They develop design solutions that address the health, safety and welfare of the users of a space;
They design the interior spaces of health care facilities, hotels, ferries, and ships, and other commercial industries; become a stage and set designer, a movie production designer, exhibit designer, project manager, or an interior architect.
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Interior designers are skillful and knowledgeable
Professional interior designers have a solid understanding of construction and building systems because they make decisions that impact structural components as well as mechanical and electrical systems.
They also have knowledge of environmental psychology, building codes and regulations, technical properties of materials, historic precedents and the business of design.
Upon graduation, our students are able to skillfully apply the design process and illustrate their design concepts with computer- and manually-generated two- and three-dimensional architectural drawings and models.
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Interior designers are collaborators
To realize the designs they envision for clients, professional interior designers often collaborate with architects, engineers, other designers (lighting, graphic, landscape), contractors, manufacturers of interior products (furniture, lighting, fabrics), artists and craftsmen (cabinet makers, upholsterers).
For that reason, our interior design students are encouraged to develop good collaboration and communication skills that will enable them to work effectively in the multi-disciplinary environment of a professional interior design office.
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Interior designers are leaders
Professional interior designers lead design teams from the early stages of a design project through to its installation as a finished interior space, and many students, after gaining work experience, will open their own design firms.
Our interior design majors are given opportunities to develop leadership abilities, as well as entrepreneurial, communication and organizational skills before they graduate; and our support systems continue for them as alumni.
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VCUarts Qatar - a rigorous, rewarding, multi-cultural experience
All graduates complete a liberal arts and science core curriculum in addition to their major program; these courses enrich a student’s understanding of the world and help them frame their art and design studies into a broad intellectual context.
High achieving students will also be invited to follow our Honors program to enhance their education.
Curriculum
Degree requirement descriptions, including general education requirements, collateral requirements, and Major requirements can be found at this link:
http://bulletin.vcu.edu/undergraduate/arts/school-arts-qatar/interior-design-bfa/#degreerequirementstext
Semester plans can be found at this link:
http://bulletin.vcu.edu/undergraduate/arts/school-arts-qatar/interior-design-bfa/#planofstudytext
Course descriptions can be found at this link:
http://bulletin.vcu.edu/undergraduate/arts/school-arts-qatar/interior-design-bfa/#coursestext
Learning outcomes and objectives can be found at this link:
http://bulletin.vcu.edu/undergraduate/arts/school-arts-qatar/interior-design-bfa/#text
Faculty
Alumni
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Shaikha Al-Sulaiti
Shaikha Al-Sulaiti is an interior design manager at Msheireb Properties where she has been skillfully gaining experience in the hospitality field. She is currently managing the hotels in the Msheireb Downtown development, where she has been working for over eight years, since her graduation from VCUarts Qatar in 2009.
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Esra Al-Kazem
Esra Al-Kazem is the Design Director and Co-founder of AEA Designs. Her academic background includes an MFA in Design studies, a BFA in Interior Design, and a BFA in Fashion Design. Esra is a designer and a researcher who believes in improving life through design.
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Mariam Siraj & Yasmine Suleiman
Local designers Mariam Siraj and Yasmine Suleiman are helping create some of Doha’s major commercial projects. When it came down to making the choice of which university to attend, Mariam and Yasmeen knew that VCU was the choice for them.
![Alumini image1]()
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Aisha Al Muftah
Interior designer and art historian Aisha Al Muftah feels fortunate to be teaching at VCUarts Qatar, a job she cares deeply about. Having such a diverse educational background has set the course for all of her subsequent projects to be interdisciplinary, which the cultural environment in Qatar certainly encourages.
![Alumini image1]()
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Hessa Al Muhannadi
When Hessa Al Muhannadi started working as a math and science teacher with the Ministry of Education’s elementary and secondary schools, little did she know that in 10 years she would be switching careers and designing the interiors for the Qatar Amiri Flight.
![Alumini image1]()
Fieldtrips & Workshops
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Opportunities
Internships
Internships are a great way for students to gain hands-on experience in a professional design environment. VCUarts Qatar's internships form part of the core curriculum and all students are expected to undertake a 120-hour placement often in their Senior Year. Internships are generally unpaid but may lead to sponsorship or employment after graduation. All placements are managed by the faculty internship coordinator with contracts, reporting documents and timesheets to ensure the highest professional standards are maintained.
Here are just some of the corporations that have offered valuable internships to our Interior Design students:
Al Fardan, Al Mana Maples, Arab Engineering Bureau, Arteligno Interior Designers, AvonTure Interiors, Barwa, Bin Ghanim Consulting Architects, Town Planners, Engineers, Bluu Qatar LLC, Cinmar Design, Dreams Decoration, Geomim Interior Design, House & Garden, Jean Nouvel Design, KEO International Consultants, Khatib & Alami Consolidated Engineering Company, Le Parfait, Living In Interiors, Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art, MZ & Partners Architect & Engineering Consultancy, National Marble & Stones, Odell Associates, Omrania & Associates, Prime Lands Real Estate Development LLC, Prisma, Qatar Foundation Capital Projects, Qatar Petroleum, Qatar Museums Authority, Qatari Diar, RasGas, Romancia Design/Interior & Exterior Decorations, Salem Al Marzook/Abi Hanna, Shelter Qatar, Sketch Engineering & Consulting,Talati & Panthaky – Associated Pvt. Ltd, The Classical Palace, The Land.
Visiting Designers/Advisory Board
Abdullah Al-Emadi, Ahmad Najjar, Cynthia Batir, Dr. Abdellah Karroum, Laura Barlow, Giampiero Peia, Martha Nasazzi, Hamoda Youssef, Ibrahim Jaidah, Lejla Niksic, Mayes Al-Thani, Modesty St. John, Mohammed Nasser Al Baker, Paolo Cassina, Yausif Al-Baker, Sandra Sainz Shaikha Al-Mahmoud, Hanouf Mohammed Al-Mana, Shaikha Al-Sulaiti Oliver Baxter, Esra Al-Kazem, Dorota Nazarewicz, Shraddha Aryal, Dr. Fodil Fadli.