Want to be an Interior Designer?

Do you enjoy looking at wallpaper, curtains and carpets? Do you have a flair for design?

If so, you should consider studying interior design.

As well as explaining how to design your own home, we also help you become a professional interior designer.

About the interior design course

Our interior design course gives you the right information exactly when you need it.

It provides a complete learning package, which even includes a starter kit - so you can begin as soon as our parcel arrives. The course is crammed full of information, tips and exercises.

Everything is beautifully packaged to provide you with your own permanent reference library that you can consult long after completing the course.

Constructed by interior design experts, the course distils years of experience, covering every kind of house. By taking this course, your success in interior design is assured. And you're guaranteed a perfect result every time.

If you want to give your home that designer look, the course is ideal. By the time you've completed the course, your family and friends will be amazed at the transformation.

Often it's the small details that count. We can show you the secrets of selecting the right fabrics. We provide clear advice of how to tackle each room, and offer straightforward instructions that will make sure you get it right every time.

Accredited by NCFE at Level 4

Our course is fully accredited by the national awarding body NCFE, and on completing it you get a national award equivalent to Level 4 of the National Learning Framework.

NCFE is recognised as an awarding body by the qualification regulators ('regulators') for England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The regulators are the Office of the Qualifications and Examinations Regulator (Ofqual) in England, the Department for Children, Education, Lifelong Learning and Skills (DCELLS) in Wales and the Council for Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA) in Northern Ireland.

To read more about NCFE please go to www.ncfe.org.uk

You'll complete the course faster

With the Institute of Interior Design, you'll learn 30 per cent faster than with other courses. We've specially designed the course to cut out filler - instead we give you precise and helpful information. We know that you, like most people are busy; so we avoid wasting your time.

Read our Diary of an Interior Designer

Follow the highs and lows of an interior designer's life, as our freelance interior designer reports each week on her experiences in the field. You'll get insights into her day, and learn from her successes and failures. The Diary is available exclusively to our learners.

Becoming a professional

People often ask us how to get work as an interior designer. It isn't easy, because interior design is a closed world. Few people know where to start. But once you understand the principles, you'll find it easy to design homes. You'll learn how to present a design, how to find clients, and what to charge.

That's why interior design courses are so useful. They can tell you all you need to know about professional interior design.

Having a client approve your first design is a real thrill. And the only thing that's even better, is the pleasure of earning a living from it. Imagine getting paid for doing what you enjoy!

Interior design can be your main work, or it can provide a great second income. You can work from home, either part or full time. And you get to meet interesting people.

Wouldn't you love to turn people's houses into stylish homes? Wouldn't you enjoy having tea in the garden with the excited owners, showing them how to make their dreams come true?

We make drawing easy

You don't need to be good at drawing. We reveal how to produce competent designs by hand even if you've never drawn anything in your life.

You also receive a copy of 'Visual Home', a powerful but easy-to-use computer program that quickly produces beautiful floor plans. So you won't even have to worry about doing drawings.

Above all, we teach you how to be methodical in your approach to interior design. By learning the Institute's exclusive five-point plan, you're guaranteed a perfect result every time.

Personalised for you

To help you fully understand the course material, we set you a great number of self-assessment exercises (which come with answers), plus assignments which are evaluated by one of our experienced tutors.

You'll have unlimited access to your tutor, who will give you free advice and suggestions on anything to do with interior design, including your own clients. Plus, you can take as long as you want to complete the course.

Exclusive information

The Diploma course gives you an invaluable insight into the interior design world. You can't find these trade secrets disclosed anywhere else. The course is distilled from actual experience, to give you the answers to questions like:

How do I present my designs? What sort of people buy interior design? Where do I find customers? How much do I charge? What paperwork do I need? How do I do drawings? What about getting curtains made?

Free mentoring when you complete the course

Once you complete the course, we’ll give you three months’ free business mentoring.

You’ll have a personal mentor who'll help you set up your own business (if that's your choice).

For three months after getting your Diploma you'll get one-to-one advice and support from an active practitioner.

So if you're unsure on how to launch your own business, this mentoring programme will put you on the road to success.

And because it's all part of the Institute's course, it won't cost you a penny.

New! You get a free copy of Business Blueprints (value £27).

This 47 page book contains complete step-by-step checklists for starting a successful business.

Click here to learn more about Business Blueprints.

Your qualification

When you successfully complete the course, you'll receive your Diploma, which serves to recognise your skills and knowledge. You'll also be able to use the initials Dip.ID (Inst.ID). The Diploma course will enable you to create a beautiful home - and show you how to find work and get clients.

When you complete the Diploma course, we also send information about your success to your local newspapers (if you want us to). It's a good way of telling potential clients that you're available. And qualified.

We'll also put your name on our list of Approved Interior Designers.

And you can get free logos (like the one on the right) to put on your website and your letterhead.

Will the diploma course help me get work?

Yes. Throughout the course we explore how professionals find work and handle clients. So you'll be fully prepared by the time you finish the course. We also formally devote several modules in the course exclusively to finding a job or getting clients. Your tutor will also give you extra personal advice if you're uncertain about any of this.

But what if I just want to learn about interior design for its own sake?

That's fine. You'll be very welcome on the course.

How long does the course take?

Because it's home study, you're in charge. You can take as long as you want. Unlike other colleges, we set no time limit. Many students take around 18 months to earn their Diploma.

Contact with other students

Just because it's distance learning doesn't mean you're on your own. As a student, you can add your details to our student database, and make contact with other students.

What you'll learn from the course

By the end of the course, you'll have acquired the following skills:

• You'll have learnt the skills of interior design
• You'll know how to set up and run an interior design business

Accreditation

We're accredited by the Open and Distance Learning Quality Council (ODLQC).

Set up by the government in 1968, the ODLQC is one of the prime accreditation bodies for distance learning courses.

To achieve accreditation, we undergo a rigorous and continuous assessment, by independent experts, of all aspects of our work, including administration, learner support, educational materials, and publicity.

We are also registered with the Department for Education and Skills on its Register of Education and Training Providers.

It's time to get started

Having read this far, you've got what it takes - motivation. Fill out the registration form now, because this is where the adventure and rewards begin. It's easy to start:

Register online. It's fast and easy, and we use secure state-of-the-art SSL technology. Also, we never get to see your credit card - that information goes straight to our bank. But if you want, you can also register by mail.

We'll ship the full course materials within two days

When you get the course, read the first module. It's laid out in an easy-to-follow format. Then do the simple first assignment. Send it to your tutor for marking. Your tutor will return it to you with friendly advice and supportive comments. Do the same for the other modules, until you reach the end of the course. By then, you'll have a beautiful house and be earning good money as an interior designer. Register on the course and you can look forward to a fantastic income and lifestyle while making other people's homes so much more elegant and unique.

Andrea parcels up a course ready for despatch