The Interior Design Program at The University of Texas at Austin offers an innovative graduate curriculum that integrates research and theoretical knowledge in the application of current design issues that face our society. The positive impact of a well-designed interior environment is verifiable, making interior design a critical component of the design disciplines.
The program is among only a handful of interior design faculties in the United States housed within a large and active School of Architecture creating a dynamic atmosphere that allows students to achieve a high level of excellence in the design of architectural interiors.
With a faculty of four full-time interior design professors along with full-time and affiliated faculty in the School of Architecture, the program offers both broad coverage and an individualized program tailored to student interests. The program is founded on rigorous instruction while also offering students the flexibility to develop their own ideas and new perspectives. The study of interior design at the graduate level is taught with constant awareness of global context, interdisciplinary challenges, and evolving demands that students experience in professional practice.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDY
Students work closely with faculty in courses, seminars, and independent research projects to develop independent thought as well as a thorough knowledge of the field. Students may combine their research on interior design topics with a broad array of related subjects. Cross-disciplinary work in the School of Architecture’s other programs of Historic Preservation, Architectural Design, Theory, and History is encouraged.
As a major research university, The University of Texas at Austin also offers a wide selection of across-campus electives, including courses in Arts Education and Design, Theater and Dance, Radio-Television-Film, American Studies, Anthropology, Psychology, and Museum Studies, to name a few. Students are encouraged to shape their own critical approaches and to develop a mastery of research in interior design. With the advice and permission of the MID program director or MID graduate adviser, students may select elective courses from other departments on campus.
AREAS OF STUDY
MASTER OF INTERIOR DESIGN FIRST PROFESSIONAL [MID I]
MID I may qualify graduates to become licensed or registered as an interior designer. Interested students are encouraged to confirm requirements for the state in which they hope to practice and NCIDQ eligibility requirements.
MASTER OF INTERIOR DESIGN POST-PROFESSIONAL [MID II]
The MID II degree offers students advanced studies, theory, and research for those holding a prior professional degree in Interior Design or Architecture.
ADMISSIONS REQUIREMENTS
Interior design faculty members in the School of Architecture review the applications and recommend admission to the Graduate School. Admission to the program is highly competitive. Seminars are small and advanced students work one-on-one with their adviser and other faculty members. With the advice and permission of the MID program director or MID graduate adviser, students in the MID program determine their course of study that is tailored to be highly individualized from course offerings and independent studies.
INTERIOR DESIGN STUDENT WORK
Click the images below for project details.
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@utsoaOn Sept. 29, architectural designer, researcher and UTSOA visiting lecturer Toshiki Hirano (@artitec of @thd_arch) joins us for his lecture, "AESTHETICS OF (IN)EXCESS."
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@utsoa🎉 We are thrilled to announce that Jessica Garza (BSID '26) has won the 2025 Senior Student Scholarship from the Angelo Donghia Foundation! Jessica Garza is one of 15 undergraduate interior design students in North America to receive this honor this year in the form of a $30,000 scholarship.
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@utsoaMatt Fajkus already holds the titles of licensed architect, multiple award winner and Austin Design Icon. Now, he adds another achievement to his list: a promotion to Full Professor of Architecture.
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@utsoaMaster of Interior Design students Yuzheng Gan and Stephanie Belov win 2nd place for their project, “HYDROCOMMONS,” in the Student Commercial Design Category at the @ASID_hq's 2025 Celebrating Design Texas Awards!
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@utsoaANOMALIES & ORDER: GRAMMARS OF ANONYMOUS ARCHITECTURES ⋅ Come explore the uneasy alliance between system and rupture, form and formlessness, through the lens of “anonymous architectures.”
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@utsoa🎉 Congratulations are in order for @cldavis_ii and @tdudleyphd!
The Mellon Foundation recognized their contributions to exploring untold narratives and expanding the architectural canon.
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@utsoaAnnouncing our Fall 2025 lectures and events series: “Planetary Imaginaries” an expansive set of public engagements to reimagine our ethical and ecological responsibilities in the Anthropocene.
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@utsoaIt is with sadness that we share the news of the death of Professor Michael Benedikt, who passed away on August 13 at the age of 78. Benedikt was one of the school’s longest-serving faculty members, and a hallmark of this institution.
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@utsoaMasters of Science in Historic Preservation student Sonya Sehgal is the first recipient of the inaugural Theodore Prudon Education Fund Grant from Docomomo @dodomomous!