TCU Hosts Summer Program for Aspiring Interior Designers

This summer, the TCU Department of Design welcomed high school students to campus for Design Your World (DYW), a free two-week summer program created by the International Interior Design Association (IIDA) Foundation to introduce students to careers in design.

A New Pathway into Design 
Hosted in partnership with IIDA, the program introduces students to the fundamentals of interior design while exposing them to potential career pathways. According to Department of Design Chair David Elizalde, the program serves as an important bridge between high school students and the design profession.

“It really lights a spark in these students and shows them this is a career they can work toward,” Elizalde said. “Whether they come to TCU or attend another university, that's the purpose of the program.”

This year marked the first time TCU hosted the program, bringing students into the heart of the College of Fine Arts. According to instructor Tamara Rice, the university's studio-based learning environment made TCU a natural fit.

“TCU's interior design program is built around professional practice, creative rigor and community engagement, which aligns perfectly with what DYW is trying to do,” Rice said. “Our fine arts building gave students access to a real design studio environment. It felt less like a summer camp and more like the first day of design school.” 

Learning by Designing 
Throughout the two-week experience, students moved through the full design process. They learned to read and draw floor plans, develop bubble diagrams and space plans, select materials, create mood boards, build elevations and construct design presentations. They also explored design history and professional design vocabulary while gaining insight into the broader industry through field trips and guest speakers.

Many participants arrived with little understanding of what interior design entails. By the end of the program, they were presenting original concepts to a jury of industry professionals.

“That transformation is the whole point,” Rice said. 

The program's capstone project challenged students to design a 60-by-37-foot pop-up environment for the Fort Worth community. Working in small teams, students developed concepts, made decisions about materials and layout and defended their ideas before a professional jury.

Projects ranged from community gathering spaces to animal rescue centers, requiring students to consider branding, floor plans, material selections and user experience.

“It mirrors what professional designers actually do,” Rice said. “You are not just making something pretty — you are solving a problem for people.” 

Building the Next Generation of Designers 
Presentation day served as a highlight of the experience. Students who had never created a floor plan just weeks earlier confidently presented fully developed design proposals. Elizalde said the final presentations demonstrated how much students had learned in a short amount of time.

“It was really impressive,” he said. “It was like a studio class condensed into a two-week period for students who had never done this before. To see the level of work they produced was incredible.”

“Design Your World exists to invest in the future of this industry,” Rice said. “I hope students leave knowing that design is for everyone and that this profession has a place for their voice, their perspective and their story.”

As TCU continues its partnership with IIDA, the program aims to introduce more students to careers in design and expand access to the profession.