Graduation season has begun, and the class of 2017 is wasting no time.
“I tell students that the portfolio is really important,” says Jon Otis, professor of interior design at Pratt Institute, about his graduating class who attended a career night on April 12th. I also tell them it’s critical how they project themselves in an interview.” Mr. Otis is a principal of Object Agency and Professor of Interior Design at Pratt Institute, which is located with the schools of Architecture, Art and Design on a 25-acre campus in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn. The programs have attracted a diverse student population, which has grown exponentially since Pratt’s inception in 1887.
This year enrollment comprises 4,700 students with approximately 100 undergrad and graduate students earning diplomas in interior design. Many of those students attended the 14th annual Pratt Career Night – originally the creation of Mr. Otis, a group of graduate students, and Haworth Sales Director Diane Barnes.
Hosted at the Haworth Showroom on Park Avenue in New York City, the April event began with an introduction by Pratt alum Todd Bracher, who graduated with a degree in industrial design in 1996. Bracher discussed his education and love of form while emphasizing a passion for the “business of design,” something he learned to appreciate while working for British designer Tom Dixon.
“Making pretty things is easy,” said Mr. Bracher, while explaining that creating pretty things that are commercial is a more difficult task.
New York firms, including IA, HLW, Rockwell Group, HOK, Ted Moudis, TPG, Gensler and Studios, sent principals, recruiters and designers to scout talent and look for potential hires.
“The Pratt Interior Design department raises the bar year after year,” said Brook Anderson, project director at Ralph Applebaum Associates, who was impressed by the caliber of work he reviewed. “A common idea I heard throughout the evening was the desire to build a project from “meaning” by designing spaces, furnishings, systems and experiences built on a strong conceptual foundation.”
And while creativity, language and computer skills are absolutely necessary, students come equipped with both print and digital portfolios and pitches to prospective firms. Many of the students interviewed had already secured internships and were privy to the job market that awaited them this spring.
“When students present their work at Pratt, I try to get them to consider that they must sell their ideas,” Mr. Otis added. “I work with them on their language, who to emphasize, how to talk about design in an intelligent and clear manner.”
Many of the students had undergraduate degrees in a wide-range of subjects before choosing to pursue a graduate degree in interior design, including Matt Dowsett, who recently accepted an offer from AvroKO, where he had interned for two years. Trained as a dancer, the Virginia native has a B.A. from NYU in Urban Design and made the switch to interiors after studying architectural history at Pratt. Dowsett also interned at Wilson Associates, where he discovered a passion for hospitality and designing public spaces, which he claimed “allow for more daring design.” Dowsett said he is excited about what lies ahead in working in the industry, interfacing with vendors while presenting new materials to clients.
“They want to hire talent, but they want to hire a person who can fit in,” said Mr. Otis, about a firm’s prerequisite to identify students who can work on a team, collaborate, and reinforce a mission when presenting to clients.
Gensler Principal and Design Director EJ Lee agreed. “Students don’t typically have a lot of real world experience, and they need to work on their interpersonal skills. The career night is an excellent opportunity for them to refine their communication techniques and make connections in the industry.”
Angie Kao echoed the need for those skills when speaking with strangers. Ms. Kao said she was initially challenged by learning English when she arrived at Pratt but over time has mastered a level of design articulation that has become her own.
“I think I will stay here; the firms are more conceptual,” Ms. Kao noted when describing previous work experience in her native Taiwan, where style, not substance was a driving theme. “Design should be authentic.”
North Carolina-born Carol Andrews attended undergrad and taught high school before deciding on a career in interior design. She began her interior studies at the Corcoran School of the Arts & Design in Washington D.C., where the focus was on residential interiors highlighting materials and surfaces. Ms. Andrews transferred to Pratt and became interested in spatial planning and interior architecture while developing a talent for exhibition design.
“I love storytelling and the narrative aspect,” she said, when describing a project she collaborated on with Ralph Appelbaum Associates.
Dara Osur and EJ Lee, of Gensler, with a Pratt student
Bonan Sun worked his way from the outside in. The Chinese-born designer earned a degree in Environmental Art as well as a Masters in Landscape Design before landing at Pratt, where he will graduate in May with a third degree in interior design. With experience in all types of landscape projects, commercial and retail spaces, he says he’s not focused on specific types of projects.
“If you’re a designer, you should be interested in and design anything.” Sun’s thesis topic highlights the reciprocity between inside and outside. “ I try to break the boundary and create ambiguity,” he said.
students
“The students showed a lot of guts,” said T. Lee Trimble, principal at Mancini Duffy about the “speed dating” format. “Today’s graduates are fortunate to be entering into a robust market with many more opportunities than just a few years ago. However, the speed at which projects are moving rewards those that are confident in their current abilities and are eager to acquire new skills.”