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NYSID Creates Three New Degrees and Continuing Education Institute

The continuing education program began offering classes this summer and will be expanding to two additional locations this fall.

Nicholas Tamarin -- Interior Design, 8/3/2009 12:00:00 AM

Founded in 1916, the New York School of Interior Design survived the Great Depression in tact. It is now attempting to help others cope with the current economic downturn with three new degree programs and it's first-ever continuing education program, the Institute for Continuing and Professional Studies.

The NYSID is now offering Master of Fine Arts in Interior Design, Master of Professional Studies in Sustainable Interior Environments, and Bachelor of Arts in the History of the Interior and the Decorative Arts degrees.

The three-year, 90-credit MFA in Interior Design will be offered in the fall and provide students with degrees in unrelated fields the opportunity become licensed interior design practitioners. "[It] is an important addition to our academic programs, and the timing is fortuitous," said NYSID president Christopher Cyphers.

The one-year MPA in Sustainable Interior Environments program is slated to start in June 2010 with students in the program beginning their studies with an eight-week summer session and completing the program the following May. The 30-credit post-professional degree is structured to prepare designers to assume leadership roles in the creation and maintenance of green interiors. The degree will also prepare graduates for LEED certification.

Fall 2010 will also see the beginning of the BA in the History of Interior and the Decorative Arts program. "There are numerous art history baccalaureate programs devoted to the history of architecture and/or the decorative arts," said Scott Ageloff, NYSID vice president for Academic Affairs and dean. "This program, however, is the first one whose main focus is the interior and its furnishings and decorative objects." It will also be the first academic-focused degree for the college.

Another first for NYSID is their new Institute for Continuing and Professional Studies. With more than 25 courses to be offered this fall in three locations, the school is attempting to gear the program toward design professionals but also provide a few general courses for those simply interested in the field. There will be noncredit workshops, professional development classes and lectures carrying CEUs and LUs (Continuing Education and Learning Units), and classes including "Breaking into Healthcare Design", "Preparatory Workshop for the LEED Professional Accreditation Exam" and "AutoCad 2009: What's New?".