Stop Searching by Job Title: A Smarter Way to Approach Your Interior Design Job Search

Students
Written By Aga Artka

If you’ve started looking for interior design jobs, you may have already noticed something confusing:

There is no standard career path.

Unlike professions with clearly defined titles and ladders, interior design roles can vary wildly—from firm to firm, city to city, and sector to sector.

And yet, many students begin their job search by using the same few words:

  • Interior Designer

  • Junior Designer

  • Residential Designer

  • Commercial Designer

While those labels can be helpful starting points, they’re not the full picture—and relying on them alone can limit your opportunities.

Why Job Titles Can Be Misleading

In interior design, job titles are inconsistent.

One firm’s “Junior Designer” may:

  • Manage client presentations

  • Coordinate consultants

  • Lead finish selections

Another firm might use the same title for someone focused almost entirely on:

  • Construction Drawings

  • Redlines

  • Library management

The title doesn’t always tell you what you’ll actually be doing.

That’s why searching by skills, not just job titles, is a smarter approach—especially early in your career.

Start With What You’re Good At (and Want to Get Better At)

Instead of asking, “What title should I apply for?”, try asking:

  • What skills do I already have?

  • Which ones do I enjoy using?

  • Which skills do I want to strengthen next?

As a student or recent graduate, your skill set may include:

  • Space planning

  • CAD or Revit

  • Material research

  • Rendering or visualization

  • Graphic design

  • Photography

  • Client communication

  • Sustainability

Every firm values these skills differently—and some roles emphasize specific ones far more than others.

Interior Design Is More Than Residential vs. Commercial

Many students are taught to divide the profession into two buckets:

  • Residential

  • Commercial

But the reality is much broader.

Interior designers work across:

  • Workplace

  • Healthcare

  • Hospitality

  • Senior living

  • Multifamily

  • Retail

  • Education

  • Institutional

  • Exhibit and experiential design

  • Design research and strategy

  • Sustainability and specification roles

Even within these sectors, roles may vary between actual design, project management and sales.

You don’t need to know all of this now—but knowing that these paths exist opens doors you may not even realize you’re walking past.

Read Job Descriptions Like a Designer

Instead of scanning job postings for familiar titles, slow down and read the descriptions carefully.

Look for:

  • Repeated skill requirements

  • Tools and software mentioned

  • Types of projects referenced

  • Language around collaboration or autonomy

If the responsibilities align with your strengths or interests, the title matters less than you think.

And if you don’t meet every requirement? That’s normal. Job descriptions often describe an ideal candidate—not a perfect one.

Your First Role Is About Skill Building

Early-career roles are not about having the “right” title.

They’re about:

  • Gaining exposure to real projects

  • Learning how design teams function

  • Strengthening core skills

  • Understanding what energizes you—and what doesn’t

When you focus on skills rather than labels, your career becomes more flexible and far more resilient.

A Thoughtful Approach to Career Design

This way of thinking—prioritizing skills, values, and learning over rigid titles—is at the heart of The Brand of You. We believe careers are designed over time, through reflection, experimentation, and informed choices—not by following a single, predefined path.

Especially early on, clarity comes from understanding yourself, not just the role in front of you.

A Helpful Starting Point

If you’re graduating soon and feeling overwhelmed by job postings and expectations, we encourage you to use the book, to help guide you through the process of discovery and refinement of The Brand of You:

  • In Chapter 3, we focus on defining The Brand of You

  • In Chapter 5, we tackle using the right words to communicate it to the world (or search for relevant job opportunities)

  • In Chapter 8, we address various ways to market The Brand of You (online and in-person)

Careers aren’t linear—they’re designed through choices that build skills, clarity, and momentum.

Aga Artka
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