Christine M. Piotrowski - Professional Practice for Interior Designers

During the late 1980s and early 1990s, the professional associations discussed unifying into one national organization. Although this effort did not bear fruit, in 1994 the members of IBD, the International Society of Interior Designers (ISID), and the Council for Federal Interior Designers (CFID) agreed to unify and created the International Interior Design Association (IIDA).

Of course, several other professional associations have been established to meet the needs of the various members of the design profession. Today, the three largest professional associations are the ASID, the IIDA, and Interior Designers of Canada (IDC). Each will be briefly discussed later in this section.

Membership in a professional association can have a very positive effect on the member individually and professionally. In fact, some professionals belong to more than one association, as each can bring different benefits or professional advantages to a member. Although this section focuses on the largest groups, it is important for students and professionals to find the association that best meets their needs and become involved as much as they can.

A large number of professionals feel that the greatest tangible benefit of professional association membership is the privilege of placing the association appellation after the member's name. It is not the primary benefit; it is only one benefit. Although the tangible benefits are important, sometimes the intangible ones bring the greatest satisfaction and growth to members. Some of the intangible benefits most noted by members are:

Interaction with colleagues. Friendships with colleagues within the chapter and around the country or the globe are enriching personally and professionally. Chapter meetings also provide interaction and educational benefits.

Educational opportunities. Professional associations provide continuing education seminars and workshops to assist members in advancing their knowledge in all areas of the profession.

Enrichment through involvement. Volunteering for a chapter committee or board provides many opportunities for members to contribute personally to the chapter in a very important way.

Pride in accomplishment. It is important to have a sense of pride in having achieved the educational, experience, and testing milestones indicating that one has reached the highest level in one's profession.

Recognition. Consumers and allied professionals recognize the dedication and credentials of the interior designer who is affiliated with professional associations. To many others, peer recognition as a member of an association is gratifying.

Members of associations are pleased to discover and take advantage of numerous tangible benefits as well. Many of the most common are outlined in Table 2‐1.

TABLE 2‐1. Tangible member benefits of interior design professional associations

A brief overview of the largest associations follows. Several other groups are listed in Table 2‐2. As many aspects of an organization can change each year, the reader can obtain a great deal of current information about a specific organization including detailed membership requirements by reviewing association Web sites.

The largest of the interior design professional associations, with approximately 25,000 members in the United States and internationally, is ASID. Members are engaged in both residential and commercial interior design, and include students and industry partners. “ASID is a community of people driven by a common love for design and committed to the belief that interior design, as a service to people, is a powerful, multifaceted profession that can positively change people's lives.” 1

There are several membership categories in ASID. The highest level of practitioner membership is professional . Members in this category have satisfied rigorous standards of education, work experience, and testing in order to qualify as professional‐level members including passing the NCIDQ examination.

The next practitioner level member is allied. Allied members are practicing interior designers and must meet the same general membership requirements as for professional membership. However, an allied member has not as yet satisfactorily completed the NCIDQ exam.

TABLE 2‐2. Other professional organizations

Other membership categories are: