British Academy of Interior Design. Any opinons?

I know this thread hasn't been active in a while.

But has anyone that has gradated form BAID, The Design Institut or NDA have made it in the industry without any further studies after?

Looking at one of these courses but want something that will lead to a career change.

Thank you

@KiaC09 Hi! I see you studied with BAID, do you know anything about their Postgraduate Diploma? I have recently finished a degree in Fine Art and am hoping to start a career in interior design, I'm looking for a course that will point me in the right direction! Would you or anyone else have any advice for me?

Hello,

I have also been looking into an interior design course and I'm currently torn between them all if i'm honest! KLC's certificate looks good but its not recognised for further study, however it's currently on offer. BAID's Higher National Diploma is slightly more than I would like to spend. The Design Institute looks good and they have an offer, but again, not recognised and the reviews look fake. And Lastly, the NDA, however, I haven't seen many reviews out there and I haven't heard a lot about this course.

Could someone point me in the right direction? Ideally I would like a career change but I'm also happy completing a course that has no progression if I can really learn from it and then continue my studies with an accredited diploma.

Thank you in advance!

I did the BTEC L5 program with british academy of interior design and took me nearly 3 years, as I was bringing up two children and wanted to do a serious qualification. It was a huge amount of work if you are looking for a distinction. I got some work experience through them in Kent. I would recommend but bear this in mind the mammoth workload before enrolling! I am now going to do my top up degree with them and chester university

I agree on the IDI - was hard to make contact and feedback I got on assessments was all copy and paste when I compared it with a friend (vistual!) who I met on their Facebook. I got frustrated with them when I was unable to call anyone and query this. I suppose you just never know until you try - most have a cooling-off period too so you could try a few.

I joined BAID after a lot of consideration. I'm five months in and the staff and tutors have been really friendly and supportive during the pandemic. I've done 3 assignments so far it’s brilliant and so fascinating, lots of work.

I feel that the price of the course was also great value for money.

@andrizzles I haven’t enrolled yet but I definitely am. I have now made contact with previous students and they loved it and have all pursued careers in interior design. It will be July when I sign up. Let me know when you sign up, we may be able to help each other.

Hi @Sugarkas1
I'm thinking I'll sign up to the interior design institute, too. Have you started it yet? What's your experince? I was also between that and British academy but the reviews seem bad. The IDI has so many good reviews on trust pilot. Even though when I emailed them they were pretty much a copy and paste type of reply - a bit robotic and it made me doubt.

Look forward to your thoughts!
Andrea

Never heard of them tbh. Check online reviews maybe on FB? The one thing about BAID is that it is frustrating when an assignment is rejected but when you finish at least you have a proper qualification unlike most out there

Has anyone heard of the British College of Interior Design? Are they legit? I was leaning toward BAID because the qualification is recognised but now I'm not so sure about them!

I graduated BAID in January from BAID but enrolled with the Interior Design institute in the past. Found the Interior Design Institute very poor and could never contact my tutor or get a straight answer. I didn't finish the course and chose the BAID for their accreditation as I wanted a degree. KLC was too expensive for me so I found a happy medium. It also offered me the flexibility to study in Manchester on Saturdays and give me a break from home life and the kids. Tutors made the course for me but I can't comment on them in other areas. I had some trouble uploading work but I was able to call BAID and they helped. I did notice that it took me longer than expected because I am a perfectionist. BAID suited what I wanted but might not be for everyone

Hi, I’m also in the same position as you. Having looked at the courses available, I have been in contact with a lady who completed the diploma and I think I’m going to go with The Interior Design Institute.

Anyone else have experience of BAID, KLC, Inchbald or Institute of Interior Design? i am looking at a potential career change...

" I did the PG Dip course with BAID last February and have to say I enjoyed it. One of the main reasons I chose BAID over the others was because it suited me in terms of flexibility. I was in a really demanding job at the time where id sometimes have to stay late and do wknds etc and missed the odd class but could always access the class presentation online. Its also ok to go along to class with no work done. While they advise you to try and do the assignments along with going to class, they wont throw you out either if you've nothing done. This suited me because at the time it was impossible to have anything done before class. I just didn't find anywhere else that allowed you this much flexibility, I think if I went elsewhere I would've had to give up work to keep up with course demands which with kids & mortgage wasn't an option. I'm now doing the assignments and still have full access to the course online and am in touch with my tutor by email. I found assignment 4 really hard and student services arranged a call with an in house tutor who talked me through it. This set up works for me, I know a lot of students prefer more hand holding than this but if you're prepared to manage your time well I'd recommend this "

This reads like the British Academy posing as a student, just a theory.

Also where are all Keafsoms posts?

FYI: In fairness to BAID, I have to add that over the last month I have been in contact with BAID and they have taken on board my feedback and made changes, therefore my previous comments (under Keafsom without the 1 because I couldn't seem to log in!) regarding course content and organisation may no longer be valid.

I did the PG Dip course with BAID last February and have to say I enjoyed it. One of the main reasons I chose BAID over the others was because it suited me in terms of flexibility. I was in a really demanding job at the time where id sometimes have to stay late and do wknds etc and missed the odd class but could always access the class presentation online. Its also ok to go along to class with no work done. While they advise you to try and do the assignments along with going to class, they wont throw you out either if you've nothing done. This suited me because at the time it was impossible to have anything done before class. I just didn't find anywhere else that allowed you this much flexibility, I think if I went elsewhere I would've had to give up work to keep up with course demands which with kids & mortgage wasn't an option. I'm now doing the assignments and still have full access to the course online and am in touch with my tutor by email. I found assignment 4 really hard and student services arranged a call with an in house tutor who talked me through it. This set up works for me, I know a lot of students prefer more hand holding than this but if you're prepared to manage your time well I'd recommend this

Hi Joe, Here is a link to some of the universities you could apply to for advanced entry: degreecoursefinder.pearson.com/search/?st=Q&LoS=6&sid=115&IsCourse=1#LevelOfStudy:6;Subject:115;@Page=1~k=$IsCourse=

By completing the HNC you will be awarded 120 BTEC credits and by completing the HND you will be awarded 240 BTEC Credits.

The BTEC HNC will help you to develop a portfolio of your work to gain advanced entry to the Universities above.

I've been looking at doing the HNC with BAID as there is not really any other option where I live.. I am wanting to go onto Uni, does anybody know if the qualifications are actually recognised and are able to get you into higher education?
I want to work for myself to be honest but have no clue where to start!

Keafsom- Many thanks for providing all this information and so much detail. This is so helpful. Wish the school would do taster session to get a better feel hence why I am doing this kind of research. Sounds like you’ve covered a lot, and this was within the Post Grad diploma program? What are you upgrading to next? Can I ask you this? Would you do it all over again if you could? They also claim to place you at a firm upon completion, do you have any feedback on where they’ve placed people? Thank you again!

Keafsom- ah! Then would you say it might be a good fit for me? I guess I am bit confused with all the poor feedback with organisation and the lack of interesting projects but maybe it would be a good fit. What you said about classroom support and meeting likeminded people sounded great. I guess I just want to make sure that I am making the best use of my time/money.

Keafsom- Thank you very much for your feedback! I think I am going continue to research other programs. I do have experience with more of the soft furnishing side, I was a product developer/designer in my previous career. I really wanted to learn more about the technical side, CAD, sketchUp and 3D rendering. I can only do this by hand at the moment! I’m also looking to learn more about sourcing/FFE - pricing, etc. How that whole process works. I’ve looked into other schools with similar programs but they’re so expensive!