The O'More College of Architecture and Design's Interior Design program has been granted Council for Interior Design (CIDA) Accreditation since 1984. The O'More College's Bachelor of Architecture program is currently in candidacy for National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) Accreditation, and is projected to receive accreditation status in 2025.
Interior Design
Council for Interior Design (CIDA) Accreditation
Belmont University's O'More College of Architecture & Design (formerly known as the O’More College of Design) has maintained CIDA accreditation (formerly known as FIDER) since 1984. Attending a CIDA-accredited interior design program ensures that you are receiving a quality education that will prepare you for entry into the profession upon graduation and lay the foundation for your future growth as an interior design professional.
“The Council for Interior Design Accreditation (CIDA) is an independent, non-profit accrediting organization for interior design education programs at colleges and universities in the United States and internationally. For more than 35 years, this knowledge-driven organization has been passionately committed to the ongoing enrichment of the interior design profession through identifying, developing and promoting quality standards for the education of entry-level interior designers, and then encouraging, accrediting and supporting educational programs to aspire to those standards.” -About. (n.d.). Retrieved July 1, 2019, from https://accredit-id.org/about/
In order to receive accreditation through CIDA, an interior design program must meet a set of high academic standards and maintain those standards through a rigorous process of program self-evaluation and peer review.
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The interior design program leading to the Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interior Design is accredited by the Council for Interior Design Accreditation, www.accredit-id.org, 206 Grandville Avenue, Suite 350, Grand Rapids, MI 49503.
The CIDA-accredited program prepares students for entry-level interior design practice, for advanced study, and to apply for membership in professional interior design organizations. The BFA in Interior Design granted by Belmont University meets the educational requirement for eligibility to sit for the National Council for Interior Design Qualification Examination (NCIDQ Exam). For more information about NCIDQ Exam eligibility visit: https://www.cidq.org/eligibility-requirements.
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Alabama Arkansas California California Connecticut District of Columbia Florida Georgia Illinois Indiana Iowa Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Nevada New Jersey New Mexico New York Oklahoma Pacific Territories Puerto Rico Tennessee Texas Virginia Wisconsin |
Please visit asid.org/advocate-by-design/state-policy for registration laws including, but not limited to, Practice Act, Title Act, and No Legislation. Use of the terms “interior designer”, “registered interior designer”, and “certified interior designer” vary from state to state.
Architecture
National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) Accreditation
In the United States, most registration boards require a degree from an accredited professional degree program as a prerequisite for licensure. The National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB), which is the sole agency authorized to accredit professional degree programs in architecture offered by institutions with U.S. regional accreditation, recognizes three types of degrees: the Bachelor of Architecture, the Master of Architecture and the Doctor of Architecture. A program may be granted an eight-year, eight-year with conditions, or two-year term of continuing accreditation, or a three-year term of initial accreditation, depending on the extent of its conformance with established educational standards.
Doctor of Architecture and Master of Architecture degree programs may require a pre-professional undergraduate degree in architecture for admission. However, the pre-professional degree is not, by itself, recognized as an accredited degree.
The NAAB grants candidacy status to new programs that have developed viable plans for achieving initial accreditation. Candidacy status indicates a program expects to achieve initial accreditation within six years of achieving candidacy, if its plan is properly implemented.
In order to meet the education requirement set forth by the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards, an applicant for an NCARB Certificate must hold a professional degree in architecture from a program accredited by the NAAB; the degree must have been awarded not more than two years prior to initial accreditation. However, meeting the education requirement for the NCARB Certificate may not be equivalent to meeting the education requirement for registration in a specific jurisdiction. Please contact NCARB for more information.
Belmont University is currently seeking candidacy status for the following professional degree program in architecture:
- B. Arch. (155 undergraduate credits)
- Year Candidacy Awarded: 2020
- Next Visit: Candidacy (Fall, 2023)
- Projected Year to Achieve Initial Accreditation: 2025
- Earliest Graduation Date projected to meet NCARB education requirement: 2025
- Eligibility Decision Letter (May 20, 2022)
- Architecture Program Report: Candidacy (September 2021)
- Architecture Program Report: Candidacy (March 1, 2023)
Belmont’s B.Arch. will abide by the following documents:
Ready to learn more about applying to Belmont’s architecture program?
Educational Requirements for Licensure
Once it achieves accreditation from the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB), Belmont University's Architecture Program will meet the educational requirements for licensure as listed below:
The following territories do not offer a license to practice architecture:
American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of Palau.
| Positive Licensure Determinations | Negative Licensure Determinations | No Licensure Determinations |
| Alabama Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming The District of Columbia The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Guam The Virgin Islands. |
None | None |
Transfer Credit Policy
Determination of eligibility for general education transfer credit will be determined by the Office of the Registrar.
Determination of eligibility for architecture program requirements transfer credit (ARC courses) will be determined by the Chair of the Department of Architecture, based on:
- Alignment of general course content
- Demonstration of achievement of applicable NAAB-defined Program or Student Criteria
Students requesting that courses completed at another institution be considered for Belmont ARC credit must submit to the Department Chair:
- that institution’s catalog description for the course and
- the syllabus for the semester it was taken.
For some courses, the Chair may also request examples of coursework. In most cases, transfer courses proposed for credit for Belmont ARC courses numbered 3000- or higher must be completed in an NAAB-accredited program.
The Architecture Program at Belmont currently has no established articulation agreement with other institutions and does not award credit for other prior learning experience.
Contact Us
O'More College of Architecture & Design
1900 Belmont Boulevard
Nashville, TN 37212
Phone: (615) 460-5888