Our students

Tell us about your course

I just loved everything about it. I undertook a foundation year which helped build my confidence, and I studied a subject that I really enjoyed doing. Students from a number of courses all studied in the same building so there was a great community vibe. It was very collaborative, much like the design working world.

What work experience did you gain?

I worked at Hemingway Design in London during the summer holidays. And I also took part in Erasmus, an EU student exchange programme, where I studied at a design school in France for six months. It was beyond the best experience, eating baguettes all day and having so much fun.

I learnt a lot of design skills including computer-aided design, but I also learnt how to collaborate, which really helped when I came to work in the industry.

What did you do after graduation?

I moved to London and started work as an intern at Russell Sage Studio, where I worked my way up within the company. They worked with a lot of hotels, private members clubs, bars and restaurants, so it was such a creative, amazing experience working there. I now work at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office as part of their design team. I'm a senior interior designer, designing spaces for British ambassador residencies around the world.

What advice would you give to others thinking of studying interior design?

Go for it, especially at Teesside, it's a brilliant, dynamic university. You get lots of industry experience, which is great for building the foundations of your future career. And the location is ideal, you have everything, including the town, countryside, coast, restaurants and bars.