Three students at Oxford Brookes University chatting and smiling while walking down the stairs in the new teaching building.

BA (Hons) Interior Architecture

Explore how buildings and spaces are conceived and designed, developing creative and technical architectural skills.

Key facts

Duration
Full time: 3 years
Part time: normally 4-5 years
Starts
September 2027
Level
Undergraduate
UCAS code
W250
Location
Headington
School
School of Architecture

About this course

Our BA (Hons) Interior Architecture course is part of the School of Architecture, blending creative design with critical thinking. While some modules are shared with Architecture, Interior Architecture focuses on designing from the user's perspective; considering how people experience and move through space.

You’ll explore real-world issues through live projects with local clients and develop unique ‘furnitecture’, designs that sit between furniture and architecture. Rooted in both the rich traditions of architectural theory and the dynamic, emerging field of interior design, the course encourages bold ideas and hands-on experimentation.

With over 20 years of experience and as a founding member of Interior Educators, we’re proud to offer a supportive and forward-thinking environment. Based in Oxford, you'll have access to world-class buildings for inspiration and study.

Explore our students’ work and see what you could create.

  • Develop your creative craft

    Design at a scale between furniture and architecture, shaping materials and space with originality and imagination.

  • Holistic design approach

    Learn to develop design briefs by translating social and cultural needs into clear and meaningful design parameters.

  • Study abroad

    You may be able to go on a European or international study exchange while you are at Brookes. Most exchanges take place in the second year. Although we will help as much as we can with your plans, ultimately you are responsible for organising and funding this study abroad.

  • Language courses

    Our university-wide language programme is available to full-time undergraduate and postgraduate students on many of our courses, and can be taken as a credit on some courses.

Entry requirements

Entry requirements

QualificationTypical offer
UCAS tariff points128
Contextual offer tariff points104
A-levelABB
BTEC Extended DiplomaDDM
International Baccalaureate32

We welcome applications from candidates with alternative qualifications, and from mature students.

Applicants will need to provide a portfolio (eg sketches, freehand/technical drawings, life drawings, 3D models, paintings, photographs). Please read our portfolio guidance notes.

On application you will be given instructions on how to upload a digital version of your portfolio.

Selected candidates will be invited for an interview. The interviewer will look for evidence of motivation, general creativity and breadth of interest, and will expect to be shown work which demonstrates creative ability of some kind. Any such work may be presented, including art work where no formal course has been followed.

Fees and funding

Fees

Tuition fees
Fee types2026/272027/28
Home full-time£9,790£10,050
Home part-time£1,220 per single module£1,255 per single module
International full-time£18,250£19,300

Please note, tuition fees for Home students may increase in subsequent years both for new and continuing students in line with an inflationary amount determined by government. Oxford Brookes University intends to maintain its fees for new and returning Home students at the maximum permitted level.

For further information please see our tuition fees FAQs.

Tuition fees for International students may increase in subsequent years both for new and continuing students.

The following factors will be taken into account by the University when it is setting the annual fees: inflationary measures such as the retail price indices, projected increases in University costs, changes in the level of funding received from Government sources, admissions statistics and access considerations including the availability of student support.

How and when to pay

Tuition fee instalments for the semester are due by the Monday of week 1 of each semester. Students are not liable for full fees for that semester if they leave before week 4. If the leaving date is after week 4, full fees for the semester are payable.

  • For information on payment methods please see our Make a Payment page.
  • For information about refunds please visit our Refund policy page.

Questions about fees?

Contact Student Finance on:

+44 (0)1865 534400

financefees@brookes.ac.uk (opens in a new tab)

Learning and assessment

This course teaches you how to respond to many human and cultural needs. Design through practice is a key part of interior architecture.

In your first year, you’ll learn about the essentials of designing in 3D, and in context and to scale. You’ll also discover how to come up with a design brief and practise representational techniques such as architectural orthographic drawing and model making.

In Year 2, projects often involve designing a new pavilion, private interior spaces and how to reuse existing building fabric.

And in Year 3, you’ll work on a comprehensive project focused on sharpening your professional skills. You’ll also write a dissertation on a specialist subject of your choice.

The three-year full-time course is centred on the design studio.

You will learn about:

  • the design process
  • the investigation of ideas and concepts
  • the representation of design
  • the relationship between the design studio and its interface with the world of professional practice.

We place importance on learning from each other. You’ll generate and develop ideas in our open studio culture.

Design studio culture involves:

  • group and individual tutorials
  • presentations
  • discussions of ideas
  • forms of representation.

We will equip you with the latest architecture insights and knowledge. You will have the opportunity to take part in 'live' projects within the community.

Related subject teaching includes:

  • technology practice
  • the histories and theories of architecture
  • interior architecture
  • design and digital culture.

Teaching methods include:

  • lectures and seminars
  • group and individual presentations
  • a written dissertation in the final year.
Contact hoursTotal workloadTimetabled
about 15 hrs a week1,200 hrs a yearMon–Fri, 09:00–18:00

Assessment

Assessment is 100% coursework.

Assessment methods include:

  • group and individual presentations
  • portfolios
  • journals
  • reports
  • a written dissertation in the final year.

Year 1

Compulsory modules

  • ARCH4003

    15 credits

    This module introduces architectural design and explores how it is influenced by the philosophies, methods, and technology of the fine arts. The course combines...

  • ARCH4006

    15 credits

    This module provides an essential foundation in architectural technology, covering construction, structures, environmental science, and sustainable design. It...

  • ARCH4001

    30 credits

    This module is structured around a series of design exercises aimed at introducing the core principles of architectural design.. You will engage in both...

  • ARCH4004

    15 credits

    You will gain knowledge about how architecture is influenced by different factors, such as cultural and intellectual theories, and technologies. You will also...

  • ARCH4002

    30 credits

    In this module, you will explore the intricate interplay between a specific architectural design and its contextual surroundings. You will learn to analyse...

  • ARCH4005

    15 credits

    This module is designed to expand your comprehension of architectural history and theory. Delivered mainly through lectures, it introduces pivotal architectural...

Field trips

Field trips in the UK are offered each year in addition to site visits in local exploration of the rich architecture in Oxford and London. Field trips and site visits are enjoyable and offer an opportunity to experience architecture at first hand with tutors and peers.

Field trips and site visits are optional and additional cost to the course fees.

Information from Discover Uni

Full-time study

Part-time study

Careers

This degree gives you the skills and knowledge you’ll need for employment in an architectural practice, design office or a fabrication and manufacturing workshop. Some of our students are now working for practices including Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners and Foster + Partners.

But this isn’t your only career option. With the skills in communication, leadership and teamworking you’ll have developed, you could go on to a career in:

  • lighting
  • theatres
  • museums
  • productions and exhibition design.

One of our recent graduates is using the knowledge and experience they gained on the course and applying this to their work in environmental psychology.

You may consider continuing with interior architecture at further study or postgraduate research. Or use the knowledge you’ve gained to take on postgraduate study in a related discipline.

Watch our School of Architecture Employability video

Our courses are reviewed regularly as part of our quality assurance framework, so module availability and course structures may vary from what is listed here. On rare occasions, we may also need to make updates to our course programmes after publication; for full details, please visit our changes to programmes page (opens in a new tab)