The Council for Interior Design Qualification (CIDQ), independent of state and provincial

credentialing Credentialing is the process of establishing the qualifications of licensed medical professionals and assessing their background and legitimacy. Credentialing is the process of granting a designation, such as a certificate or license, by assess ...

bodies, provides the North American public with means to identify

interior design Interior design is the art and science of enhancing the interior of a building to achieve a healthier and more aesthetically pleasing environment for the people using the space. With a keen eye for detail and a Creativity, creative flair, an ...

ers who have demonstrated the minimum level of

competence Broad concept article: *Competence (polyseme), capacity or ability to perform effectively Competence or competency may also refer to: *Competence (human resources), ability of a person to do a job properly **Competence-based management, performa ...

needed to practice

. CIDQ offers a professional examination in interior design, and covers those aspects of the practice of interior design that affect the public's

health Health has a variety of definitions, which have been used for different purposes over time. In general, it refers to physical and emotional well-being, especially that associated with normal functioning of the human body, absent of disease, p ...

, life style and

welfare Welfare may refer to: Philosophy *Well-being (happiness, prosperity, or flourishing) of a person or group * Utility in utilitarianism * Value in value theory Economics * Utility, a general term for individual well-being in economics and decision ...

About CIDQ

CIDQ is an organization of regulatory boards and provincial associations in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. Its core purpose is to protect the health, life, safety, and welfare of the public by establishing standards of competence in the practice of interior design. CIDQ serves to enable the public to identify interior designers who have met the minimum standards for professional practice by passing the NCIDQ Examination. Completion of the NCIDQ Examination recognizes that an individual has met minimum competency standards for the practice of interior design. Passage of the exam is a requirement for

licensure Occupational licensing, also called licensure, is a form of government regulation requiring a license to pursue a particular profession or vocation for compensation. It is related to occupational closure. Some claim higher public support for ...

in all CIDQ member jurisdictions. The exam also serves as a qualifier for professional membership within interior design organizations, and represents a voluntary individual accomplishment for non-affiliates.

Certificate holders

While CIDQ does not offer membership to individuals, professional interior designers can become Certificate holders by completing the examination process. Individuals who meet CIDQ's eligibility requirements and pass all required sections of the NCIDQ Examination are each assigned a unique NCIDQ Certificate number. Certificate holders who pay an annual Certificate Renewal fee receive exclusive Active Certificate holder benefits and discounts.

Acceptance

Successful completion of the NCIDQ Examination is a prerequisite for professional registration in those American states and Canadian provinces that have enacted licensing or

certification Certification is part of testing, inspection and certification and the provision by an independent body of written assurance (a certificate) that the product, service or system in question meets specific requirements. It is the formal attestatio ...

statute A statute is a law or formal written enactment of a legislature. Statutes typically declare, command or prohibit something. Statutes are distinguished from court law and unwritten law (also known as common law) in that they are the expressed wil ...

s to protect the health,

safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...

and welfare of the public. The NCIDQ Examination must also be passed by every interior designer applying for professional membership with the

American Society of Interior Designers The American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes the profession of interior design. It has chapters throughout the United States and Canada. Throughout all of the associations o ...

(ASID).

Administration

Representatives from state/provincial regulatory agencies are appointed to serve as

delegate Delegate or delegates may refer to: * Delegate, New South Wales, a town in Australia * Delegate (CLI), a computer programming technique * Delegate (American politics), a representative in any of various political organizations * Delegate (United S ...

s on the CIDQ Council of Delegates for two-year terms. Beyond the Council's responsibilities for conducting and jurying the examination in locations throughout

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

, it is charged with defining, researching and updating bodies of knowledge, conducting

field survey Field research, field studies, or fieldwork is the collection of raw data outside a laboratory, library, or workplace setting. The approaches and methods used in field research vary across disciplines. For example, biologists who conduct f ...

s, analyzing candidate performance, evaluating subject areas and item validity, developing and pretesting questions and problems, improving scoring, implementing grading and jurying procedures, reviewing education and practice requirements, and identifying public health, safety and welfare issues.

History

Conceived in the late 1960s to serve as a basis for issuing

credential A credential is a piece of any document that details a qualification, competence, or authority issued to an individual by a third party with a relevant or ''de facto'' authority or assumed competence to do so. Examples of credentials include aca ...

s to today's professional interior design practitioner, the Council has been in effect since 1972. It was formalized as a

not-for-profit organization A not-for-profit or non-for-profit organization (NFPO) is a Legal Entity, legal entity that does not distribute surplus funds to its members and is formed to fulfill specific objectives. While not-for-profit organizations and Nonprofit organ ...

when it was incorporated in 1974. CIDQ's founders were the American Institute of Interior Designers (AID) and the National Society of Interior Designers (NSID), two national organizations that were then preparing to merge into what became the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID). All national design organizations, whose membership was made up in total or in part of interior designers, were asked to join. Now a fully independent organization, CIDQ develops and delivers the NCIDQ Examination, twice each year to help ensure the health, safety and welfare of the public are protected in the practice of interior design. The parent organizations decided that a separate council was needed to develop, administer and certify, through a qualifying examination, the interior design practitioner competent to practice; and also to study and present plans, programs and guidelines for the statutory licensing of interior design practitioners.

Criticism

Exam fees require a minimum of $1310 to become NCIDQ certified (not including any classes, materials, books, or late fees/ cancellation fees that may occur due to their unclear deadline schedule) and also $75/ year to remain active status and to use the "NCIDQ" letters behind your name per their appellation agreement. Certainly, this is very constraining for entry level interior designers and especially concerning for a nonprofit agency. http://www.cidq.org/fees *

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ncidq Interior design