Follow in Katie's interior design footsteps to make industry connections

Vegemite and toast, Batman and Catwoman, Vogue Australia and Billy Blue College of Design: all iconic partnerships. Creative interior design is one of our institutional passions, and being able to foster collaborations with Vogue Australia is a great way to shape the future of the industry. Every year, Vogue Australia takes on four Billy Blue College of Design students as interns. It’s a great name to have in your portfolio, but more importantly it’s a great experience – a real taste of how one of the biggest names in the industry operates.

One of the latest interior design students to take advantage of our connection to Vogue Australia is Katie Wykamp. She completed her Diploma of Interior Design and Decoration in Orange, before receiving the opportunity to take on an internship.

“I decided to study online with Billy Blue, not only because of their wonderful reputation, but their ability to connect students to the industry, and help them establish industry connections and be paired with leaders,” Katie explains. “We’re also provided Success Coaches when we commence our studies, and they’re there for us to call, email, and text, and I think that’s been very valuable to my studies and to really help me navigate my way through.”

Billy Blue Interior Design ambassador Sibella Court agrees. “I think industry connections is a big one, as well as practical experience,” she says of the relationships we foster between students and professionals. “I’ve had lots of highlights in my career, and a lot of hard work. But considering I never really had an ‘official job’ that I went to every day, and I have been freelance my whole life, there’s been pivotal people in it, and amazing opportunities.”

But what does an interior designer do?

You may have a stereotype in your head, but there’s a lot more to the discipline than you might first think. Interior design careers cover both residential and commercial fit-outs, using environmentally sustainable practices in conjunction with an eye for finer details such as fittings and fabrics to create state-of-the-art, attractive and appropriate interiors for a range of purposes and clients.

Our courses guide you through theory and practice, helping you use industry-standard tools and software – InDesign, SketchUp Pro, AutoCAD and Autodesk, for starters – to find your style and bring your vision to life across a broad range of location types. A major part of our educational philosophy is putting students into situations where they can benefit from being mentored by industry professionals with decades of experience and wisdom to share.

“I didn’t have a big break per se, but I definitely had amazing women give me amazing opportunities that I’ve really just tried to run with and make my own,” explains Vogue Australia’s Jessica Montague. “When you are given those opportunities, you really just have to take them and lean into them as much as possible.” 

If you’d like to follow in Katie’s footsteps, browse through these courses: 
Diploma of Interior Design & Decoration 
Bachelor of Interior Design (Residential) 
Bachelor of Interior Design (Commercial)