About Real World Design Week

Real World Design Week is a national mentoring program offering both hands-on and online learning experiences to introduce students to the real world of interior design. The program is designed to educate the next generation of designers and provide them exposure to professional practices and access to career development training.

Timeline for Real World Design Week 2012

June Registration opens for Professional, Allied, Educator and Industry Partner members

September 5, 2012

Registration opens for Student members

October 2012

Prepare webinar

November 2012

RealWorld DesignWeek, November 4-10, 2012

To register to Host an ASID Student Please Click here to log in - http://rwdw.asid.org/welcome       

To learn more about the nationwide real World Design Week- Please click here- http://www.asid.org/custom/rwdw/registration.asp   

FAQs

1. When is Real World Design Week? 
   November 4-10, 2012
2. What happens during Real World Design Week? Practitioners-professional members, allied members, educator members and Industry Partner representatives-host one-day shadow experiences for student members at their work locations.
3. Who is eligible to participate in Real World Design Week?
   ALL ASID members are eligible to participate in Real World Design Week: students, designers and industry partners.
4. 4.How and when do members sign up for Real World Design Week? 
   Real World Design Week offers an online registration process. Practitioners may register online beginning June 1, 2012. Upon registration, practitioners will submit their contact information, a description of their practice area and a listing of their Students may register online beginning September 3, 2012. Students will be able to browse the shadow day listings created by practitioners and self-register for one they are interested in. Pairings will be first come, first served so students are encouraged to register early.
5. Can faculty advisors limit the number of student participants per school?
   No. All student members are eligible to participate in Real World Design Week.
6. Can more than one student shadow with a practitioner on the same day?
   This is not the norm, however it may occur if a practitioner creates more than one shadow experience on the same day. Each individual shadow experience listed on the registration site can only accommodate one student registrant.
7. Can practitioners host multiple shadow-day experiences during Real World Design Week?
   Yes, a practitioner may host one or more students per day on multiple days during the week. This is encouraged, as more students will be able to participate.
8. Can a student participate in multiple shadow day experiences with different practitioners during Real World Design Week?
   Yes, however in the first month (September) that registration is open for student members, there will be a limit of one shadow experience per student. This is to provide the chance for a larger amount of interested students to participate in the program. In October, the limit will be lifted and students may select more than one shadow experience, as long as they can commit to all shadow days registered for.
9. Can student members select shadow experiences outside of their state or professional chapter?
   Yes. This accommodates students who are lacking shadow experiences in their local area and students who know that they are moving to a particular region post-graduation and would like to establish professional connections there through Real World Design Week.
10. If a student has to travel a significant distance for his/her shadow day, who incurs the cost for this?
    This is the student's responsibility, however it is anticipated that some practitioners may be able to subsidize partial costs.
11. What should practitioners do who would like to participate in Real World Design Week but are unavailable the week of November 4-10?
    Real World Design Week has a grace period of October 1-November 30, 2012. When registering, practitioners can specify the exact dates for which they can accommodate students during this graceAdhering to the official dates for Real World Design Week is highly encouraged for members, however it is anticipated that there will be students who prefer the expanded date options as well.
12. What happens if something unforeseen occurs and the student or the practitioner can no longer commit to their scheduled shadow day?
    Rescheduling is not a problem and should be agreed upon through direct communication between the practitioner and student.
13. What is the expected percentage of interested student members who will be successfully paired for a shadow experience? 
    In the four years the program has existed, the average percentage of interested students accommodated with a shadow experience was approximately 50%. This is due to the large number of student members that ASID has and the status of RealWorld DesignWeek as a young program. Although the program is expected to grow via practitioner participation levels year-to-year, it is still important for students to register early.
14. How will ASID accommodate the students and practitioners that are not matched up? 
    ASID is exploring ways to involve these members in alternative mentoring activities. Possible ideas include having the practitioners speak at local student chapters and hosting virtual shadow day experiences.
15. It seems like there would not be enough designers to accommodate the needs of the students. How does ASID plan to address this?
    ASID needs to stress through national and local marketing efforts, that the shadow day hosts are not limited to our designer members. Professional, Allied, Educator and Industry Partner representatives are all encouraged to participate in Real World Design Week. The participation of all of these member segments will ensure that students are able to select from a large number of practitioners and a wide scope of work locations. The goal is to show students that the options for design-related careers are vast. To make the program a success, ASID needs the help of professional chapters to market Real World Design Week to their entire memberships.
16. How do student participants attend the online seminars, Prepare and Position?
    Students registered for Real World Design Week will be sent personal e-mail invitations to attend the live webinars along with a registration link. The web events will also be recorded for all student members to access online at their convenience.
17. Is Real World Design Week an annual program?
    Yes, 2012 is the fifth year!