Take Your Career to New Heights with the NCIDQ

New year, new you — and a whole new NCIDQ exam. As we enter our second year of the IIDA NCIDQ Test Prep Series, we also enter a new five-year cycle of the exam essential to professional interior designers. But don’t be intimidated! These changes reflect a changing industry and evolving design practice, meaning that it may actually feel more intuitive while better preparing you for the realities of practicing design in 2026 and beyond.

Test anxiety is perfectly normal though, and the best way you can alleviate it is to be prepared for the content and familiar with the exam layout. We caught up with the instructor behind IIDA’s prep series, Julianne J. Peters, Assoc. AIA, who is also founder and lead instructional designer of Design Success Network, to find out what she’s seeing, hearing, and feeling good about ahead of the April exam period.

It’s 2026, and the new format has arrived! How are you — and designers you encounter — feeling about a refreshed exam?

There’s a mix of relief and anxiety among designers who are poised to take exams this April. While change can be scary, the new exam format can actually be beneficial in many ways. The question type variety creates an even playing field across all three exams, especially for test takers who struggled with multiple-choice questions. Having the building codes accessible to you on all three exams means there is less to directly memorize. And the elimination of the case study format for the [formerly Practicum] now IDIX exam makes time management on test day much more manageable! Personally, I've been feeling excited about these changes and enjoy helping test- takers weigh all the pros and cons!

Any advice for this cycle of exams?

Whether this is your first NCIDQ exam or if you have already taken an NCIDQ exam, be sure to familiarize yourself with the changes. The CIDQ website has updated everything — exam blueprints, building code documents, reference materials list, and the candidate handbook. They also have released new resources like a "Demo Exam" that shows you how the exam software and question types work.

A professional-looking individual with short hair smiles confidently, wearing a dark blazer and standing in a bright, modern office setting.

What is one study secret that you wish more NCIDQ test-takers know?

Remember that the NCIDQ is a standardized test — this means that the things you learned in school, what you do at work, and even what a local building official tells you may all be different than what the exam wants in an answer. Your academic and professional experience is absolutely helpful for the exam, but you still need to study all of the topics in the “standard NCIDQ way” to be prepared for a standardized test.

Why is it important to have a study buddy or study group?

Having camaraderie with others was hugely beneficial to my study experience when I was taking the exam. Beyond the content, there is an emotional and mental weight associated with a professional examination. My IIDA Chapter study group met monthly to discuss more than just the content — we would also commiserate about the stress of balancing studying in our busy schedules.

Will the NCIDQ remain relevant as we expand industry use of AI?

Absolutely! As AI accelerates drafting, visualization, and data processing, our human judgment becomes the differentiator. I believe the NCIDQ certification will become even more important because it signals that certificate-holders possess critical thinking and interpretation skills that AI cannot yet reliably replicate. Just like with the uptake of other transformative tools (CAD [computer-aided design], BIM [building information modeling], etc.), designers should learn to use AI, but also learn its limitations.

Learn more about IIDA’s NCIDQ prep course and sign up for upcoming sessions here

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