In an effort to lessen the divide between university experience and the work phase of life, we launched a design internship series, each episode featuring one interior design student/graduate working at an established design firm within the Middle East and Africa region. The series aims to offer deeper insight via real life intern experiences, while showcasing the benefits of an internship program and its value add in a student’s career path.

Our second episode of the Intern Files features Ana María Carreras Navarro, an incredibly vivacious and bubbly personality interning at Roar (formerly Pallavi Dean Interiors).

An architecture graduate, Ana did her Bachelor’s degree in architecture and her Masters in Habilitante de Arquitectura from the European University of Madrid, Bartlett. She had completed one month of her internship with Roar when we met her at the cosy and ‘oh so feminine’ Tania’s Tea House, for a chat about the programme and her experience, as well as her expectations going in. Here is what she had to say…

We also spoke to Pallavi Dean, Founder and Creative Director at Roar, about their intern program. Here are details…

Below: Ana Carreras, Design Intern, Roar, at Tania’s Tea House, Dubai

A brief outline of the internship program

Internships at Roar run typically over a period of three months and are always paid (we agree with Dezeen that unpaid internships are unacceptable). Our compensation ranges from a minimum of Dhs 2,000 to 6,000, depending on the level of experience and skill.

The intern’s key responsibilities

Interns are required to shadow a senior designer to gain maximum knowledge, and get the most learning and hands on experience out of their time with us.

When you are in a flat-structured organisation like ours, you pretty much work on everything a senior designer or design director is working on, from concept design and social media content creation to site work. We want our interns to leave the firm with an in-depth understanding of the industry and the true role of a designer within this space.

You pretty much work on everything a senior designer or design director is working on. We want our interns to leave the firm with an in-depth understanding of the industry and the true role of a designer within this space.

– Pallavi Dean, Founder and Creative Director, Roar

The eligibility criteria for becoming an intern at Roar

We expect excellent communication skills, and a real passion for design that goes beyond the textbook nine to five setting. We also require them to be functionally adept – to come armed with certain skills and knowledge of CAD, RHINO, Sketch-up, Photoshop, etc.

What result would classify as a successful internship at the end of the program?

Top marks at the end of an internship would result in full time employment offer at Roar! We have had three amazing candidates, absolute superstars, whose internships have culminated into permanent positions. However, if they are not joining us, we would still guide them to a firm that is better suited for their skill set, or more in line with their design philosophy.