Designing across disciplines: Connecting architecture and costume design

Beth, who is from Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, majored in architectural studies and minored in historical costume design at Conn. She was also a scholar in the Creativity Pathway. For her self-designed minor, she created costumes under the guidance of Associate Professor of Theater Sabrina Notarfrancisco.

“Even though costume design is not directly related to architecture, it’s still a lot of 3D design,” Beth explains. “One of the things I loved about Conn was the Connections program and the fact that I wasn't locked into studying the one thing that I was planning on doing. I could explore all these other interests at the same time.”

Discovering a passion for inclusive and accessible design

Beth took full advantage of the variety of courses during her time at Conn. In her architecture course “Tech Workshop: Computer-Aided Drafting,” she learned a lot of the design programs used in the field, which helped her land her first internship. Her “Landscape Architecture: Design Studio” gave her studio experience outside of traditional studio courses, and a “Disability Justice” course within the Gender, Sexuality and Intersectionality Department helped her better understand how architecture can impact the lived experience of those with disabilities.

“I developed what became my Creativity Pathway interest, which was understanding design for disability in a less literal way—like the ADA requirements of, ‘Can a wheelchair get in this building?’—and more, ‘How do people with different mental disabilities experience space differently?’ That's where my niche interest in landscape and interior design all came together, and what I now find really inspiring my work today.”

Launching a dream career at Warrenstreet Architects

Those four years as a Camel prepared Beth for success at what she calls her “dream job” at Warrenstreet Architects, where she interned on breaks starting her sophomore year and now works full-time in a collaborative environment with the firm’s principal architects. She plans to get her master’s degree and advance from architectural designer to licensed principal architect. Beth credits the Hale Center for Career Development with providing effective help with her resume, cover letter and interview prep.

“I was able to jump into the internship with the confidence to say, ‘All right, let's go. I can do this,’” she says. “And then before I even graduated, they sent me an offer letter and snapped me up.”