Avoid this
- Designing only for appearance instead of experience
- Ignoring how people move through the space
- Choosing colors or furniture without supporting the concept
High school project idea · Design & Creative Arts
Turn an Empty Space Into an Experience
Design a space people will remember, not just a room that looks nice.
Great designers shape experiences, not just environments.
Original Compass project by Davisville LabsReviewed August 2026Goal real work, evidence, and reflectionEditorial standards →
Why this project matters
Learn by doing something real.
The best spaces do more than look beautiful. They shape how people think, feel, and behave. Whether it's a coffee shop, classroom, bedroom, museum, event, or public plaza, every design decision influences the experience. This project teaches students to think like environmental designers by transforming an ordinary space into one that intentionally creates a specific feeling and purpose.
What you will create
Your project plan
Use these deliverables as milestones for Turn an Empty Space Into an Experience. Adapt the details to your interests, available time, and real-world opportunities.
- 01
Space Analysis
Document the existing space, identify who uses it, explain its purpose, and describe what currently works well and what could be improved.
- 02
Experience Strategy
Define how visitors should feel, move, interact, and remember the space after experiencing your redesign.
- 03
Mood Boards & Design Direction
Develop inspiration boards showing colors, lighting, textures, materials, furniture, graphics, and visual references that support the intended experience.
- 04
Layouts & Space Mockups
Create floor plans, sketches, digital layouts, or realistic mockups that communicate the redesigned environment.
- 05
Environmental Design Case Study
Publish a polished portfolio presentation explaining the design process, research, experience strategy, mockups, feedback, revisions, and lessons learned.
Make the work stronger
What separates a finished project from a meaningful one?
For Turn an Empty Space Into an Experience, use these checkpoints to protect the quality of the work without turning the project into a performance for admissions.
Evidence that it is working
- A real space was selected and analyzed
- A clear experience strategy was developed
- Mood boards and design concepts were created
If you want to go further
- Build a simple 3D digital model of the redesigned space
- Interview potential users about the design
Skills you can build
Capabilities that travel beyond this project.
Design ThinkingEmpathySystems ThinkingSpatial ReasoningPresentation
College application value
Use the project as evidence, not decoration.
Demonstrates creativity, design thinking, empathy, systems thinking, visual communication, planning, and the ability to improve real environments through intentional design.
CreativityProblem SolvingCommunicationEmpathyInitiative
The goal of Turn an Empty Space Into an Experience is not to manufacture an impressive activity. Do real work, keep evidence of the process, and reflect honestly on what changed.
Related college majors
Which fields connect to this work?
Use Turn an Empty Space Into an Experience as a clue, then open a related major guide to compare coursework, career directions, reality checks, and other ways to test the field.
Major guide
Architecture
Turn human needs, place, structure, climate, and imagination into spaces that can actually be built and inhabited.
Major guide
Interior Design
Shape interior spaces around how people live, work, and feel.
Major guide
Theatre
Create live stories through performance, design, direction, and collaboration.
How this guide was made
Read editorial standards →Turn an Empty Space Into an Experience is an original Compass educational starting point designed around real work, visible evidence, feedback, and reflection. It is not an admissions guarantee.
Ready to build it?
Try this project in Compass