Landscape Architecture

What it’s about:

Landscape architecture explores contemporary issues related to the design, and management of the constructed landscape. You learn fundamental techniques of site design and planning and receive studio training in advanced areas such as urban and regional landscape design and planning.

What the study of this major is like:

Landscape architects plan, design, and manage outdoor settings, such as parks and areas around buildings, to make these displays useful, beautiful, and in harmony with nature. As a landscape architecture major, you work with the land: drawing, painting, and mapping it; describing it; examining and analyzing it; and imagining what it might become in the future. You learn about the complex ecology of natural landscapes and the even more complex human ecology of urban landscapes.

Landscape architecture is a studio-based program that requires you to become thoroughly familiar with the ways in which natural vistas can be created or changed. First you learn traditional techniques of site planning and design, including drawing and computer graphics, and the principles and vocabulary of design. In addition to the studio curriculum, you take courses in graphic communications, history and theory, materials, and professional practice. You study ecological systems, learn to identify and work with a broad range of locally grown plants, and analyze the relationships between social and political institutions, on the hand, and the land, on the other.

Later you study advanced techniques that include urban design, landscape technology, and regional planning and analysis. Building on your foundations, you shape increasingly complex landscapes and develop detailed drawing, specifications, and other means of bringing your plans to life. In a typical studio course in your third or fourth year, you might design a park, a public garden, or a plaza; plan a site for an apartment house or a sports arena; or develop a management program for a natural reserve. In construction courses, you learn how to produce the detailed drawings for projects like these.

As a major, you might join college organizations devoted to environmental issues, urban design, and regional landscape awareness. You can often find volunteer opportunities that include mentoring high school students about landscape architecture. Some students participate in community planning groups. At the conclusion of a four- or five-year program, you should be qualified to enter the profession, with a private firm or a public agency.

Landscape architecture departments differ a great deal in the approach they take to the major. Some programs focus on physical design, while others concentrate on sustainability and regeneration (to protect natural settings and to ensure their survival). Still other programs stress both physical design and ecological issues. Geographic and social distinctions may also influence the focus of a particular program. Programs at colleges in cities are more likely to devote themselves to urban landscape design than programs in suburban or rural areas. Another reason for differences in programs is that some colleges encourage faculty members to conduct research, whereas in other programs, instructors spend more time in professional practice. Finally, some programs are based on a four-year curriculum and award a Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture (B.S.L.A.), while others offer a five-year degree, the Bachelor of Landscape Architecture(B.L.A.), which requires you to complete additional studio and lecture courses.

Career options and trends:

Landscape architect; landscape construction manager; political advocate; urban planner; environmental agency manager; natural resource manager.

Most states required landscape architects to be licensed or registered, based on the Landscape Architect Registration Examination (LARE) and one to four years work experience. Some states also required an additional state-specific exam focusing on local laws and environments.

Most graduates of landscape architecture programs work in private consulting firms as designers, planners, or managers. Landscape architects can also work in city planning, recreation, and parks departments at the local level and in land management agencies such as the National Park Service, National Forest Service, National Forest Service, and Bureau of Land Management at the federal level. In addition, the training you receive in landscape architecture provides a foundation for other careers related to shaping the environment, such as landscape restoration.

Employment prospects are projected to be strong, but new graduates my face strong competition for entry-level jobs. Demand for landscape architects will be driven by growth in development, the need to comply with environmental regulations and security requirements, and continued efforts to restore and preserve lands, wetlands, and ecosystems.

Source: CollegeBoard 2012 Book of Majors