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In this current economic climate, it’s an employer’s market. They have their pick of the best and the brightest and yes, it does frustrate me to see job listings requiring MLA’s plus, plus, plus……., but, if I were in their position I would be doing the same thing. Not having the MLA or BLA or whatever skills they ask for puts you behind the…[Read more]

What would really be a good idea is combining a firm and a school. Ok ok I’m enamored of the Taliesin idea, but wouldn’t that be a great solution to the cost of higher education? It would be a much more refined skill set than community college / votech and if your state requires 10 years of experience w/o degree, then you would only be putting in…[Read more]

My experience is with small firms – between 6 and 15 employees – as an employee and observer, not an owner.

Job descriptions seem to magically describe someone the owner has met and liked. In a small firm everyone does a little bit of everything, so official job descriptions aren’t very official and don’t appear to be the basis for wage – time…[Read more]

That’s a great article Mandy! And not just because it supports my position, because I’m already in a deep whole of debt from lots of higher education.

I would agree that it is NOT equitable in many cases for students these days to attend college unless they have a specific career in mind, which usually doesn’t happen until later in…[Read more]

You might find this article reassuring…

http://blogs.hbr.org/schrage/2010/07/higher-education-is-highly-ove.html

Thanks Tanya, that’s good to hear. Since I’ve asked here and at other sites I’ve read several similar responses, which is encouraging. I have less than a year, maybe a semester worth of courses–math mostly, lol. So far I’ve been getting by just fine without the math–land use calcs, floor area ratios, grading–I’ve designed probably more than a…[Read more]

I know a great LA that never got a degree – came out of engineering, worked in the field for 10 years, easily passed the LARE, became a partner by her late 30’s, so it can be done.
What about a class at a time? I got the impression you only have about a year left??? I know tuitions are ghastly right now.

It’s a place in Italy…

The thing is I’m working and saving money and facing huge loan debt. So, I would need to stop that income flow and pay tuition out of pocket. So, it’s pretty much not an option at this point.

I think in Colorado the rule is something like ten years under a licensed LA to sit without degree. I would think I could appeal for less time or at least…[Read more]

It seems to me, in my limited experience, that Principals (and some P.M.s) design and everyone else produces. There is no judgment in that statement, it’s just reality. I’ve learned a lot about design by “producing” plans for great designers.

Design takes time, exploration and is non-linear. There are no right answers, only defensible…[Read more]

It varies by state, but most states you CAN get licensed without the degree. However, many states require a LONG time, like 7 years (!!!) of work experience before you can take the test, verses 2-3 with a degree. You may well find a job, but with the economy still sucking, and a large amount of BSLA. MLA, and experienced designers still looking…[Read more]

What up ACE?

You’ve got crazy, mad skills so you shouldn’t have any problems finding work. The only drawback I can see is that if you don’t have the piece of paper, you cannot accumulate time towards sitting for the L.A.R.E. The L.A.R.E clock doesn’t start ticking until you’ve got the degree.

Speaking of which – Andrew, have you ever written a business plan for a landscape architecture firm? Business plan examples from other industries don’t seem to fit the bill….

Interesting idea – efficiency is related to office/corporate culture, which of course also sets the value of any given task – monetary and intangible values.

Efficiency starts with being able to produce a competitive product at a competitive price. That all starts with a business plan that identifies the market that the company is targeting and is followed by finding the most effective way to get the most profit out of that market.

Depending on the business plan, it could mean staying on top of the…[Read more]

I know this isn’t exactly what you mean, but your question got ME to thinking…..What does efficiency mean to you? Does it mean getting more work done in your 8 hours? Does it mean getting more ‘product’ out there faster? Not to utterly diverge from your topic, but I mean this seriously. I think there are a number of kinds of efficiency. And…[Read more]

Huh?

http://dirt.asla.org/2009/12/08/designintelligence-2010-landscape-architecture-program-rankings/

I don’t know if it is depressing or merely noteworthy that the pictures on the 10,000 Rain Gardens site show some pretty dismal “gardens”

I have to bite. What is Bomarzo?

The photo is formated for use as an avatar that I use elsewhere as well. It had to be formatted to that size for a different website.

Nick Aceto bringing the sickness once again… Nice work Nick!

Nick, you know that you can shoot in the Pawnee Grasslands, too. Now you have another reason to go! Bring your camera AND a gun! Good times, good times… Man, I miss CO…

Amen. I deal with these sentiments all the time and it drives me crazy. “We’ve never done it that way before” is as much of a productivity killer as it is a cliche.