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It depends on the state. In Massachusetts you need a bachelor’s degree from an accredited LA program and two years of full time work as an employee under the direct supervision of a Registered Landscape Architect, or a Masters Degree in Landscape Architecture, or six years of full time work as an employee under the direct supervision of a…[Read more]

thank you sir..

am i incorrect? is it not possible to sit for lare with the education credentials and with years of practice as a licensed landscape contractor? …

Chris, it sounds a little strange. I believe that the previous concrete should be set in pervious subbase.

Here’s an updated rendering of the final plan you can read.

SVVSD ES26 100% Site Rendering 4-22-2010[1].pdf

Here’s an older site plan rendering I did a couple months ago. Some of the planting and hardscape changed, but the concept is basically the same. I had A LOT of trouble finding good school site plan examples. I found a website called designshare that has a case studies section on sustainable schools. That was slightly helpful.

We designed…[Read more]

JS

I’m either not communicating well, or you are not reading what I wrote. All I’m saying is that IF you want to stay on the licensure track, starting a design/build right out of school is going to make that very, very, difficult. I’m not saying anything about whether or not it is a better road to follow.

Glenn,
You completely get it. It sounds…[Read more]

curious if you came up with a prelim site plan? can you post if possible, i would like to take a glance!, I may be doing something similar (but not an american site)

I do agree with Andrew on many of these points. If I was to get too large too quick, I would have to invest more and more time into this business; most likely, years would pass by and I would say damn, I wonder how life would be different if I found that great internship/entry level job.

Yet no one can say what is the “better” decision, and I…[Read more]

This made me just shake my head. I 100% disagree with your comments.

There are many roads to success … and many definitions of success.

I chose the path where I moved around a lot, worked on cool projects world-wide, worked with top firms, and won more awards than anyone should ever win.

My son just graduated, and he made the decision to work…[Read more]

It is not the knowledge gained from hands on experience that works against you.

It may not work against you at all. Thatt is going to depend on whomever is doing the hiring. The reason why it can work against you is that people tend not to like the idea of setting up a competitor. A more mature person who is putting his own business on hold in…[Read more]

Andrew,
Why would someone previously self-employed in design/build be less desirable as an intern? Would it be their drive to start their own company in a recession? Would it be their knowledge of how things are actually built and real world experience? I think that if Glenn decides in the future to go the “office” route, his practicle experience…[Read more]

Don’t get me wrong. I don’t think anything is a guaranteed career killer, but that you can position yourself so that in order to advance, you have to go backwards. If you have a family and are having some success as a landscape contractor, how is an intern position going to work?

No one is going to pay more for an intern because his needs are…[Read more]

For what it’s worth – after the MLA – I worked for an architect in Manhattan and then a couple of L.A. design build firms – just for exactly two years – and then I sprang out on my own with my own clientele – for the past 7 years. I could only take residential projects legally – but became involved with public art competitions and such. I am…[Read more]

Andrew,

Again, I agree with the bulk of your concerns. Obviously, anyone who is facing an inconsistent flow of work, either working in a firm or simply trying to find an ‘in’ into the industry, will try to make the best of the situation. However, your last paragraph troubles me because it likens to other discussions I’ve seen here on the Lounge…[Read more]

I’m not saying you shouldn’t do it. I am saying that it will be very difficult to change the track that it will take you on once you get on it. You will be on a track that will give you only the experience you can get from the type of work that you can get and you’ll not have an easy time getting work that you don’t have a track record of doing…[Read more]

I stand corrected. http://www.flasla.org/pdf/ASLA-Designation.pdf Thanks for pointing that out! I always assumed you had to be licensed to use it….You cannot call yourself a landscape architect, however.
I talked to the director of my state’s board of technical professions and apparently with the recession there are a lot of ‘turf wars’ between…[Read more]

If you cannot get the job you want or need, then adding to your experience with plants, design and construction can only help later on. Just don’t lose sight of where you want to be headed.