Job Prospects

[Michael Barricks]

If I complete a Bachelor’s Degree in Landscape Architecture, what will my potential job opportunities be? Can I expect to be employed within a reasonable amount of time after graduation? What would my role be as the Landscape Architect? Is there an opportunity for international employment? Any information would be helpful, thanks. 

[Tosh K]

A large portion depends on how you position yourself: networking and quality of portfolio are for the most part how you land a job.  Some people are offered positions prior to graduation, others will struggle.  International employment is common, but in some parts of the world they expect graduate degrees and they also do not have student loans (hence normally pay entry level at a lower rate than here).  As with any undergraduate degree, you can always work in any field – I find that in most design curriculum you are taught how to critique and be critiqued, and the latter is a rather rare thing among the current graduating classes. 

Networking (see other threads as well): your faculty will know working professionals, visiting critics can be helpful, alumni as well.  It’s also good to attend local professional events and get internships when you can.

Portfolio: showing technical as well as graphic skills at a high level (see ASLA student awards for quality to expect to deliver).

[Mark Di Lucido]

Potential job opportunities are also a function of your local economy. States like Florida, Arizona and Nevada, that way over built in the single-family market still have not returned to pre-recession hiring levels. Other locations like North Dakota, Texas, Maryland, are hot now but whether they will continue to be so when you complete your degree is hard to know. So to get hired as quickly as possible you may have to relocate.

When you’re in the LA program do whatever it takes to get a LA related internship. Many times this translates seamlessly into a job after graduation. Waiting until you’ve graduated to look for work will likely prolong securing employment in the LA field.

Your role will likely depend on your graphic presentation ability–either hand drawn or digital. If you’re a ‘hot pencil’, as the saying used to be then you may be at the sharp end of the profession right away, designing projects or producing renderings for same. More typically, recent grads start out producing construction drawings using an app like Autocad, which as many who have gone this route will confirm gets tedious pretty quickly.

[Michael Barricks]

Noted. Thanks for the feedback. 

[Michael Barricks]

Great information. Thank you. 

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