Tonie C.

This is probably a dead thread, but I wanted to offer a little reality ck in case anyone is still refrencing it.  There is no way you’d find even a room-mate situation for $600 per month in SF unless it’s with a relative or someone who has had rent control for 20 years.  They’d be more likely to pay around 2K to share, 3k+ in a one bedroom. If y…[Read more]

I know this is a really old thread, but people tend to refer to them for info.  On that note, here is a nice concise (free) X-ref tutorial:  
http://www.netcomlearning.com/webinars/541654/Free-Webinar-AutoCAD–External-References-training.html
Sorry, Land8 won’t let me make it a live link. 

I think CAD is very hard to test for because there are so many ways to do the same task.  Most of those tests only accept one way of doing something.     

Why not hire on a trial basis?  Do a temp to hire with a 90 day window.  Let them know that you want them to use your office CAD standards and be able to perform XY and Z within that time frame.     

I agree with the location issue.  I would think the West Coast and the bigger more progressive cites in the east would be better than more traditional environments were they are not as interested in design.  My first job in landscape architecture was for a west coast city govt. and I loved it.  They were some of the nicest people I’ve ever wo…[Read more]

I haven’t tried this yet, but thanks Dennis and Jon for such specific info!

Yeah, I kind of wondered if that was the case.  The work I see from Caltrans seems to vary a lot, some nice design but a lot of engineering influence ; )  

Do you know which of the Bay Area districts might have a more LA-friendly environment?  

Thanks for all of your responses, very enlightening.  It sounds like it might be an ok fall back option but not a progressive work environment.  

With the economy being what it is I thought about taking the exam to get on the waiting (and waiting, and waiting) list so I would have a opportunity should I ever need it.  Is that a good strategy or…[Read more]

The California Department of Transportation.  THey hire a lot of landscape architects.

I’m not sure if someone mentioned this yet, but I would take your Facebook user name off. 
I checked out your website and you might either want to leave it off or do a cleaned up version for professional purposes.  I would edit out the darker stuff like the hanging corpses and bloodied eye.  You might want to scrub out all of the violent, re…[Read more]

I agree with Wes, reduce the text into summaries or bullet points.  I find the gray boxes a bit distracting too.  It seems like an unnecessary element that isn’t adding anything.
 
Be sure to proofread, and maybe ask a friend or instructor to edit too, I saw some grammatical errors.   
 
Almost there…. : )
 

I use a Mac mini for everything but AutoCAD.  Like Henry C (above) I use Parallels to run the PC version of CAD.  For me it was more about what I was used to, but a lot of people don’t like the MAC version.  
The PC to MAC conversion is not as painless as I had hoped but it’s doable.  The basic tools that annoy me most are the calendar and mai…[Read more]

7 weeks is a pretty short prep period for an MLA program. The programs I know that take non-LAs require a year of prep. There are books that you can buy to demystify things a bit. The old, really old, standard for non designers entering design was; Design and Form: The Basic Course at the Bauhaus and Later. I think it’s pretty easy to find used…[Read more]

Such an interesting thread, I think that a lot of people in a variety of professions are struggling. It’s not an LA recession, it’s an international recession. I know that there some bullet-proof careers out there but I’m not a doctor, lawyer, or business executive ; ). I’m trying to take broad approach to the situation and cast a wide net. I just…[Read more]

Nanda

Congrats, and thanks for sharing!

The “Workforce Investment Act” will pay for classes. In my area (San Francisco) There are a lot of corporate training companies that offer the training as well as community colleges and universities. I agree that you need to show that it could lead to a job, so come prepared.

I don’t think you’ll finding funding for ASLA membership, but maybe you…[Read more]