Mar 28, 2024  
2018-2019 University Catalog 
    
2018-2019 University Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Landscape Architecture


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https://env.cpp.edu/la/la

Andrew O. Wilcox, Chair

Kyle D. Brown
Barry Lehrman
Weimin Li
Lee-Anne S. Milburn
Susan Mulley
Philip N. Pregill
Rennie Tang
Gerald O. Taylor

Landscape architects are professionally concerned with the design, management, preservation, and use of the land. The curriculum in Landscape Architecture provides a foundation in all of these areas with particular emphasis on design, along with the cultural and technical subjects that support it. Coursework includes study of the elements and principles of art, design and planning processes, graphic and visual communication, plants and planting design, construction methods and environmental history. Instruction fosters the development of critical thinking, creative problem-solving abilities, communication skills, technical knowledge, environmental awareness and professional responsibilities. The department of landscape architecture offers two degrees; a Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture (BSLA) and a Master of Landscape Architecture (MLA). 

The Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture (BSLA) is a 120-unit professional degree, nationally accredited by the Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board and approved by the California Board of Landscape Architects as meeting part of the qualification requirements for professional licensure.

The curriculum is organized to balance studio-based design labs with large seminar courses. The seminars deliver core knowledge, methods, theories and procedures of landscape architecture whereas the studio labs investigate and apply that information through design process.  In most courses, students develop design proposals and/or technical solutions for actual sites with instruction, guidance, and critiques from faculty members.   The BSLA program also engages in extensive field trips and field study related to the curriculum to experience and evaluate built and natural landscapes across Southern California and beyond.

The BSLA curriculum is organized as a four-year degree. New students must begin the program in the fall semester. Students may enter the program directly from high school or as transfers from other institutions. In order to transfer into the design sequence at the second-year level, a transfer must have the equivalent design, history and theory courses per the BSLA curriculum; and a portfolio review is required.  All students must maintain a grade average of “C” in all core courses in order to advance in the program.

The Master of Landscape Architecture (MLA) is a 60-unit first professional degree, nationally accredited by the Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board and approved by the California Board of Landscape Architects as meeting part of the qualification requirements for professional licensure.  Students without a previous design degree in Landscape Architecture or closely aligned design discipline will be required to take one year, 27 units, of preparatory coursework in landscape architecture.

Holders of a BSLA or a MLA find career opportunities in private and public practice; with municipal, county and state departments of planning and of parks and recreation; with corporate organizations; nonprofit and advocacy organizations; and with state and federal agencies. The student organization is affiliated with the American Society of Landscape Architects.  Students who maintain a grade point average of 3.2 or higher are eligible for membership in Sigma Lambda Alpha, a national honorary society for students of landscape architecture.

All undergraduate and graduate students entering the College of Environmental Design are required to purchase a computer that meets departmental specifications. All applicants are directed to their department office or go to the department’s website to obtain these specifications. Financial aid assistance for this computer purchase is available to students qualifying for Federal Student Aid (requested via the FAFSA application). Please contact the University’s Office of Financial Aid for additional information.

Programs

    MajorMinorMaster

    Courses

      Landscape Architecture

      Open to LA majors only unless otherwise specified. 

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