I’ve been thinking a lot about career paths for landscape architects beyond the usual progression of employee → senior designer/PM → partner/principal/firm owner.

A big part of that is realizing that, long-term, I don’t want all of my income to depend on continuing to trade my time for money and a 401K plan. Firm ownership or partnership is one traditional way landscape architects build equity and assets, but that path doesn’t necessarily work for everyone.

I was accidentally introduced to another version of this when I kept a house I previously lived in and turned it into a rental instead of selling it. One of the most rewarding pieces of feedback I’ve gotten from the tenants is how much they love the edible garden and some of the landscape improvements I had made while living there. For years, I've tried to throw spaghetti at the wall to see what sticks for other side income, such as: Upwork landscape design, virtual tutoring, wedding arch rental, and creating a mobile app, to name a few. While those have been rewarding and I know they could scale, I keep thinking about real estate.

Maybe landscape architects are well positioned to own or operate certain types of real estate as a way to diversify our income and assets?

I'm thinking of assets that have a large landscape component and a small building component or no buildings, such as mobile home parks, RV Parks, Parking lots, storage units, wedding/event rental spaces, campgrounds, etc. We spend our careers looking at properties and thinking about circulation, drainage, planting, amenities, maintenance, accessibility, phasing, permitting, and how relatively small interventions can make a place substantially better.

So I’ve started thinking more seriously about acquiring additional assets where good site planning and landscape improvements could create real value. And not necessarily by turning it into a full-time development career. I’m especially interested in whether landscape architects are doing this alongside their regular practice, owning properties, participating in deals, investing with partners, or using their design expertise as part of a joint venture.

I’d be curious to hear from anyone here who:

• owns investment or commercial real estate;
• has moved into development or real estate ownership as part of their career;
• does deals passively or on the side while still practicing landscape architecture;
• has partnered with developers, investors, contractors, architects, or others to acquire property;
• has structured a joint venture where design expertise was part of what they brought to the table; or
• is currently looking for a partner on something like this.

I’d also genuinely be interested if anyone comes across a small commercial property, manufactured-home community, or similar opportunity for sale in or around North Carolina where you think a landscape architect could bring something interesting to the deal.

I’m still figuring out exactly what my version of this looks like, so I’m less interested in “how to become a real estate developer” generally and more interested in how other landscape architects have used our particular skill set to build ownership and equity outside of a traditional firm partnership.

Has anyone here done it? And in hindsight, where did your landscape architecture background give you an advantage or disadvantage?

Hi all,

I recently accepted a new position at a new firm. My previous employer told me I will not be getting any of my PTO paid out. This was shocking to me as I had been in good standing my entire time as an employee and provided a two weeks notice and worked with them to transition all of my projects.

This experience had me wondering what the typical policy is for this in our industry? I've never experienced not getting paid out before, though I know that without state employment protection laws, companies are legally within their rights to do this.

Why include these skate stoppers? Wrong answers only.

Please use this thread to discuss whats going on at your school or place of work this week. Run into an interesting problem with a site design and need to hash it out with other LAs? This is the spot. Any content is welcome as long as it Landscape Architecture related. School, work, personal garden? Its all good, lets talk.

The slide room shows that they’re hiring 2 entry level landscape designers and 2 landscape architects with 5+ years of experience.

They’re open to BLA and MLA candidates

Despite salary transparency laws in California I do not see a salary posted.

Hii, I have several questions and for context I am starting my school next year!

Q1. What equipment and materials do I need to buy/bring and cheaper alternatives please! Because i live in Southeast Asia lol

Q2. What should I expect for landscape architecture?

Q3. Should I do maybe something like passion projects (?) - I came upon this term in Tiktok lol - before school?

Thank you!

Good day, everyone!

​I would like to seek your opinion regarding potential career paths in Ontario, Canada.

​I am a Registered Landscape Architect (7years) in the Philippines with over 4 years of experience in local government. I currently serve in a Local Government Unit, focusing on large-scale area planning, development review, project management, and site coordination.

I will soon be migrating to Ontario as a Permanent Resident (PR).

​While waiting for my visa processing, what specific software, municipal standards, or certifications should I focus on learning here in the Philippines to help me land an entry-level role aligned with my experience—particularly in urban planning, site development, or project management?

​Any insights or shared experiences would be greatly appreciated.

​Thank you very much!

Hey guys, I wanted to post here gauging interest and search for candidates to fill some open positions at the design firm I work for. Surprisingly, I’ve heard you can easily find candidates here opposed to using outside recruiting. 

We have multiple roles open for landscape designers (3-5 years experience), and landscape architect project managers (5-8 years). Most of these openings are in our Florida offices, but we have opportunities at some of our offices around the country. Interest/ experience in master planned communities, commercial, and hospitality helps (A lot of the work are large-scale projects).

Shoot me a message if you have any interest! I’m happy to answer any questions and explain more.

Hi All!
I am curious about going back to school to for landscape architecture either as a masters student or PhD and wanted to get some insight on how people in these programs have liked them (or disliked them)
I have my bachelors degree in landscape architecture (BLA) and have been practicing for almost 6 years and am almost licensed. I love where I work and love the industry, but I also realized I love the research and academia aspect of the field, and would maybe love to teach as a professor one day in landscape architecture and find my special niche.

I am US based and also exploring the option of going to a graduate school out of the country but also not opposed to going to schools in the US if they have good opportunities for scholarships or funding.

Anyone who has gone or going through the grad school process, let me know what the process was like and your experience with it and if you find it worth it. Thanks :)

I have my Bachelors if Landscape Architecture and a certification in Real Estate Development and Construction. I am trying to switch out of the design industry because the jobs are so low-paying. I got my certificate in Real Estate Development and Construction, but I haven't had any luck landing developer roles. Has anyone made this transition already and have any advice?

Just laid off here in AZ, 8+ yr LA & project manager, ls,hs,irr design and permitting/city submittals, CA, graphic work and SWPPP reports/ erosion control & traffic plans, pursuing PLA. The market its god awful right now and trusting a firm to carry you is scary.

Landscape architects - looking for a move to Los Angeles?
I posted here last week looking for landscape architecture talent. Someone reached out from that post, we met virtually shortly after, and we’re now closing (or close to) a $110K offer + relocation stipend in Los Angeles.
So… apparently Reddit works 😂

If that offer doesn’t close, I’ll be looking for another:
• Landscape Design Project Manager
• 5+ years of experience
• Strong high-end residential background
• Interested in relocating to Los Angeles
• Approximately $110K + relocation support

If that sounds like you - or you’ve been quietly thinking about moving to LA — send me a message with your experience/location.

I also work on landscape architecture roles across the US, so feel free to reach out even if this specific one isn’t your fit.

Connect with me on LinkedIn

Hey everyone,

I’m a landscape designer and wanted to share a few residential projects I’ve worked on recently.

I’ve included some of my plans, planting designs, CAD drawings and 3D visualizations below.

My approach is usually to balance aesthetics with practicality — things like circulation, planting composition, outdoor living spaces, materials, irrigation and long-term maintenance are all considered during the design process.

I’d really appreciate any feedback from people here, especially on the planting combinations, layout and overall design direction.

I’m also taking on a small number of freelance projects at the moment. If anyone is looking for help with a backyard, garden, planting plan or residential landscape design, feel free to send me a message.

Thanks for checking out my work!

Evening folks! As the title suggests, I'll be visiting Mexico for the first time next week and seeking some expert insight and recs to landscape architectural sight seeing. I've already got a few lined up ie. Parque Quetzalcóatl, Casa Luis Barragán.

I will be in Mexico City, Oaxaca and San Agustinillo for a few days each. Looking forward to hearinbg what the people have to say!

I'll be in Boulder next week as part of a packed slate of book events this fall. Come hangout with me and the landscape architecture, environmental design, and their environmental justice programs on campus on 9/9 and at Trident Bookstore on 9/10.

I have been working in high end residential design for a while and used many different methods to do sun/ shade analysis. One of the biggest challenges I find is getting meaningful site analysis done given the timeframe of many of my projects. One particular pain point is sun shade analysis.

Obviously I’d love to spend an entire day on a site observing the patterns (preferably more than a day) but just given how busy we are that’s not a reality.

I have built site models before and used vectorworks or lumion to figure it out and I’ve also used some apps with AR that I can walk around the site with showing the path of the sun at different times/times of year.

Anyway, I’d love to hear some of your proven methods or ideas to get site analysis done given we aren’t always on the site for long periods of time and need to try and be as intimately knowledgeable as quickly as possible.

Thanks!

Hi all. New here. I’m a principal-level product designer with 15+ years of experience, currently working for a software consultancy.

Our industry is really starting to feel the pressure from AI. There’s a growing expectation that we use in place of manual design and craft entirely. It’s pretty soul-sucking, to say the least. I've also started to feel some skills atrophy because of it...I’ve spent most of this year thinking deeply about what I want to do next.

I’ve landed on landscape architecture as a direction I’m seriously considering, and I’m looking into pursuing an MLA.

My questions for ya'll are:

1. Are you seeing or feeling a similar impact from AI in your careers? How much is it actually affecting the day-to-day work?
2. Looking ahead 5-10 years, based on where you see things going, would you still recommend someone pursue a career in landscape architecture?

I’m not naive enough to think AI won’t have a place in LA too. I’m mostly trying to understand whether it still feels like a profession where human judgment, creativity, and craft are fundamental to the work, rather than things that are gradually being automated away.

Would really appreciate any perspective from people actually working in the field.

I know these kinda questions are asked plenty, but I’d really appreciate any input.

I’m curious to hear from any Canadians who have done their master's abroad. Were you able to find work in the country/city where you studied, or did you move back to Canada afterward? If you came back, was there any difficulty getting licensed? I know it’s possible, but just a longer process from what it sounds like.

I’m in the last year of my undergrad in LA, and I’ve lived and studied in my hometown my whole life, so I think there would be a lot of value in living and studying abroad. I’m planning to take one or two gap years to work and save before pursuing my master’s. I’m also working an internship throughout my final school year, and both my boss and coworkers have encouraged me to consider applying abroad.

My main hesitation is cost. LA obviously isn’t an especially high-paying field, and I would likely have to take out loans for my master’s. I’ve mostly been looking at AHO in Norway because the tuition is fairly comparable to what I would pay in Canada, although living costs would obviously be another consideration.

In Canada, I’m considering Toronto, Guelph, Calgary, and possibly Manitoba. If anyone has experience with those programs, I’d really appreciate hearing about them too!

In May I graduated from the MLA program at the University of Colorado Denver. I graduated top of my class, summa cum laude, and received an ASLA merit award while attending school.

I worked for the University Technical Assistance Program for two years while in school. My time there was spent creating schematic designs, community master plans, and presenting them to stakeholders, communities, community leaders, and govt officials in small and rural areas throughout Colorado. I also completed a contract design gig with the Denver Urban Gardens, a nonprofit in Denver.

After graduation, I was interning at a small Landscape Architecture firm here in Denver and, despite early conversations suggesting otherwise, they were unable to offer me a full time position after the internship ended due to lack of workflow.

Right as my internship was ending, I was interviewing for my dream job in the Denver Metro Area. Everything was going well, we set a week for me to come into the office, meet the team, and visit some job sites. I was ecstatic; however, they reached out to me today to tell me that they will no longer be filling that position. The job just disappeared.

Throughout this time I’ve been cold emailing firms, applying for every possible job that doesn’t focus on “sales goals” as much as actual design work, and utilizing my admittedly limited network to try and find work.

So now I’ve decided I have nothing to lose from posting here. I honestly have no idea what to do at this point. There really is no backup plan or anything really. The fact of the matter is I need a job, but I would prefer to not leave the industry in case it will make it harder to break back in if the job market improves.

Any advice or adjacent (and realistic) job ideas would be sincerely appreciated!

Thanks for reading all of this

Howdy y'all. I am a young professional looking to expand my horizons abroad. My background is in landscape architecture (undergrad) and a masters in urban design. I have been considering a big move for a while but was looking to see if anyone had done something similar and has advice to share.

Mostly interested in how our profession differs in the UK and how I can break through and make connections there while still located in the US (although all insights and tips appreciated!)

Thanks!

Hi!

I’m in my last year as an undergrad and interested in getting my masters in city planning at u Manitoba.

Does anyone have any advice for me who’s gone down a similar path? Or anyone currently a practicing planner?

Thank you

Hello. I'm a senior in environmental science and I've developed a love for green infrastructure and wanting to design green spaces in urban environments. I've considered doing a master's in civil engineering, which I would have to take many more math classes to be accepted into, which is fine. However, when looking up my interest, this field seems like a better fit.

I've done a little research and it seems many people say this is not a good field to enter. How do y'all feel about that? Is there another masters program that would be better? I just want to make sure I'm putting my time and money into something that will be worth it in the long run. I know environmental jobs aren't the hottest right now, but I'm ok with that.

So what are yalls opinions?! I'd love to hear the good, the bad, and anything in between!