Landscape Horticulture

NEW ASSOCIATE OF ARTS DEGREE IN LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE

The Merritt College Landscape Horticulture Department is proud to launch its new Associate of Arts Degree in Landscape Architecture. The program has two main goals: to help students acquire skills necessary to work in a professional design or design/build office, and to provide the minimum educational credit required for the Landscape Architect Licensing Exam (LARE).

BASIC JOB SKILLS: Landscape architecture encompasses the design of urban and public spaces, private residences, regional parks and recreation areas, smart-growth development, and the use of green materials, climate-appropriate and water-saving plants, and ecologically responsible design solutions. Landscape architects work with architects, city planners, engineers and contractors to develop designs that make the best and most thoughtful use of open spaces on any scale and in almost any location. While our two-year degree program cannot possibly cover all these areas, we will provide students with the following foundation in design skills, with emphasis on small scale projects:

• Preparing planting plans
• Preparing irrigation plans
• Preparing preliminary grading and drainage plans
• Preparing site analysis diagrams evaluating climate, soils, slope
• Measuring small sites and drawing base maps to scale
• Completing WELO (Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance) documents
• Drawing landscape designs in plan, section, elevation, planometric, and perspective views
• Drawing and drafting by hand
• Drawing and drafting with computer assisted design programs
• Inspecting plants on a jobsite, and at nurseries prior to delivery
• Evaluating the appropriateness of materials for use in landscape designs
• Preparing schematic construction diagrams

EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR LICENSING: To practice landscape architecture legally in California one must pass the LARE. Registration provides professional standing and credentials, widens the scope of work in which a designer can engage, and can potentially improve salary levels. To qualify to sit for the exam, one must have a combination of 6 years education and work experience. Our AA degree will fulfill the minimum (1 year) educational requirement, without which an individual can never obtain licensing regardless of the amount of work experience. Please read further for licensing details.

PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS: CORE CLASSES (40 UNITS): Take each of the following classes:

LH18A/B and LH22A/B: Landscape Design Lecture & Lab, 8 units
LH29: Planting Design, 3 units
LH33: Design Evaluation of Bay Area Landscapes, 3 units
LH35A: Advanced Landscape Design (Topographic Form), 3 units
LH57: Form and Composition in Landscape Design, 3 units
LH60A: Freehand Drawing for Landscape Designers, 3 units
LH210A: Landscape Design Forum, 2 units

Choose one of the two following classes:

LH9A: Sketchup Pro for Landscape Designers, 3 units

or

LH34A: Computer Assisted Landscape Design, 3 units

Choose one of the following two classes:

LH2: Tree Identification and Culture (day), 3 units
or
LH2E: Tree Identification and Culture (evening), 3 units

Choose one of the following six classes:

LH5A: California Native Plant Identification and Culture (fall day), 3 units
or
LH5B: California Native Plant Identification and Culture (spring day), 3 units
or
LH5EA: California Native Plant Identification and Culture (fall evening), 3 units
or
LH5EB: California Native Plant Identification and Culture (spring evening), 3 units
or
LH40: Plant Materials: Mediterranean, South African and Australian Plant ID and Culture (day) 3 units
or
LH40E: Plant Materials: Mediterranean, South African and Australian Plant ID and Culture (evening), 3 units

Choose one of the following two classes: LH14: Landscape Construction (day), 3 units or

LH14E: Landscape Construction (evening), 3 units
Choose one of the following two classes:
LH17: Irrigation (day), 3 units
or
LH17E: Irrigation (evening), 3 units

PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS: COLLEGE GENERAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS (20 UNITS): Merritt College offers a broad range of general education (GE) classes. Students will vary considerably in their needs and objectives, and should refer to the Merritt College 2011-13 Catalog for details (see ). We are happy to help interested students develop GE curriculum paths relating to landscape architecture. Students with AA or higher degrees may be able to waive all GE requirements (Merritt’s Counseling Department can assist you in making this determination).

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE LICENSING: The State of California, through the LATC (Landscape Architects Technical Committee), licenses the practice and title of Landscape Architecture by way of a registration exam. To qualify to sit for the Landscape Architecture Registration Exam (LARE), candidates must possess at least one year of approved educational credit, and also complete a work internship of specified length. The combined educational credit and internship must total 6 years. The LATC grants no credit for education units obtained without the candidate earning a degree or certificate. Below is a list of the educational requirements. For more details on licensing, please log on to the LATC webpage at .

Educational requirements for licensing: degree or certificate programs that satisfy educational requirement credits, are (including the number of credit years):

• AA or AS Degree in Landscape Architecture from a Community College: 1 year
• Masters or Bachelors Degree in Landscape Architecture from an accredited school: 4
• years.
• Masters or Bachelors Degree in Landscape Architecture from a non-accredited school: 3
• years.
• Extension Certificate in Landscape Architecture plus a four-year degree in any subject: 4 years.
• Extension Certificate in Landscape Architecture from an approved school: 2 years.

AA or AS Degree in Landscape Architecture plus an Extension Certificate in Landscape    Architecture: 3 years.
Work experience requirement for licensing: In addition to completing the educational requirement, candidates must possess at least two years of work experience credit to be eligible to take the LARE. With one exception, at least one year of work experience must be under the direct supervision of a licensed landscape architect and must be gained after a degree or certificate is awarded. The exception is candidates that qualify with work experience as self-employed landscape contractors and hold an Extension Certificate, Masters, or Bachelors Degree in Landscape Architecture

Fifteen hundred (1,500) hours of qualifying employment equals one year of work experience. Employment in excess of 40 hours per week cannot be considered.

Qualifying work experience receives credit as indicated:

• Employment by a licensed landscape architect: up to 5 years
• Self-employment as or employment by a licensed architect: up to 1 year
• Self-employment as or employment by a registered civil engineer: up to 1 year
• Self-employment as a landscape contractor: up to 4 years

QUESTIONS? For questions regarding Merritt AA Degree in Landscape Architecture, please contact Chris Grampp, Landscape Horticulture Department Chair, cgrampp@peralta.edu.