The Landscape Architecture Program promotes sustainable landscape planning, design and restoration, with particular emphasis on the urban environs. The Program is committed to providing leadership in confronting issues that affect urban neighborhoods, particularly those in need of revitalization. Our BLA program meets the needs of Landscape Architecture students who are pursuing a first professional undergraduate degree. The Program provides a comprehensive professional education that develops the knowledge, skill, and vision necessary for students to understand contemporary global issues and to address the varied needs of society.
At the core of the Landscape Architecture Program are planning and design studios where students focus on the development of responses and solutions to site problems and opportunities. The goal is to challenge students to create site-appropriate designs, as well as to enhance the value and sustainability of places.
The Landscape Architecture Program supports local and regional leadership in confronting ecological issues of the natural and built environments within the Philadelphia Metropolitan region. What really makes our Program unique is that most design studio projects are for "real" clients, dealing with "real" environmental and community issues. Because of our focus on sustainable design and planning projects, the Program was awarded a Schuylkill Action Network (SAN) Educational Sector Source Water Protection Award (2006).
Our graduates demonstrate a strong sense of professional ethics, a posture of professional leadership, and a dedication to advancing the knowledge of the landscape architecture profession. Formal internships are available as well as part-time employment in Philadelphia’s numerous world-renowned professional firms. There are numerous study abroad opportunities.
Our new Program received Candidacy Status from the Landscape Architecture Accreditation Board (LAAB) in 2006 and we graduated our first class of students in May 2008! We are now eligible to apply for full LAAB accreditation for our Program (Fall 2008).