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Prospective Students

University of Maryland Landscape Architecture has over 500 alums. They are employed in a variety of private and public organization across the region, nation, and world.

The Bachelor of Landscape Architecture (BLA) and Master of Landscape Architecture (MLA) at Maryland are accredited first professional degree programs. Students have travelled to Italy, New Zealand and Costa Rica. Students have also interned in firms across Maryland and the nation- primarily the East Coast.

The BLA normally takes four years (eight semesters), plus one summer internship or study abroad, to complete. BLA students may enter as freshmen or transfer into the second year of the program. Admission is based on grades, test scores, and academic coursework. For more information please see Prospective Undergrad Students.

The MLA is a three-year (six semester), accredited program. Those who enter with a BLA degree complete a two-year degree program. MLA students who enter with a BSAS or BArch degree usually require two-and-one-half years (five semesters). Requirements for MLA admission include a minimum 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) undergraduate GPA, satisfactory GRE scores, a portfolio and references. International students must demonstrate a minimum level of English proficiency of minimum 100 TOEFL. For more information please see Prospective Graduate Students.

Tuition and Fees

Costs for a full-time BLA student for academic year 2024-2025

$5,904.50 per semester for Resident full-time undergraduate students
$20,593.00 per semester for Non-Resident full-time undergraduate student
Mandatory fees are a flat rate of $397.00 for 1-8 credit hours and $861.00 for 9+ credit hours
Plus a studio fee, ranging from $200-$300.
For a full list of fees, please visit Student Financial Services and Cashiering's Undergraduate Tuition and Fees

Standard Graduate Tuition and Mandatory Fees

Per credit hour fee
Plus a studio fee.
For a full list of fees, please visit the Student Financial Services and Cashiering's Graduate Tuition and Fees

For most up-to-date information please visit:

Student Financial Services and Cashiering's Tuition and Fees

Student Demographics

Fall 2022

BLA 57.4% female, 42.6% male
MLA 80.0% female, 20% male

For more information, please visit: Institutional Research, Planning, & Assessment

Academic Progress

BLA students must maintain a minimum overall 2.0 GPA (4.0 scale). At the completion of the sophomore year, BLA students must earn a minimum 2.0 GPA in their required landscape architecture coursework to proceed to the junior year of the program. Students failing to meet these requirements are placed on academic probation and have one semester in which to improve their GPA's. All 2017 sophomores that continued in the LARC program met the 2.0 GPA requirement. BLA students may study abroad for one semester and stay in sequence/graduate in the normal expected time.

MLA students are expected to maintain a minimum overall GPA of 3.0 (4.0 scale). Those who fail to meet this requirement are placed on academic probation and have one semester in which to improve their GPA's.

Student Recognition

BLA and MLA students receive scholarships, travel awards and other recognition.

2024 students selected for LAF olmsted scholars

BLA Madison Mohan
MLA Mary Christensen

2024 maryland asla honor and merit recipients

ASLA Honor Awards

Azadeh Esmaeili (MLA)
Cierra Hargrove (BLA)
Gabrielle Shelton (BLA

ASLA Merit Awards

Mary Christensen (MLA)
Madison Mohan (BLA)
Emmeline Steuernagle (BLA)

2023 students selected for LAF olmsted scholars

BLA Javiera Belencia Diaz-Ortiz
MLA Audrey Claire Seiz

2023 maryland asla honor and merit recipients

ASLA Honor Awards

Erin Callahan(MLA)
Hayley Welzant (BLA)
Maia Kessler (BLA

ASLA Merit Awards

Matthew Reise (MLA)
Zach Spence (BLA)
Mackenzie Fei (BLA)

2023 Cela Fountain Scholars

Marci-Ann Smith (MLA)
Javi Diaz-Ortiz (BLA)

2022 MARYLAND ASLA HONOR AND MERIT RECIPIENTS

ASLA Honor Awards

Yike Xu (BLA)
Tali Kirshenboim (BLA)
Hannah Savio (MLA)

ASLA Merit Awards

Alyssa Steele (BLA)
Luke Peterson (BLA)
Xiaojin Ren (MLA)

2022 STUDENTS SELECTED FOR LAF OLMSTED SCHOLARS

BLA Zaria Stebbins
MLA Bridget Stokes

2022 STUDENT NOMINATED AS CELA STUDENT DIRECTOR ELECT

BLA Student Isiah Dashiell will serve as Student Director for a two year term. Read about the Council of Educators in Landscape appointment in PSLA News.

2021 Student wins MD ASLA Design award

MLA Student Alison Jones wins Maryland Chapter ASLA Design Award.

2020 Student wins MD ASLA research award

MLA Student Sherry Russell wins Maryland Chapter ASLA Merit Award for Research on housing values and community supported open space.
BLA Student Audrey Wilke is National Finalist for LAF Olmsted Scholar Awards. Read about her research In the Maryland Today News.

2016 Student Recent National Design Awards

SECOND PLACE: 2016 (announced in 2017), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Campus RainWorks Competition Challenge, 2nd place demonstration category. Story here.
FIRST PLACE: Maryland Sustainable Growth Commission's Sustainable Growth Challenge
- MLA students Jason Poole, Jennifer Ren, and Laura Robinson won FIRST PLACE in this year's Maryland Sustainable Growth Commission's Sustainable Growth Challenge!

2015 Student Recent National Design Awards

FIRST PLACE: 2015 (announced in 2016), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Campus RainWorks Student Competition Challenge, 1st place demonstration category
Harris Trobman named one of six LAF National Olmsted Scholar Finalists.
FIRST PLACE: U.S. EPA Campus RainWorks Challenge
- MLA students: Harris Trobman, Jonathan Gemmell, Penny Jacobs, Nick Yoder; Civil and Environmental Engineering students: Jaison Renkenberger, and Yan Wang; Sustainable Development and Conservation Biology: Maria Harwood; Sustainable Development and Conservation Biology/Environmental Public Policy: Benjamin Alexandro; and Agricultural & Resources Economics: Monica Renee Saavoss
HONORABLE MENTION: U.S. EPA Campus RainWorks Challenge
- MLA students: Chris Shipley, Seth Fleming, Jun Jiang, Amina Mohamed; and Civil and Environmental Engineering students: Jaison Renkenberger, and Yan Wang

2014 Student Recent National Design Awards

FIRST PLACE: 2014 (announced in 2015), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Campus RainWorks Student Competition Challenge
FIRST PLACE: 2014, Sustainable Maryland Growth Challenge, First Place.
- Received from the Maryland Sustainable Growth Commission for the LARC748 Special Topics Studio Project on Oxford, MD Sea Level Change Design Investigations (selected class project submission). Some of the projects may be seen here.
FIRST PLACE: Urban Land Institute / Gerald D. Hines Student Urban Design Competition!
- MLA student Amina Mohamed, (BLA 2012) was part of a team that also included Andrew Casavant (Master of Community Planning and BLA 2010 alum), David Ensor (Master of Architecture), Matthew Miller (Master of Architecture), and Rameez Munawar, (Master of Real Estate Development). (For more information see: ULI Awards.)
FIRST PLACE: MD Sustainable Growth Challenge
- Participants: Robyn Edwards, Amy Marin, Elisabeth Walker, Nancy Britt, Adriana Mendoza, and Travis Wierengo (For more information see: Maryland Sustainable Growth Commission.)
Honorable Mention: EPA's Campus RainWorks Challenge
- Participants: Nancy Britt, Travis Wierengo, Shoshanah Haberman (PSLA) and Jaison Renkenberger (Civil and Environmental Engineering). In addition to Jaison, Claire Muerdter, and Caleb Hii from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering also served as co-collaborators and provided input to three team submissions.

About half of incoming and current MLA students receive assistantships which provide from at least one year of funding (tuition remission plus benefits).

Graduation and Time to Degree

BLA: Fifteen (15) BLA degrees were conferred in the Spring of 2022, 10 in 2021, 16 in 2020, 13 in 2019, 19 in 2018, 17 in 2016, and 12 in 2015. Mean semesters to degree was 8.7 for those graduated in 2013. It was 9 semesters for 2012 graduates and 8.9 for those who graduated in 2011 and 2010. The higher number of semesters (> 8) reflects the large enrollment of transfer students, many of whom complete more than one year of college prior entering the program.

MLA: Ten (10) MLA degrees were conferred in Spring 2022, 6 in Spring 2021, 2 in 2020, 4 in 2019, 2 in 2018, 4 in 2017, 5 in 2016, and 4 in 2015. Mean semesters to degree was 4.9 for those graduating in 2013. It was 5.5 semesters for 2012 graduates, 5.1 for those who graduated in 2011, and 7 for 2010 graduates.

Alumni Achievement

Recent firms that have hired or provided internships for both BLA and MLA students can be found under Careers on our About Page.

BLA: The majority of our recent BLA graduates are employed in private practice. One of our students completed her service in the Peace Corps and begins graduate studies in the Fall 2014. The majority (63%) of recent 2013 BLA graduates are employed in the private sector. Two graduates are employed with non-profits, one graduate with a public institution, and another student is pursuing graduate studies. In addition, many BLA graduates are very active in MDASLA leadership roles.

MLA: The majority (80%) of recent 2013 MLA graduates are employed in the private sector. Private sector local firms include Parker Rodriguez Inc and Campion Hruby Landscape Architects. Some of our recent international students practice in China. One student (10%) is employed in the public sector and one student (10%) is employed with a non-profit - Neighborhood Design Center. In addition, many 2013 MLA graduates are very active in MDASLA leadership roles.

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