Haven't heard anything yet. I don't think we'll hear from Penn until the last week in March. Did you ever confirm with any schools that your application is complete?

I've only applied to Penn since I will be moving to Philly next year. If that doesn't work out, I'll either wait another year or apply to Temple's BSLA program.

If you get into all of those schools which is your first choice?

dci-I never confirmed though I got notice from a few places and looked online at others to see that my things were in. I didn't hear anything from penn but I have no reason to think something is missing. Too bad we have to wait until late march, any idea when the open house would be?

According to their website, we will be notified by April 1st, the open house is April 9th and we must confirm acceptance by the 16th. A pretty short timetable!

What is your background - arts/science, neither? What aspects of LA are you interested in?

Hopefully some other applicants will chime in, I'm sure there are other MLA candidates that read this forum!

dci-I have a background in art, mostly in photography, and too be quite honest I'm interested in a lot of different aspects of the field. I'm fairly new to learning about the field and I like a lot of what I see. In general I'm really interested in urban public spaces and finding out how schools are really teaching sustainability and ecological design.

How about you, same question?

My background is in restoration ecology and I'm worried that my art background isn't strong enough to get accepted to Penn. I've worked in a variety of urban greenspaces from Olmstead parks to smaller city preserves and want to be more involved in the design and management of these types of spaces and it is LAs who are getting hired to do this. I'm also super interested in sustainable design (who isn't though) and integrating this into areas that effect greenspaces (so lots of work with stormwater etc.). So I'm a plant/ecology person who has taken a few studio classes...

welcome to the greener side of archinect!

dci- you can relax about your lack of art background preventing acceptance to Penn. Jim Corner takes great pride in admitting a very diverse group of smart people to the LARP program. Your background is similar to several of my classmates :)

ToxicYogurt- love your screen name!

When you both get accepted, email archinect about hosting a school blog- we need more 'scapers blogging round here.

if you have anymore penn questions- drop me a note or keep on posting...

tk
m.la/m.arch '05

yeah dci in addition to what treekiller said I've heard several times that you learn as much from your classmates as your professors. I think one of the great things will be learning from people with a hard science background and helping people as much as I can with my art background, so no worries. No news for me today...

Definitely don't worry about not having an art (or anything all that related to lanarch) background. I know at Cornell my incoming class consisted of people with backgrounds ranging in everything from linguistics to anthropology and comparative literature.

Anyway, best of luck!

agreed, I am at UW at we have a wide range of folks with various backgrounds, just adds to the richness.

This year we had about 125 applicants for about 15 openings, that is average.

good luck, hope you're happy wherever you decide to go!

Hey dogfish,

Not that you can divulge this info, but any idea when the mla peeps will be hearing from uw?

no clue, I'm not involved with the selection this year.
If I hear something I'll post, we have final reviews on friday so I'm a bit preocuppied at the moment.
Were you able to visit the schools to which you applied?

I was able to visit UW, cornell and RISD, but I'm planning on visiting everywhere I'm accepted and really trying to get as much info as possible about the particulars of each program. How did you choose to go to UW?

wanted to stay on the west coast, which narrowed it down a bit.
Wanted to work with faculty who were active and contributing to the profession in a meaningful way. I've found that campus visits were always the tie breaker. I trust my intiution on these big decisions, and uw just felt right.
I think we fly a bit lower on the radar, the administration does not market us as much as many other LA departments. Personally, i think our quality of work and students is quite high. Their is comraderie between students and years and we are not in competition with one another like some schools. We also have a lot of contact with professionals.

If you are interested in urban ecological design this is the place. Between portland and seattle, you have two major urban areas who are implementing policy and supporting design that is serious about sustainability. I would seriuosly look at what professional firms are doing in the area, that will give a sense of the local climate and perhaps some insights into what you might be exposed to.

good luck

Oh good! A thread where I can give hourly updates on not having received any word!

I applied to MLA at GSD, Penn, and UW. I think all three programs said they would send decisions out the third week of march.

toxic- did you apply to Cornell?

I did apply to cornell, so far I've heard from and gotten into RISD and UBC (vancouver ca). I liked Cornell a lot and it was the first school I visited because it is near where I was living at the time. It seems like the students get a lot of good practical experience but there is a part of me that really wants to study in an urban environment (don't get me wrong I love Ithaca). Are you a cornell student or waiting to hear as well?

I'm currently a Cornell student, I probably ran into you when you visited. I think I saw Dan (Krall) walking the portfolios into his office the other day, so you should hear soon! I definitely understand the wanting to live in an urban environment, the isolation can get to you sometimes. Congrats on your other acceptances!

Cool, I look forward to hearing. What is your feeling on cornell?

dogfish-I like what you said about UW's program a lot. I was wondering if you knew how the hiring process was going or when we could expect to know about additional faculty. New professors are always an exciting thing. I was wondering if you thought the department will continue it's strength in sustainability after Kristina Hill left?

I am told that the dept has a strong applicant pool to choose from, not sure when this will be announced. I don't think they have set up interviews yet.
This is an important time in the dept that will have a long term effect. Losing Kristina was a bummer, but nothing is lost in regards to the committment to urban sustainability. We have some great faculty members who are involved in some interesting projects. Hope you have some time to investigate. Landscape Arch magazine had an article about one of our studio projects, open space 2100, last fall-check it out.

I also got accepted to UBC with a generous scholarship, but decided that no scholarship at UW would be best, no regrets.

many great programs, uw is just one of 'em.

Hey everyone - Just to add to the chatter, I've heard from and gotten into UMN and RISD. Anyone visited RISD yet? I'm planning on checking out Minnesota towards the end of the month. I'm pretty psyched about UMN b/c their grad director is so on top of everything and has booked a lot of cool events for their open house.

I also applied to GSD, Cornell, and Penn. I'm trying to hold off on visiting RISD until I hear from some of them (I'm across the country), but from the looks of the timelines you guys mentioned, I ought to just book a flight while I still can. Any thoughts?

dogfish, how does the interview process @uw work? my girlfriend's sister applied and is out of the country for a while...

applied to MLA or as instructor?

redvillane- drop me a note with your minnesota plans so we can grab a beer after you visit Rapson Hall. (that extends to any other MLA applicants visiting from out of state).

Congrats on two acceptances- hope that you end up with a very, very difficult choice between all those great programs.

va bene-got into cornell today, pretty psyched about that. I'm not sure when I'll come up to visit, perhaps in April, so I'm sure I'll be meeting you there.

revdillane-I visited RISD and really liked it. I'm not sure what your background is but if you are interested in studying la at an art school this would be the place. If you're considering it at all for sure go visit, providence is pretty cool small city and the risd students have a lot of chances to do international studios in january and many other pretty interesting opportunities. Anyhow, if you get into gsd or penn and are looking for a smaller program with a strong design/art focus risd would be a really good option.

toxic - thanks for the info about RISD. Congrats on Cornell! I also got in today, and I'm kinda scrambling to figure out how to get back East to visit all these places. I've managed to convince my boss to let me have the whole last week of March off to fly East, but I don't think I can do any of the April open houses. Now I just need to get on Orbtiz or Sidestep pronto...

Va bene - any words of wisdom on the economy in Ithaca? My boyfriend will be moving with me wherever I go, and of all my potential schools, we're most nervous about finding a job/something to keep him afloat in Ithaca. He's a freelance writer and does English tutoring in addition to working in public radio, so multi-talented, but I know Ithaca's small and I don't know if there's any kind of need for that sort of thing. Doesn't look like he'll be able to get off from the radio station to check it out for himself (since he's already coming to MN with me the week prior), but I'm hoping that I'll be there to visit 1-2 days during the last week of March.

T-killer - thanks! We'll be out there 22nd-24th. It looks like they've got my itinerary booked pretty solidly, but I will let you know - I'd love to hear your thoughts. Are you currently working at a firm in Minneapolis? Any thoughts on the vibrancy of LA out/up there?

I got into RISD as well. Still waiting to hear from LSU, UVA, Penn and GSD. Right now, unless I get a ton of money from one of the other schools or they blow me away at their open house, RISD is the top choice. If you have the opportunity to visit there you definitely should, or at least try to have a phone conversation with Mikyoung Kim or Colgate Serle. I met with both back in October and walked away completely impressed.

revdillane-I actually did my undergrad at Cornell so I can try to answer your question. Basically it's a wonderful place that I would love to live at some point, there is a thriving farmer's market, lots of beautiful parks (gorges if you don't already know), a ton of great restaurants considering it's surrounded by farms, local wine region, great music scene....quality of life is verging on idyllic in my opinion. The two main employers are Cornell and Ithaca College (which has a great radio station). So for a town in upstate new york there are some major employers. There are also a fair amount of non-profits and really interesting grassroots social programs to get involved in (as a side note there is a really great festival called grassroots every summer). My girlfriend and I have often talked about moving back there but the job this has always been the question mark. So I guess what I'm saying is he would find a job and quite possibly a job that interested him, but it might take a while to find the right fit. Depending on how that ambiguous answer sounds, I can tell you that for me at least the lifestyle could make up for not having the perfect job.

Congrats on the Cornell acceptances! Toxic is right, Ithaca is a great town. It is small though, and the job market in all of upstate new york is slightly iffy. A few of my classmates came with their significant others as well and most of them have found jobs (one as a teacher and one working for planned parenthood). Another simply stayed with his old job (out of Montana) and is doing work for them here. The two major employers are Cornell and IC as toxic said and there are a few other prominent businesses in the area, but it's a small town at heart. There are some great radio stations around here (WVBR for example) that he may have some luck with. Finding a job shouldn't be too difficult, but finding one that he's really happy with will probably take some time.

Anyway, best of luck in your decisions!

just got into UW and UVA!!!!!! Kind of can't believe it.

Congratulations! you are in the lucky position of making a hard decision.
go celebrate!!!!

congrats toxic! Thanks for the info about Ithaca (thanks va be' as well) - it makes me feel a little more confident about ithaca. If nothing else, it sounds gorgeous.

jwillefo - congrats on RISD. I am planning to make an appt. with M. Kim on Monday for end of March. Do you know when we hear about financial stuff from them?

Hey guys, im new to the network but am glad I found it. I have applied and been accepted to the MLA programs at RISD and Cornell as well, am sort of psyched about both of them. When I visited Cornell back in October I fell in love with the campus and really enjoyed Dan Krall.

I havent visited RISD yet, but am going up for the open house in April (anyone else going to be there?). As much as I loved Cornell, I think I want to work in urban systems, so I am thinking RISD would be a better fit. Also, I am excited about studying in such an artistic environment, my background is in horticulture and the technical side of landscape so I am looking for a change.

Another concern I am having is the weight a degree from RISD carries nationwide. I mean Cornell is a very respected school, so you think RISD is as respected by employers around the nation?

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated

revdillane, I talked to people up there and I dont think we hear back about financial stuff until the begining of april

Outside, I'd like to weigh in on the 'weight' of the collge/university.
I went to one of the best fine art schools in the country for my bachelor's degree, and a very good university for my masters degree in fine art before attending UW as a MLA candidate.
I also taught art at a few 4-yr colleges before migrating to L.Arch. I'll share my experiences

The college you attend may open a few doors a bit wider in the beginning, but your reputation is your own to make. Your alma mater is not nearly as important as your professional experience. I would not base a decison on what school to attend on how it looks on the resume, it's a short time and becomes less important as the years pass.

go with the place that seems to offer the most for you to be comfortable yet challenged.

toxicyogurt - congrats on getting in to all those schools. i think uva has some amazing faculty right now - esp. kristina hill. what school is your first choice overall? would you choose penn or gsd over any of the ones you have already gotten into to?

man, i wish i had been able to apply to more programs than just one, but my girlfriend already had chosen philly for school and she followed me for my current masters so my options were limited. i certainly would have added uva and umn to my list!


i'm in agony about penn - i can't believe that i may have to wait almost 3 weeks to hear my fate!

revdillane- I am not sure about when we find out about financial stuff. Did you get the first letter from them? It might have mentioned that we will get another "official" letter from the school in the next week or so. Financial stuff might be a part of that letter/package.

outside- I will be attending the RISD open house as well, along with a few friends who were also accepted. As far as having a degree from RISD, it is considered the top art school in the counrty. And eventhough it more known for it's art and industrial design programs, Hargraves, MVVA, Martha Schwartz, Field Operations, etc. are all aware of the work students in the MLA are producing. When I met with Mikyoung in the fall, she agreed the MLA program there is still young, but that she personally makes sure everyone graduating has a job coming out. Of course you'll get a much better idea when you go there and talk to people. It's also a good idea to meet your possible classmates. Your classmates can be just as important as the faculty in a way. These are the people you'll spend the next three years with. They're also going to be a part of your network post graduation.

revdillane- I just read the letter again, it's says you will know your full financial package by April 9.

jwillefo and dogfish- thanks for the input. Personally, I think I would be happiest at RISD, I want to improve the artsy side of my career and that is definetly the place to do it for me. Plus I am interested in thier photograpgy and frabrics department, I think it would be cool to fuse those into the landscape field. So needless to say, ill see you at the open house and hopefully in august (if penn and gsd dont blow you away)!

I was thinking also about going to the MLAUD (masters of landscape architecture in urban design) after RISD, soes anyone know anything about that program?

Toxicyogurt- I really like the UVA program, would have applied there myself if it wasnt for the early december deadline. Its also very respected in the academic field if that is in your future. Congrats!

oh, i fogot to mention, the MLAUD is at GSD, if that helps at all

outside- you should have applied to UVA, the December deadline was just an online form of your basic info -name, address, etc. The full application wasn't due till Jan. 15, only a few days before most schools. Oh well...

See you at the open house.

Hey guys,

I'm excited to meet you all at the various open houses, congrats to all. In response to someone's questions, I'm leaning pretty heavily toward going to UW and I'm basically looking for the program where I'll produce the best work I can in a city that is inspiring. I'm psyched to visit everywhere though and I'm pretty sure meeting all the faculty and students will make the decision for me, or at least I'm banking on that cause I can be quite indecisive about this stuff:)

Anyone else have a pre-visiting favorite? What do people know about penn or when their open house would be? Actually I'd be interested if anyone wants to write about what they're looking for in a program in relation to academic and professional goals.

I believe Penn's open house is the 9th. So it's RISD the 5th, GSD the 6th and Penn the 9th. All around Easter weekend. Penn is definitely a great program. The kids there seem a bit more laid back than the GSD. I've heard the students really injoy being there. The thing is, it's James Corner's school -I don't know if you know who he is. I visited Penn the day before RISD. Had a short talk with Corner. I don't know if he was just trying to test me or he's actually that rude -probably both- but he spent a good time playing some some candy in his mouth while asking me why I was applying. The thing about bot the GSD and Penn is that they're great institutions with very smart people there. They also have some of the top professors and you'll easily get a job in the field. The thing that kinda worries me about those schools is that they're spitting out clones of their professors -maybe that's a bit harsh, I just got that feeling from talking to alumns. I decided at the end not to apply to UW, but it does seem like a very good program. And as far as being inspired by a city, Seattle seems like a good place for that.

I agree with jwillefo in that I have the same suspisions about penn and GSD cranking out spitting images of thier professors. I hear the same thing about Mike Linn and his graphics workshops.

To answer toxicyogurts questions, I am defiently thinking RISD is where I will end up. Basically the deal breaker for me is the highly artistic environment and smaller feel of the school. I think I am lacking in the art department, so no other school will offer me th opportunities that RISD will, plus it is so close to so many examples of urban design (which is my main interest) beign within a short drive of Boston, NYC, Philly and other New England towns. And besides, it is the best art school around.

Also, just from looking at the student work section of their website (which might I add is much more extensive than that of other schools) I am intruiged by the contemporary nature of what they are producing. I am also highly interested in contemporary designs, and it seems like RISD is on the sutting edge of contemporary art.

Lastly, I am seeing LA as more of an art than a simple desgin solution, and it seems like so many LAs these days are producing similarly boring designs, so I think what better school to prepare me for landscape art than an art school.

It seems like Mikyoung Kim will do just as good a job as far as getting her students jobs post grad as penn and GSD, plus with so many opportunities to intern I think it will be easy to make a name for myself.

Other plans of mine after getting an MLA is either going on for a masters of urban design wither at GSD or Columbia, or working for a couple of years and then doing that (im sure my debt situation at that point will be bad enough that I will have to work for a while).

I agree completely with your take on RISD, if there is one place I might go instead of UW it would be RISD for exactly the reasons you mentioned. I was quite impressed after speaking with Mikyoung and really felt like they wanted their students to develop as artists in school. I asked if there was an ego-driven aspect to the program and she said for the most part you don't find the pretentious self important professors who while often brilliant are terrible educators. Also the cross-fertilzation between architecture and landscape at RISD could lead to some awesome connections when graduating.

hey, has anyone noticed that the architects seem far more stressed out...just saying we seem to be a laid back bunch....

yes, far more stressed out and far more pretentious

Penn produces very few clones of Jim - why would we want to be like him? So you learn his methodology and aesthetic preferences, but you are encouraged to do your own thing. hence the laid back LARP attitude. Beyond Jim, we'd rather be clones of Anu (and that pisses him off). There are lots of visiting prof and critics to balance out Jim's ego, you should give him credit for bringing the best and brightest as students and critics to penn.

The ego at penn is to be your best, not to be the best of the group, so there was very little competition and lots of collaboration within my class.

If you do go to RISD/GSD/UVA versus Penn, I will still hire you :)

I should apologize, I have no personal experience with penn, its just the vibe I get. To give you guys credit, you are some of the best out there.

Just found out I got into UW! The email was sent last Friday, but since I was travelling all weekend, didn't get to check my email until this morning. They want a decision by March 27th, though, and I'm not even sure if I will have heard from GSD and Penn by then.

Did anyone else hear about financial aid from UW?

congrats kakacabeza!