Diploma in Landscaping (Level 5)

The course

MIT's Diploma in Landscaping is designed to teach students about three strands of landscaping - creation of a functional but aesthetically exciting design, and how to implement and maintain the plan.

Well supported within the landscape industry, several leading companies recommend new staff have the diploma if they want to rise to team leadership.

Students attend MIT's School of Horticulture from Monday to Wednesday, 9am to 4.30pm each week of the fulltime, 34-week course, and for an optional, two-hour tutorial on Thursdays.

For the majority of the course, students spend Fridays on work experience either in self-employment or working for designers, construction or maintenance landscapers.

The amount of private study required varies over the year but can be up to 20 hours per week.

In construction, the practical skills studied include paving, concreting, fence building, laying ready lawn, drainage, transplanting, setting out a landscape, levelling and surveying. Students also build a small landscape, which includes paving, concreting, fencing, laying ready lawn and planting.

Students study freehand drawing, draughting techniques, plan presentation and colour rendering. Other practical skills are landscape management and plant use.

The course's theory covers all aspects of landscaping, including design and planting, freehand and perspective drawing, paving, concreting, timber, quantity surveying and costing, landscape management and business plans, marketing and basic accounting practices, legislation and plant identification.

The student's project also involves drawing plans, and a quantity survey with costing.

Each of the programme's six areas of study - landscape design, construction, management, plants, business and specialist projects - are assessed by practical tests, assignments, design projects and researched written work.

As well as the diploma, students can gain, depending on their work and study history, a National Certificate in Horticulture (Level 4), endorsed in landscaping, or an Advanced National Certificate.

Graduates can go on to study landscape design, landscape architecture, and resource management.

The course is limited to 18 students who have a Level 4 National Certificate or three years' experience in the horticultural or landscaping industry.

This year's fees were $4611 but that may change for next year's course, which begins on February 13. The application deadline is early February and applicants are encouraged to get in early, as selection involves an interview.

Graduates who have found work as labourers have moved into leading hand/team leader positions within six months. Others have taken up design support positions and worked alongside a designer for three to six months to cement their knowledge.

Other positions have included maintenance, garden management and sales. Salaries range from around $30,000 for a new graduate and rise with experience.

What graduates think

Jason Hoy
28-years-old
Landscaper, Auckland. Graduated 2005

I'd spent time in England doing landscaping and grounds maintenance. I had no experience before I did a short, 18-month course with the Royal Horticulture Society.

Because I'd liked landscaping, when I got back here I thought I'd do a course to get an insight into how the industry works in New Zealand. MIT's course looked practical and it's worked out well. It had a good balance of practical knowledge and design. You have to work for a professional landscaper one day a week and that, with the course work, keeps you busy.

A lot of it was new to me - not just design, but drawing to scale and draughting. It met my expectations and upskilled me in a lot of areas. It gave me confidence. The tutors were very knowledgeable, up-to-date with the latest trends and had good equipment. I'd recommend it.

What employers think

Craig Steiner
Managing Director, Strass Landscape Developers

Any qualification a person takes in relation to their job means they are interested and keen on that industry.

Jason worked part-time for us while he studied. The course has a balance of practice and theory. An understanding of the practical is important in our industry, even if you want to become a designer. They have to have the practical knowledge to know the pitfalls and how far they can extend their creativity.

It's a good course for a year, a good stepping stone. Anybody who comes to a job interview and has done that course gets a large tick beside their name.

The qualification

Diploma in Landscaping (Level 5)

Manukau Institute of Technology

Phone: 0800 22 62 62

Earnings: from $30,000