Career Roadmap
Alison's work combines: Art, Environment & Nature, and Being Creative
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
Smith College
Graduate Degree
Landscape Architecture
University of Virginia-Main Campus
Here's the path I recommend for someone who wants to be a Landscape Architects:
Bachelor's Degree: Graphic Design
Graduate Degree
Learn more about different paths to this career
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life took a while to figure out
1.
My mother is a great gardener and always thought I would be a landscape architect.
2.
Majored in Art History and French Lit. because I liked it even though it had no career potential.
3.
Couldn't get a job in those fields so I moved to New York and went into magazine publishing.
4.
Realized I hated it and felt trapped in the concrete jungle of New York.
5.
I researched careers and had an 'aha' moment when I read the description of landscape architecture.
6.
Left all my friends and spent all my money going to graduate school...and loved it.
7.
I worked for the National Park Service for 6 years and really believed in the cause.
8.
I moved to CA and started my own residential practice, hoping to contribute to public projects too.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Society in general:
Art isn't something that will earn you money. I didn't think I was creative enough to pursue a career in landscape architecture. Women should stay in the office and not run construction projects. You need to be loud to be heard.
How I responded:
It took me a while to realize my passion and talents lay in an artistic field. I didn't want to be making things people threw out (magazines). I wanted to make a difference in people's lives and create things of lasting beauty. I am good at juggling parts of a puzzle and that has translated naturally to managing construction projects. I look at being a woman on a project as an asset now instead of a liability. I am soft spoken but find that the right people listen to me.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
I struggled to pay for graduate school. When I graduated I had to live in a bad area because I didn't have enough money each month after paying my student loan payments. It was worth it though because it gave me the credentials for my new career.