Landscape Architects

ANZSCO ID 232112

Overview

Snapshot

Employed
3,000
Future Growth
N/A
Weekly Earnings
N/A
Full-Time Share
73%
Female Share
47%
Average age
39

Summary

Landscape Architects plan and design land areas for projects such as open space networks, parks, schools, institutions, roads, external areas for all building types, land subdivisions, and commercial, industrial and residential sites.

Tasks

  • Consults with professionals and clients about external area designs, costs and construction.

  • Compiles and analyses site and community data about geographical and ecological features, landforms, soils, vegetation, site hydrology, visual characteristics and human-made structures, to formulate land use and development recommendations, and for preparing environmental impact statements.

  • Prepares reports, site plans, working drawings, specifications and cost estimates for land development, shows location and details of proposals, including ground modelling, structures, vegetation and access.

  • Inspects construction work in progress to ensure compliance with plans, specifications and quality standards.

Characteristics

Job Type
Professionals
Skill Level
Very high skill
ANZSCO Occupation group
Unemployment Rate
n/a
Industries
Pathway(s)
  • University
  • Vocational Education and Training (VET)
Interests
  • Practical
  • Analytical
  • Creative
  • Enterprising
Physical Demand
  • Sedentary
  • Light

Outlook

Employment Outlook

JSA produces employment projections to show where likely future job opportunities may be. Employment projections data are only produced for occupations at the broad four digit Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) level. While data are not available for this occupation, projections data are available for the parent occupation, Architects and Landscape Architects, under the outlook section.


Earnings and hours

Working arrangements

  • Around 73% of people employed as Landscape Architects work full-time hours, in all their jobs combined. This is 7 percentage points above the all jobs average (66%).

    Full-time workers work an average of 44 hours per week in their main job. This is the same as the all jobs average.

    Sources:Full-time share and full-time hours: ABS, 2016 Census, customised report. Compared to the all jobs average.


Industries

Main industries

1
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
64.5%
2
Construction
19.2%
3
Public Administration and Safety
10.8%
4
Arts and Recreation Services
0.9%
5
Other industries
3.6%

Regions

Employment across Australia

NSW

32.6% All occupations: 31.6%

VIC

30.6% All occupations: 25.6%

QLD

17.3% All occupations: 20.0%

SA

5.8% All occupations: 7.0%

WA

10.7% All occupations: 10.8%

TAS

0.7% All occupations: 2.0%

NT

0.4% All occupations: 1.0%

ACT

1.8% All occupations: 1.9%

Employment by State and Territory (% Share)

State Landscape Architects All Jobs Average
NSW 32.6 31.6
VIC 30.6 25.6
QLD 17.3 20.0
SA 5.8 7.0
WA 10.7 10.8
TAS 0.7 2.0
NT 0.4 1.0
ACT 1.8 1.9



Worker profile

Age and gender

Age In Years
39
All Jobs Average is 40
Female Share
47%
All Jobs Average is 48%
  • The median age of Landscape Architects is 39 years. This is similar to the all jobs average of 40 years.

    A large share of workers are aged 25 to 34 years.

    Females make up 47% of the workforce. This is similar to the all jobs average of 48%.

    Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile and gender share compared to the all jobs average.

Age Profile (% Share)

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.
Age Bracket Landscape Architects All Jobs Average
15-19 0.4 5.0
20-24 5.5 9.3
25-34 30.8 22.9
35-44 28.5 22.0
45-54 20.1 21.6
55-59 7.4 9.0
60-64 4.3 6.0
65 and Over 3.1 4.2
Median Age 39 40

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.


Employment Pathways

Education, training and experience

A bachelor degree in landscape architecture is usually needed to work as a Landscape Architect. Some workers have a Vocational Education and Training (VET) qualification.

Visit

  • Course Seeker to search and compare higher education courses.
  • ComparED to compare undergraduate and postgraduate student experiences and outcomes.
  • My Skills to compare Vocational Education and Training (VET) courses, providers and student outcomes.
  • AAPathways website to explore Agriculture, Horticulture and Conservation & Land Management VET training pathways.

Highest Level of Education (% Share)

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.
Type of Qualification Landscape Architects All Jobs Average
Post Graduate/Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate 26.8 10.1
Bachelor degree 52.7 21.8
Advanced Diploma/Diploma 10.7 11.6
Certificate III/IV 5.0 21.1
Year 12 4.0 18.1
Year 11 0.1 4.8
Year 10 and below 0.7 12.5

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.


Skills and Knowledge

Employers look for Architects and Landscape Architects who can communicate clearly, work well in a team and have strong interpersonal skills.

Skills

Skills can be improved through training or experience.

  • 57%

    Reading comprehension

    Reading work related information.

  • 57%

    Operations analysis

    Understanding needs and product requirements to create a design.

  • 55%

    Active listening

    Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

  • 55%

    Coordination with others

    Being adaptable and coordinating work with other people.

  • 55%

    Speaking

    Talking to others.

  • 54%

    Active learning

    Being able to use what you have learnt to solve problems now and again in the future.

  • 54%

    Complex problem solving

    Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

  • 54%

    Critical thinking

    Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

  • 54%

    Writing

    Writing things for co-workers or customers.

  • 52%

    Judgment and decision making

    Figuring out the pros and cons of different options and choosing the best one.

  • 52%

    Social perceptiveness

    Understanding why people react the way they do.

  • 52%

    Systems evaluation

    Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

  • 50%

    Persuasion

    Talking people into changing their minds or their behaviour.

  • 50%

    Monitoring

    Keeping track of how well work is progressing so you can make changes or improvements.

  • 48%

    Management of personnel resources

    Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, and choosing the best people for the job.

  • 48%

    Time management

    Managing your own and other peoples' time to get work done.

  • 46%

    Systems analysis

    Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect it.

  • 46%

    Instructing

    Teaching people how to do something.

  • 46%

    Negotiation

    Bringing people together and trying to sort out their differences.

  • 46%

    Serving others

    Looking for ways to help people.


Knowledge

These are important topics, subjects or knowledge areas.

  • 85%

    Technical design

    Design techniques, tools, and principles used to make detailed technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

  • 70%

    Customer and personal service

    Understanding customer needs, providing good quality service, and measuring customer satisfaction.

  • 68%

    Building and construction

    Materials, and methods used to construct or repair houses, buildings, or other structures like highways and roads.

  • 67%

    English language

    English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

  • 64%

    Engineering and technology

    Use engineering, science and technology to design and produce goods and services.

  • 64%

    Administration and management

    Business principles involved in strategic planning, leadership, and coordinating people and resources.

  • 63%

    Clerical

    Word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office work.

  • 62%

    Geography

    Describing land, sea, and air, including their physical characteristics, locations, how they work together, and the location of plant, animal, and human life.

  • 60%

    Computers and electronics

    Circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

  • 60%

    Sales and marketing

    Showing, promoting, and selling including marketing strategy, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

  • 59%

    Mathematics

    Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics.

  • 56%

    Biology

    Plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, how they rely on and work with each other and the environment.

  • 55%

    Public safety and security

    Use of equipment, rules and ideas to protect people, data, property, and institutions.

  • 53%

    Education and training

    Curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

  • 53%

    Personnel and human resources

    Recruiting and training people, managing pay and other entitlements (like sick leave), and negotiating pay and conditions.

  • 52%

    Law and government

    How our laws and courts work. Government rules and regulations, and the political system.

  • 45%

    Fine arts

    Compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.

  • 43%

    Communications and media

    Media production, communication, and dissemination. Includes written, spoken, and visual media.

  • 43%

    Transportation

    Moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road.

  • 41%

    Economics and accounting

    Economics and accounting, the financial markets, banking and checking and reporting of financial data.


Abilities

Workers use these physical and mental abilities..

  • 59%

    Oral expression

    Communicate by speaking.

  • 57%

    Brainstorming

    Come up with a number of ideas about a topic, even if the ideas aren't very good.

  • 57%

    Deductive reasoning

    Use general rules to find answers or solve problems logically.

  • 57%

    Oral comprehension

    Listen to and understand what people say.

  • 57%

    Visualization

    Imagine how something will look after it is moved around or changed.

  • 57%

    Written comprehension

    Read and understand written information.

  • 57%

    Written expression

    Write in a way that people can understand.

  • 57%

    Inductive reasoning

    Use lots of detailed information to come up with answers or make general rules.

  • 57%

    Sorting or ordering

    Order or arrange things in a pattern or sequence (e.g., numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).

  • 55%

    Categorising

    Come up with different ways of grouping things.

  • 55%

    Originality

    Come up with unusual or clever ideas, or creative ways to solve a problem.

  • 55%

    Problem spotting

    Notice when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong, even if you can't solve the problem.

  • 54%

    Near vision

    See details that are up-close (within a few feet).

  • 54%

    Speech clarity

    Speak clearly so others can understand you.

  • 50%

    Speech recognition

    Identify and understand the speech of another person.

  • 45%

    Far vision

    See details that are far away.

  • 43%

    Flexibility of closure

    See a pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) hidden in other distracting material.

  • 43%

    Mathematics

    Choose the right maths method or formula to solve a problem.

  • 43%

    Multitasking

    Do two or more things at the same time.

  • 43%

    Selective attention

    Pay attention to something without being distracted.


Activities

These are kinds of activities workers regularly do in this job.

  • 83%

    Thinking creatively

    Using your own ideas for developing, designing, or creating something new.

  • 79%

    Planning and prioritising work

    Deciding on goals and putting together a detailed plan to get the work done.

  • 78%

    Making decisions and solving problems

    Using information to work out the best solution and solve problems.

  • 77%

    Drafting, laying out, and specifying parts

    Detailing and describing how devices, parts or equipment are to be made, assembled, modified, maintained, or used.

  • 76%

    Communicating with the public

    Giving information to the public, business or government by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 74%

    Keeping your knowledge up-to-date

    Keeping up-to-date with technology and new ideas.

  • 73%

    Building good relationships

    Building good working relationships and keeping them over time.

  • 72%

    Coordinating the work of a team

    Getting members of a group to work together to finish a task.

  • 72%

    Communicating within a team

    Giving information to co-workers by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 71%

    Scheduling work and activities

    Working out the timing of events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.

  • 71%

    Working with the public

    Greeting or serving customers, clients or guests, and public speaking or performing.

  • 70%

    Researching and investigating

    Looking for, getting and understanding different kinds of information.

  • 63%

    Collecting and organising information

    Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or checking information or data.

  • 63%

    Looking for changes over time

    Comparing objects, actions, or events. Looking for differences between them or changes over time.

  • 63%

    Guiding and directing staff

    Guiding and directing staff, including setting and monitoring performance standards.

  • 62%

    Checking compliance with standards

    Deciding whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.

  • 61%

    Leading and encouraging a team

    Encouraging and building trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.

  • 56%

    Estimating amounts, costs and resources

    Working out sizes, distances, amounts, time, costs, resources, or materials needed for a task.

  • 55%

    Working with computers

    Using computers to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.

  • 51%

    Explaining things to people

    Helping people to understand and use information.


Interests and demands

Learn about the daily activities, and physical and social demands faced by workers. Explore the values and work styles that workers rate as most important.

Interests

Interests are the style or type of work we prefer to do. All interest areas are shown below.

  • 90%

    Creative

    Working with forms, designs and patterns. Often need self-expression and can be done without following rules.

  • 76%

    Analytical

    Ideas and thinking. Searching for facts and figuring out problems in your head.

  • 71%

    Practical

    Practical, hands-on work. Often with plants and animals, or materials like wood, tools, and machinery.

  • 57%

    Enterprising

    Starting up and carrying out projects. Leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes require risk taking and often deal with business.

  • 33%

    Administrative

    Following set procedures and routines. Working with numbers and details more than with ideas, usually following rules.

  • 24%

    Helping

    Working with people. Helping or providing service to others.


Values

Work values are important to a person’s feeling of satisfaction. All six values are shown below.
  • 81%

    Independence

    Work alone and make decisions. Workers are able to try out their own ideas, make decisions on their own, and work with little or no supervision.

  • 74%

    Working conditions

    Job security and good working conditions. There is usually a steady flow of interesting work, and the pay and conditions are generally good.

  • 71%

    Achievement

    Results oriented. Workers are able to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.

  • 67%

    Recognition

    Advancement and the potential to lead. Workers are recognised for the work that they do, they may give directions and instructions to others, and they are looked up to in their company and their community.

  • 48%

    Relationships

    Serve and work with others. Workers usually get along well with each other, do things to help other people, and are rarely pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong.

  • 43%

    Support

    Supportive management that stands behind employees. Workers are treated fairly by their company, they are supported by management, and have supervisors who train them well.


Demands

The physical and social demands that workers face most often are shown below:
  • 99%

    Telephone

    Talk on the telephone.

  • 98%

    Electronic mail

    Use electronic mail.

  • 91%

    Face-to-face discussions

    Talk with people face-to-face.

  • 88%

    Indoors, heat controlled

    Work indoors with access to heating or cooling.

  • 86%

    Contact with people

    Have contact with people by telephone, face-to-face, or any other way.

  • 86%

    Teamwork

    Work with people in a group or team.

  • 85%

    Letters and memos

    Write letters and memos.

  • 85%

    Spend time sitting

    Spend time sitting at work.

  • 83%

    Being exact or accurate

    Be very exact or highly accurate.

  • 81%

    Unstructured work

    Have freedom to decide on tasks, priorities, and goals.

  • 80%

    Time pressure

    Work to strict deadlines.

  • 78%

    Freedom to make decisions

    Have freedom to make decision on your own.

  • 76%

    Contact with the public

    Work with customers or the public.

  • 75%

    Competition

    Compete with others, or be aware of competitive pressures.

  • 72%

    Lead or coordinate a team

    Lead others to do work activities.

  • 71%

    Impact of decisions

    Make decisions that have a large impact on other people.

  • 68%

    Frequent decision making

    Frequently make decisions that impact other people.

  • 68%

    Responsible for outcomes

    Take responsibility for the results of other people's work.

  • 64%

    Repeating same tasks

    Repeat the same tasks or activities (e.g., key entry) over and over, without stopping.

  • 61%

    In an enclosed vehicle or equipment

    Work in a closed vehicle (e.g., car).

Occupational Information Network
O*NET is a trademark of the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration.
The skills and importance ratings on this page are derived from the US Department of Labor O*NET Database Version 21.2, 17-1012.00 - Landscape Architects.


Links and downloads

Back to top