Master in Landscape Architecture II

January 5, 2026

MLA I application deadline

The two-year, post‐professional Master in Landscape Architecture (MLA II) degree program stream is for those who hold an undergraduate professional landscape architecture degree or its equivalent.

The MLA II augments that professional preparation with a particular emphasis on the design of the built environment at the intersection of urbanization and ecology, providing those who have already demonstrated professional competence with the opportunity to advance their critical, theoretical, representational, and technical skills through design.

The program of study for the MLA II includes a strong one semester core curriculum that includes studio and courses in representation, theories of urbanism, and a pro-seminar on current topics in the discipline of landscape architecture. The remaining three semesters offer a flexible academic path that allows students to engage in advanced studios and elective courses across all three GSD departments and the university. The curricular structure encourages advanced individual and collective research and the possibility to develop an elective thesis in the final semester.

PROGRAM OVERVIEW

RESIDENCE PROFESSIONAL LICENSURE

For students entering the three-year MLA I program, a minimum of six terms of full-time study in residence is required. Individuals admitted with advanced standing to the MLA I AP normally begin with the third term of the program and must complete a minimum of four terms of full-time study in residence. Students entering the two-year MLA II program must also complete a minimum of four terms of full-time study in residence.

Please note that the MLA I, MLA I AP, and MLA II programs are now designated as a STEM program. Accordingly, international students holding F-1 visas may be eligible for a 24-month Optional Practical Training (OPT) extension on top of their initial OPT of 12 months, for a total of 36 months, following graduation. Each F-1 student must petition United States Citizenship and Immigration Services to approve the 24-month STEM extension, and Harvard does not represent or warrant that USCIS will grant any individual petition.