These assistantships include stipends and tuition waivers. However, students are still responsible for the dedicated fees. A number of assistantships are awarded competitively each year.

Two kinds of assistantships are available to M.L.A. students:

• Full Assistantships (one or two semesters)
  Students receive a stipend based on length of employment, remission of the graduate course fee and the contingent portion of the general fee, and an out-of-state fee waiver.
• Half Assistantships (one or two semesters)
  Students receive a stipend based on length of employment, remission of one-half the graduate course fee and one-half the contingent portion of the general fee, and a one-half out-of-state fee waiver.

Graduate assistantships are a "job with benefits." Students should consider the "job" aspect carefully as they assess the impact of an assistantship in fulfilling their work and study demands.

Service Goals
Graduate assistants may serve in a variety of areas within the Department of Landscape Architecture and the College of Architecture and Planning, including support for individual faculty research, assistance in a specific course area where applicable to a candidate's expertise, the CAP Guest Lecture Series, the computer graphics lab, and other roles.

The following goals reflect this diversity of need and service:

• enhance support of various departmental and collegiate programs and interests
• bring specific expertise to assist faculty with specific funded research work
• provide needed assistance to faculty in specific courses
• increase/reinforce understanding and skills of specific M.L.A. candidate
• balance departmental and faculty needs with a candidate's need for academic and professional growth

Selection Criteria
Graduate assistantships are awarded to candidates who demonstrate the following:

• highest possible quality
• ability to support the needs and goals of the department and the college
• ability and interest level to support faculty in an area of research or professional study
• record of previous high-quality performance in program-related academic and/or professional experiences
• minimum 3.0 cumulative grade point average or approval from the Graduate Assistantship Committee (GAC) if the student's GPA is below 3.0

Assignment Areas
M.L.A. assistantships are often available to support the following areas:

• Teaching areas such as design studios; large courses with high work loads; engineering studios; course preparation, errands, and logistics; computer applications and computer support; and plant identification.
• Research areas such as preservation/cultural; computers, including geographic information systems; rural and/or agricultural landscape planning; community/urban design; special projects and/or general research in a range of areas; and proposal and grant preparation assistance.
• Departmental and collegiate programs and interests, including computer labs; graduate program support; undergraduate program support; orientation of potential and new students/student gatherings; guest lectures and/or exhibits; and other support needs.

Prospective students may indicate their interest in a graduate assistantship within their admission letter. Assistantships are usually distributed in the spring.

For More Information
Les Smith, Graduate Program Coordinator
Department of Landscape Architecture
(765) 285-1978
lsmith2@bsu.edu