New Zealand Certificate in Horticulture Services (Landscape Design strand) (Level 4)

Bring outdoor spaces to life through thoughtful design. Explore site analysis, plant selection, landscape graphics, and design principles while learning how to translate concepts into practical landscape plans. Develop both the technical and creative skills needed to design attractive and functional environments.

Campus
SIT Online
Qualification
Certificate
Level
4
Credits
60
Duration

17 weeks full-time

Up to two years part-time

Intakes are 17 weeks long

Dates
TBC
Tuition Fees

Zero tuition fees

Direct Material Costs

$8.00 per credit (incl. GST)

International Fees

$100 per credit (incl. GST). See International.

Course Outline

Improve your hobby or enhance your career in landscaping with the New Zealand Certificate in Horticulture (Landscape Design) Level 4. Learn how to design, analyse sites and use plants to transform different landscapes.

You will learn:

  • Communication and leadership
  • Site analysis and surveying
  • Plant identification for landscape design
  • Landscape design planting plans
  • Design principles for landscape design
  • Graphics for landscape design

This course will teach you the skills and knowledge that you need to succeed in the horticulture and landscape design sector or upskill your talents for your own residential property.

Course Content

These courses must be completed in order: CLD400, CLD401, CLD402, CLD403, CLD404 and CLD405.

If you are studying part-time, you could take CLD400, CLD401 and CLD402 in your first intake. However, you could not begin with later courses such as CLD402 and CLD405 without first completing the required earlier courses.


CLD400 Communication and Leadership

Level: 4
Credits: 10

This paper provides students with the knowledge and skills necessary to supervise and provide instructions to team members, contractors, clients, or members of the public in the context of landscape design.

On successful completion of this paper, students will be able to:

  • Describe effective communication principles, aims and tools.
  • Identify barriers to effective communication and strategies to overcome these.
  • Provide practical skills instruction to individuals or a group.


CLD401 Site Analysis and Survey

Level: 4
Credits: 10

This paper provides students with the knowledge and skills to analyse a site profile for a specific landscape project, including cultural and historical factors, in order to analyse the potentials and limitations for a landscape design.

On successful completion of this paper, students will be able to:

  • Collate site survey information for a specified landscape site.
  • Identify historical factors influencing a design proposal for a specified landscape site.
  • Identify cultural factors influencing a design proposal for a specified landscape site.
  • Analyse the design potentials and limitations for a specified landscape site in terms of site survey, historical and cultural factors.


CLD402 Plant Identification for Landscape Design

Level: 4
Credits: 10

This paper provides students with the knowledge and skills to identify and select plants appropriate for a specified landscape design.

On successful completion of this paper, students will be able to:

  • Describe the characteristics of trees, shrubs and climbers.
  • Select plants for specific uses, conditions and sites.
  • Explain the soil and climatic conditions and tolerances for selected plants.


CLD403 Landscape Design Planting Plans

Level: 4
Credits: 10

This paper provides students with the knowledge and skills to use draughting equipment, materials and procedures to prepare working drawings for landscape plantings.

On successful completion of this paper, students will be able to:

  • Select draughting equipment and materials suitable for the development of working drawings.
  • Develop working drawings for a landscape project.


CLD404 Design Principles for Landscape Design

Level: 4
Credits: 10

This paper provides students with the knowledge of common drawing media and principles in order to complete freehand drawings for landscape design.

On successful completion of this paper, students will be able to:

  • Explore and use common drawing media and drawing elements.
  • Explain colour rendering media and techniques.
  • Apply the principles of axonometric and perspective drawing.


CLD405 Graphics for Landscape Design

Level: 4
Credits: 10

This paper provides students with the knowledge of landscape design graphics commonly used to show various components of a landscape plan.

On successful completion of this paper, students will be able to:

  • Describe and accurately employ graphics to depict different shrubs and trees.
  • Describe and accurately employ graphics to depict different ground covers and accent plants.
  • Describe and accurately employ graphics to depict hard landscaping features.
Career Opportunities

Examples of employment opportunities at the completion of this certificate include:

  • Garden or small-scale designer
  • assistant to a landscape design contractor or landscape architect, 
  • employment in local authority horticultural divisions, 
  • nursery assistant, 
  • horticulturalist, 
  • farmer,
  • gardener.

 

Application Criteria

School Leavers

Applicants should be a minimum of 16 years of age, and have attained NCEA Level 2 as follows:

  • 60 credits at Level 2 or above, plus 20 credits from any level, and
  • Literacy – minimum of 10 credits at Level 1 or above through either specified assessment standards available through a range of subjects and English for Academic Purposes unit standards 22750 and 22751 (minimum total of 10 credits), or unit standards – package of three literacy unit standards (26622, 26624, 26625 – all three required)
  • Numeracy – a minimum of 10 credits at Level 1 or above through either achievement standards – specified assessment standards available through a range of subjects (minimum total of 10 credits), or unit standards – package of three numeracy unit standards (26623, 26626, 26627 – all three required)

Mature Applicants
Applicants over the age of 20 years at time of enrolment will be considered where they can demonstrate the ability to succeed in a programme. Examples of demonstration of ability to succeed are the provision of evidence of successful completion of a programme of study at Level 2 or above and/or employment in the related sector for one or more years. They may be admitted subject to programme regulations approved by the Head of Faculty in consultation with the Programme Manager as appropriate.  Personal commitment and a belief in one’s own ability to succeed are important personal traits and will always be taken into consideration during the selection process.

English Language Requirements

Applicants, whose first language is not English, or who come from a country where the language of instruction in schools is not English, are required to provide evidence of having achieved one of the following:

NCEA Level 3 with University Entrance, or

an International Baccalaureate Diploma or Cambridge A- level qualification for which the teaching and assessment was conducted in English; or

Cambridge Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (CELTA), or Trinity College London Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (CertTESOL); or

Successful completion of all primary education (being the equivalent of New Zealand primary school years 1 to 8) and at least three years of secondary education (being the equivalent of three years from New Zealand secondary school years 9 to 13) at schools in  either New Zealand, Australia­, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States one of the countries listed in Rule 18.5 where the student was taught using English as the language of instruction; or

Successful completion of at least five years of secondary education (being the equivalent of New Zealand secondary school years 9 to 13) at schools in either New Zealand, Australia, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States where the student was taught using English as the language of instruction; or

Successful completion of a Bachelor ‘s Degree, Graduate Certificate, Graduate Diploma, Bachelor Honours degree, Postgraduate Certificate, Postgraduate Diploma, Masters’ Degree or Doctoral Degree, the language of instruction of which must be in English and which must be  from a tertiary education provider from New Zealand, Australia, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, South Africa, the United Kingdom or the United States or

Successful completion of one of the following internationally recognised proficiency tests listed below to the level required of the programme of study and with all scores achieved in a single test during the two years preceding the proposed date of enrolment.

Certificate at Level 4

  • IELTS test - General or Academic score of 5.5 with no band score lower than 5
  • TOEFL Paper based test (pBT) - Score of 530 (with an essay score of 4.5 TWE)
  • TOEFL Internet based test (iBT) - Score of 46 (with a writing score of 14)
  • Cambridge English Examination –B2 First or B2First for schools with a score of 162.  No less than 154 in each skill.
  • OET - Minimum of Grade C or 200 in all sub-tests
  • NZCEL - Level 3 (Applied)
  • Pearson Test of English (Academic) – PTE (Academic) score of 42 with no band score lower than 36
  • Language Cert - B2 Communicator International ESOL Written (LRW) PASS with no less than 25/50 in each skill and Spoken (S) PASS
  • Trinity ISE - ISE II with no less than pass in any band
Qualification Pathways

This qualification may build on the relevant strand of the New Zealand Certificate in Horticulture (Level 3).

This qualification may lead to the Design strand of the New Zealand Diploma in Landscape (Level 5) with strands in Design and Construction

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