The Weitzman externship program offers students in architecture, city planning, historic preservation, and landscape architecture the opportunity to take their learnings outside of the classroom and gain first-hand knowledge of practice. Externships typically last from one to two weeks and run during winter and spring breaks. Harisa Martinos is a Master of Landscape Architecture student who expects to graduate in May; her externship was with SCAPE Studio, New York.
What was your goal in joining the externship program?
I wanted to join the externship program to gain more exposure to how different landscape architecture firms operate. Having about a week to experience a firm’s culture, learn how they approach design, explore a new city, and connect with people in such a small field made it a really well-rounded opportunity.
What aspect of the experience did you like best?
I really enjoyed sitting in on both client and consultant meetings for a project connected to my design studio site, as well as having the opportunity to collaborate on the conceptual design process for a project throughout the week with several team members. By the end of the experience, I was able to draw connections across different meetings and gained valuable insight into how to present to clients, along with a better understanding of how to bring ecological systems thinking into my own work.
Being in New York City, I had the opportunity to visit projects that I had studied in school. Being able to see how projects are used, and how they are performing, in the course of a week was also valuable.
How did the externship clarify your career goals?
Throughout graduate school, I often positioned myself as more interested in planning (developing frameworks, scenarios, and tools) than in design itself. I approached the externship as a way to test those assumptions as I prepare to transition into professional practice.
What surprised me was how natural the transition from school to practice felt. It made me realize how prepared I am, especially in connecting ideas across systems and communicating them clearly. It also shifted my perspective. I’m now more open to, and confident in, pursuing design-oriented roles, while still engaging the planning-driven thinking that initially drew me to the field.
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