What you need to be able to explain

This study guide is about the actual training path to landscape gardener — that is how the education is set up how you get in and what you can build on. The technical subject matter about plants coverings soil and calculations you find in the trade's own articles calculators and templates. Here we stick to the path through the education so you know what awaits and how best to prepare.

Landscape gardener is a vocational education (EUD) in the main area Food, agriculture and experiences. It alternates between school periods and on-the-job training in a company, and the whole programme typically lasts about 4–4½ years depending on your route and your choice of specialisation. At HANSENBERG the programme is offered in Kolding, and it can be taken as ordinary EUD or as EUX (with an upper secondary exam on top).

The education consists of three parts: a basic course in two halves followed by a main course alternating between school and apprenticeship. Below is the typical structure. Note that the exact length of the main course depends on your speciality and your education agreement.

You learn the craft itself largely at the apprenticeship while school periods give you theory and professional foundation. To move from basic course to main course you need a training contract (a written agreement) with an approved company. With a training contract you are guaranteed school stays and receive apprentice wages throughout the course. You should generally find your apprenticeship place yourself but the school can guide you.

Landscape gardening education has two specialties which you specialize in during the main course:

• 01Installation engineering – you learn to establish green areas and lay pavements with tiles and stones. Focus on the 'gray': pavements, stairs, walls, and terraces, as well as establishing new facilities, including necessary measurements and calculations.
• 02Landscaping technique — you practise establishing, maintaining and caring for green areas such as planting and grass and establishing small facilities, e.g. in parks, gardens and cemeteries.

To be admitted, you must have passed the primary school leaving examination with at least an average of 2.0 in Danish and mathematics respectively. If you come directly from 9th or 10th grade, you apply via Optagelse.dk no later than 1 March at 12:00. If you don't meet the grade requirement, you can sit an entrance exam and an admission interview.

The education ends after the main course with a journeyman test that typically includes a practical project (a masterpiece) and an oral examination. The work is assessed by professional assessors (master craftsmen) and can result in ratings "passed" "well done" or "exceptionally well done". The highest levels can earn bronze or silver medals.

With the journeyman's certificate you can work in a landscape gardening company with municipalities or with the management of parks gardens cemeteries and public spaces. If you want to study further there are several paths:

• 01Choose EUX, where you take the vocational qualification with a higher examination qualification on top. The programme becomes longer, but you achieve general entry requirements for higher education and can apply to further education afterwards — like other students.
• 02After vocational education you can continue studying, for example to agricultural technologist or toward landscape architect. Check the admission requirements for each study, as there may be requirements for specific subject levels.
• 03Upskill yourself through AMU courses in establishment and maintenance of green areas and facilities if you later want to update or specialize your competencies.

• 01Keep track of the deadline: if you apply directly from elementary school, the deadline is March 1 at 12:00 at Optagelse.dk.
• 02Get your Danish and math in order — the grade requirement of 2.0 is crucial, and math is actively used in the trade for measurements, quantities, and calculations.
• 03Seek an apprenticeship early and use the school's guidance centre; a training agreement is your ticket to the main course.
• 04Be prepared for outdoor, physical work in all kinds of weather — it is a large part of everyday life in the trade.
• 05Consider early whether EUX is for you if you long-term dream of further education.

The green area (landscaping) at AMU SYD is not a single education, but a whole course area of short AMU courses that together equip you to build and maintain green outdoor spaces: parks, gardens, paths, squares and cemeteries. You can take a single course to gain a concrete competence or a statutory certificate — or you can chain the courses together and work toward a full journeyman certificate as a landscape gardener. This study guide explains how the course path is structured, what it costs, and how to get started. The professional craft material (paving, plants, water, maintenance) is found in the trade's own articles, calculators and templates.

AMU courses are short, targeted programs you can take individually. Within AMU SYD's green area, courses are grouped by which part of the trade they belong to. Course entry points are open, so you don't need to take them in a specific order – but for system courses, the school recommends following a natural progression from the basics and upward.

The courses vary greatly in length — from very short certificate programmes to longer basic courses. Always check the current class schedule for exact duration, as the school runs new classes continuously.

If you are already working in the trade, AMU courses can be combined into a full skilled education. At AMU SYD, the path to journeyman certification as a landscaper can be completed in approximately 45 weeks of school — if you have already taken relevant AMU courses, this can be reduced. The education alternates between theory at school and practical tasks at your workplace.

AMU is aimed at unskilled and skilled workers. Most green courses have open entry, so you can register without special prerequisites. Be aware of these general rules:

• 01You must either live in Denmark or work in Denmark to participate.
• 02If you have a higher education, you are allowed to participate, but must pay full participation fee (not the reduced price).
• 03Self-employed employees apprentices students and pensioners can participate.
• 04If you are unemployed, receiving unemployment benefit or cash assistance, you must go to the job centre — you cannot register yourself.
• 05Some machine and tractor courses may have special admission requirements or age limits — check the specific course.

When you complete an AMU course you get an AMU certificate for that specific course. Several of the green courses also give a legally required certificate which you must have to perform certain tasks:

• 01Spray certificate – mandatory for commercial use of pesticides. The certificate is valid for 4 years and is renewed by completing a follow-up course.
• 02A combined journeyman's certificate if you complete the entire education structure and pass the journeyman's exam.

AMU courses have relatively low participant fees for unskilled and skilled workers. The exact price depends on the individual course and course length, so look it up on the current class. The most important thing is that much of your lost wages can be covered through continuing education funding if you meet the requirements.

• 01Find the desired class and register via voksenuddannelse.dk with NemLog-in.
• 02Contact AMU SYD on phone 76 37 37 37 or info@amusyd.dk if you are unsure about course sequence or access.
• 03If you are unemployed, go through your job centre.
• 04Seek vocational training allowance and possibly travel allowance as soon as the course is confirmed.

• 01You can plan the courses in the off-season when it is less busy in the field — that gives the most peace to learn.
• 02Take basic system courses before specialized ones, so you build knowledge on a solid foundation.
• 03Have work clothes and any safety equipment ready — many green courses are practical and take place outdoors.
• 04Save your AMU certificates together; they count if you later want to go all the way to journeyman's certificate.
• 05Use Discebo's calculators and templates to practise the professional tasks between course sessions.