MIT: THINK OUTSIDE THE HERD

May 4, 2011 | 8:00 am ET Staff Reporter

MIT Center for Real Estate's research director David Geltner says that the job picture for the 25 grad students this year has brightened and all will find a good position. In '09, there was almost no hiring; in ?08 people were hired and immediately fired. Now with CMBS and the banks coming back, there's activity in seniors living, medical/healthcare, multifamily, and internationally in Asia and Brazil. Since development jobs are still scarce, grads are veering toward finance and investment. He says his students are ?very dedicated.? MIT?s 12-month Masters in Real Estate Development program is very rigorous, ?We train their brains.? It weighs in at $50k for tuition.

Tim Canon, 29, was an analyst with RBJ; then he enrolled to get a better understanding of the development process, construction financing, and economics. Before, he did transactions. Now, he wants to be placing the money and learning more sophisticated investment strategies via the program?s interdisciplinary approach and cutting-edge courses. This year, David tells us, the Center introduced a new course, Real Estate Ventures, for which it brings in top lawyers who specialize in various aspects of CRE deals, development, and investment such as setting up a JV, P&S contracts, land acquisitions, and leases.

Adam Schwank, 30, accepted a job in April with AEW in Boston as an assistant VP in retail asset management. For four years before enrolling here, he was a senior financial analyst at Kennedy Associates Real Estate Counsel in Seattle. He came to MIT for exposure to development, to strengthen his financial analysis skills, and to acquire an academic approach to business theory. He says that studying CRE economics with Bill Wheaton will ?help me think outside the herd.?

MIT: THINK OUTSIDE THE HERD

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