This is the fourth part in a series called Diary of a Grad Student.  Our writer is a current Master of Science in Real Estate candidate at Baruch College in New York.  She will be chronicling her everyday experiences as a student in the graduate program.  Check back here each week for more!

 

It’s been a crazy week. I feel like this semester just began, but here we are – mid-term week!

Though I have only 3 classes this semester – real estate finance, real estate law, and real estate financial modeling – there is still a lot of material to cover. I must say that the knowledge I’ve gained this semester extends beyond the traditional real estate-focused courses in areas (such as finance, law, development, and research), which I really appreciate.

As I’m in the process of on-campus recruiting for 2018 full time positions, I got 2 first-round interviews this week! The first question that this interviewer from a real estate valuation team threw out was, “So you know how to use Argus, right?” I told him about a real estate modeling course that I’m taking this semester and how it focused on excel-modeling as well as Argus. When the interviewer said he was impressed with the structure and content of the course, I was relieved. I’ve heard about how those firms value about candidates’ skills regarding quantitative tools, but still I hadn’t expected that would be the first question rather than your regular interview opening such as “Walk me through your resume”. After a few technical questions about assumptions in real estate valuation, I felt that I was doing okay in the interview.  The rumors is that real estate valuation is all about Excel and Argus. Some people may find it boring, but I really enjoy burying myself in those spreadsheets and always find it fun to design complex models and debug to improve the user experience.

As for the real estate finance class, it’s more than what I expected from the syllabus. Before taking the class, I assumed this pillar course would consist only of pro-forma or direct cap or DCF – you know, all those dense calculations. But Prof. Pearlman, a professional who has been in real estate industry for decades, has been teaching this class in a unique way. He always brings in real-life examples, especially properties in Manhattan, which is easier to relate to.

The most challenging class for me is – of course – real estate law. As a native speaker of Chinese, law always makes me feel like I never even learned English. The language in law is difficult to understand because it has to be void of different interpretations and the language is the not the same as what we use in our daily life. Luckily, it has gradually started to make sense; when it comes to law, the language has to be written in such a way that only one meaning of what is written should understood. One thing I didn’t expect is that, though this course is more focused on real estate, many of the principles in law are actually applicable in other fields.

Two months have passed so quickly since this semester started and the holidays are just around corner. Oh wait – I still have my FRM exams registered in November! Oops, I need to open my book now!

 

– Shuo Wang, MS Real Estate

This is the third part in a series called Diary of a Grad Student.  Our writer is a current Master of Science in Real Estate candidate at Baruch College in New York.  She will be chronicling her everyday experiences as a student in the graduate program.  Check back here each week for more!

Sometimes I still can’t believe I live in New York after moving here 2 years ago. Is it normal to get this unreal feeling from time to time? When I was in Syracuse, I made myself a list of things I would definitely do when I arrived in NYC; and I believe I’ve left most of the list unchecked.  I can’t even find that list anymore.

I used to describe myself as a “foodie”, and let’s just say my favorite meal of any day is brunch. That list consisted of mostly restaurants I wanted to go, but now that I see the places on the list crossed out and replaced by new restaurants, I realize that describing myself as “foodie” is totally an understatement. New York definitely has THE best food from food trucks to Michelin-starred restaurants. The location of Baruch College is great, too.  Those restaurants near the Flatiron Building and Madison Square Park have made me gain a lot during the past semester.

I didn’t really understand what people mean when they say it’s all about location until I moved here. Even for a student like myself, NYC sure has a lot to offer, with opportunities like networking events all the time. The fact that Baruch is in NYC brings quite a lot firms to campus for on-campus recruiting and information sessions.  On top of that, professionals in the industry are willing to come to campus to give a speech or have a coffee chat with students here after work.

Organizations such as CREFC (Commercial Real Estate Finance Council) and ULI (Urban Land Institute) all have New York chapters, which host events on a regular basis. With the access provided by Baruch Real Estate Department, I attended a few of those events and benefited a lot. What I appreciate most in those professional organizations is that they network, share knowledge, help further people’s careers, and give back.

Other students help, too.  The Real Estate Club at Baruch College hosted a Hudson Yards event last semester, which was a great success. In November, our club will host an on-site event at Hudson Yards and provide students with a tour of the site.

In addition to those great opportunities, NYC is at the front of real estate development. I walk around Manhattan every day and see those commercial and residential construction sites going on everywhere. What’s more exciting than that to a real estate major?

So it looks like my things-I-can’t-believe-I-still-haven’t-done-in-NYC list is getting longer, but hopefully I can shorten it in the next few months.  That is, if I don’t find another restaurant – or cool new event – before then.

 

– Shuo Wang, MS Real Estate

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is the second part in a series called Diary of a Grad Student.  Our writer is a current Master of Science in Real Estate candidate at Baruch College in New York.  She will be chronicling her everyday experiences as a student in the graduate program.  Check back here each week for more!

The week before last I attended a workshop at Baruch in partnership with CREFC (Commercial Real Estate Finance Council).  The event had a lovely lunch and great discussion of updated market trends. I had had classes regarding structured products before, but the information provided here really opened my eyes. It was an exciting opportunity to develop stronger relationships with professionals and my fellow classmates – of course the pizza was also incredible!

Since the new semester has begun and I’m going to graduate next summer, the recruiting season has made me a little bit lost. I mean, I’ve always known what I would like to do is real estate finance. It looks like a narrowed down field in finance industry, right? But still, there are so many options, from commercial to residential, from origination to research, from buy side to sell side. Even I do have a specific interest, it’s never easy to break into. Trust me, the job market out there is cruel and it’s always an uphill battle for international students like myself.  Going to workshops like the Baruch-CREFC event helps me narrow down my options while making connections with people in the field.

The workshop was quite informative. The guest speaker, Constantine “Tino” Korologos gave some advice regarding career searching, which was quite insightful to me. He mentioned that a lot of people who started their career at rating agencies later moved to sell/buy side as their experience at rating agencies was appreciated. This made me think that keeping my mind open to different institutions and positions may be a good idea as long as the skills are applicable in what I want to do. Of course, who doesn’t want to get into big names upon graduation? But sticking to those large institutions could also limit my own choices.

The Department of Real Estate is going to hold a career panel in October and will invite four professionals in the real estate industry to help students regarding job search.  I think this will be a great opportunity to learn from and network with real estate professionals, and to keep figuring out what I want to do upon graduation.

I am very excited for the career panel and can’t wait to hear what insiders have to say about their jobs and how they got them.

– Shuo Wang, MS Real Estate

 

College Factual just released their 2018 rankings of the best real estate programs in the country, and Baruch College came out on top!

The Real Estate program at Baruch College received the prestigious ranking of #4 Best Real Estate College in the U.S.  College Factual noted, “It is difficult to beat CUNY Bernard M Baruch College if you wish to study Real Estate…[it] offers graduate degrees in real estate for those interested in an advanced degree.  New York, New York is the perfect area for college students who relish the busy city life.”

The program also received the ranking of Best Value for its high-quality instruction at affordable prices, and we can see why!  With “an affordable net price and fantastic education“, Baruch graduates only have about $18,888 average in student loans – a far cry from the U.S. average of $29,076 in student loans.

We’re proud to continue the college’s tradition of helping our students become successful leaders and innovators in their field.

To read more about the rankings, visit:

http://www.collegefactual.com/majors/business-management-marketing-sales/real-estate/rankings/best-value/

http://www.collegefactual.com/majors/business-management-marketing-sales/real-estate/rankings/top-ranked/