CRE Dev. VS Brokerage

Hello, I’m currently a 19-year-old senior pursuing my BBA and set to graduate in May 2026. Over the past month, I’ve been in conversations with CBRE, and they’re looking to extend me an offer to join their Capital Markets team after graduation. While I’m grateful for the opportunity, I’ve realized my passion leans more toward commercial real estate development and the deal structuring side of projects, rather than traditional brokerage.

I understand that brokerage can provide valuable exposure to those aspects, but I’d really appreciate a second perspective. I’m also considering pursuing an MRED at the University of Utah for both the education and local networking advantages. Given my age and long-term goal of eventually launching my own development firm, I’d love to hear any advice you might have on how to best position myself. I’ve also thought about combining brokerage experience with the MRED program, though that may require relocating and reapplying to a different market.

Dev shop or brokerage?

Dev.
27% (3 votes)
Broker
73% (8 votes)
Total votes: 11
3 Comments
 

I'm not sure how worthwhile a master program is without prior work experience. Being an analyst for a capital markets brokerage will give you a large breadth of transaction and deal experience (ideally) and maybe you can pivot into development without getting an mred or potentially you'll find another area of real estate that you prefer. Of course, this advice hinges on the assumption that the job offer is for an analyst position on a brokers team. 

 

Hey, thanks for getting back to me. I’m honestly in the same headspace, I just can’t decide whether to take the offer or keep looking for something with a development firm. My end goal is to build my own multifamily projects one day, so I’m trying to figure out which path sets me up best for that. An MRED was just kind of my plan to take so I could figure it out while learning more in the program, but I know it's not as beneficial without previous experience. 

 

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