Breaking into CRE - non business background
I recently graduated in March with a comms degree and am now working in sales at a tech company in NYC. I’ve realized I kind of screwed up with the degree I chose and want to fix that. I have a pretty big interest in CRE and looking for the best way to break into the industry. I feel it’s a perfect time to make a career change as I’m fresh out of college and won’t be hit so hard by the opportunity costs of potential income and work experience given none of my work experience so far is even relevant to CRE.
I’m currently looking at applying to either NYU or Fordham’s MSRE program because they are more finance heavy. My other option would be an MBA w/ a concentration in RE finance & investments from DePaul (Only reason DePaul is in the mix is because they give alumni a 25% discount). My plan, while In school, is to network my ass off, make sure I have strong financial modeling skills and a decent amount of knowledge on Argus so I can apply for an analyst position after graduation.
Do you think this is good/bad plan or would you recommend a different route?
Appreciate any advice.
Since you do not have any relevant experience in real estate, I think that pursuing a masters in real estate will definitely help you and would be the fastest track for you to get into a real estate finance role. A good friend of mine went straight from undergrad to MSRE at NYU with no previous real estate experience and is now at a boutique REPE shop (he definitely has the skillset and experience to go to a larger shop if he wanted to). As I've stated in previous comments, it is crucial to do internship(s) during your MSRE as it is the experience you gain at the internships that will really help you land a full time position. My friend as well as myself did internships in REPE and real estate capital markets during our time at NYU and landed roles in REPE/development. As for which program you should do, I think they will all help you since you have no relevant experience or schooling, but I am partial toward NYU/columbia. I think the brand name and alumni network will open a lot more doors. When I was searching for internships many of the boutique firms that had internship programs either took interns from NYU or Columbia. I'm not sure what your financial situation is, but my friend took out student loans in order to go to NYU and says that it was worth it. If NYU/Columbia would be a huge financial burden for you, then as I said before, any of these programs will help your situation.
Thanks for the response and feedback, Fred. - Question / thoughts on the way I’m thinking about this.
I guess my biggest concern is whether an MSRE would be enough, long term. From previous forums I’ve read, it looks like some shops only hire folks with MBA’s. Given my ug in comms, do you think I would need to, later on, get an MBA in order to continue progressing throughout my career? Would employers view my MSRE as less since I wouldn’t have a business or analytical background? Have you heard of people run into this sort of situation before?
If an MSRE from NYU is sufficient then I can justify the price. If not, then I would plan on getting an MSRE from Fordham first, get a few years of experience, see how it goes and then, if needed, go back for my MBA at DePaul.
I guess the way I’m thinking about it is: NYU MSRE = $80-90k Fordham MSRE = $50k DePaul MBA $60k (If combing the MSRE with an MBA, I could concentrate in something other than RE, like FIN to expand my skills set)
Just a huge debate in head. I feel like maybe just getting an MBA is the most logical decision but at the same time I see the immense value of getting an MSRE from NYU or Fordham and doors it could open for me within the NYC.
Again, appreciate any advice here. I just want to make sure I’m looking at all my options from different angles.
It depends on your timeline. After college I worked for 1 year and hated by job. At the time I also debated MBA vs MSRE. I ultimately decided MSRE because 1.) I wanted to get into real estate asap rather than work for 2-3 more years in a non-relevant field. I decided that the extra 2-3 years of experience that I gain working in real estate early would leave me better off than an MBA at a top school (also getting into a top MBA is far from guaranteed) and 2.) I looked at profiles of NYU MSRE alums and saw that a good amount went to solid REPE/dev shops that I would have been more than happy to work for (not megafunds, but I didn't care to work at a megafund). So it depends on how soon you want to break into real estate. MBA may take a couple years whereas MSRE you could apply for and begin classes pretty quickly. You can also do MSRE part time or take night classes while working your current job/looking for internships. Also if you value prestige a lot and are a "megafund or die" type of person, then an MBA would likely be needed
Just my two cents, there's a glut of talented individuals with advanced degrees and/or with excellent,direct work experience looking to break into the industry or find roles post lay off. Overlay the aforementioned, with the current environment, I'd likely recommend sticking out within the firm you're at for three to four years and making the career transition into CRE post MBA after crushing it at your current gig. In the meantime, reach out to alumni, friends, or others in the industry to get a feel and learn how to underwrite in your spare time. If I were you, I would wait out the economy to show some semblance of normalization. The need and utilization for space will always be around -- real estate is the long game. Don't mean to discourage in any way so feel free to shoot me a PM.
I mean, this question in so many forms comes up often (just search NYU and Columbia and MSRE). You have a typical profile of persons that go get MSRE/Ds, and many are very successful as using it as their leverage point to get their first real job in CRE.
As others noted and you said yourself.... you have to work your ass off, get internships, go all out. You seem to have the right idea.
On school choice....
If you are for sure wanting to stay in NYC.... NYU is the top brand, biggest alum base, hands down... Fordham is up and coming and is frankly the NYU program (literally same or former profs) but cheaper, less known, BUT Fordham is pretty well regarded in the Northeast/Tri-State area, so may be great value
If you want global/national ability to get noticed for degree... NYU is miles ahead, but really Fordham/DePaul are not negatives in anyway, just are more regional names
If you want to go back to Chicago/Midwest.. DePaul is very strong and has a well recognized RE program. In NYC, DePaul is not going to be super well known, it will be more "generic MBA", that doesn't mean it wont work out for you, just not the same network and potential in road to internships and direct connections.
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