Real estate degree program receives final approval from the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia
The State Council of Higher Education for Virginia has approved a new undergraduate degree in real estate. This is the final authorization needed to officially launch the program.
Students will be able to enroll in the program this fall. Some students, in anticipation of degree approval, have begun taking classes already offered at the university that will fulfill program requirements with plans to change majors or add a second major in real estate.
The innovative degree will transcend traditional college boundaries as a comprehensive, interdisciplinary academic program that will be a partnership among six colleges – College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, College of Architecture and Urban Studies, Pamplin College of Business, College of Engineering, College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences, and College of Natural Resources and Environment.
“Virginia Tech is leading the way with the intentional incorporation of a range of disciplines,” Mark McNamee, senior vice president and provost, said. “Our students will be well-rounded, ready to take on the diverse career opportunities within the field of real estate.”
Students will be exposed to a variety of academic fields including architecture, building construction, business, civil and environmental engineering, economics, property management, natural resources management, planning, and law. Real estate courses will integrate the knowledge students receive from classes across campus.
“The real estate courses are going to be experiential. Faculty from different disciplines will teach and advise students. Industry professionals will be in class to mentor students,” Kevin Boyle, real estate program director, said. “We will integrate students' disciplinary knowledge using an experiential, student-led learning format. It’s going to make students more successful from day one after graduation.”
Initial work on the program began in 2006, determining how to leverage the university’s existing strengths while also creating a unique undergraduate degree option for students that fit the needs of the real estate industry.
“The university had not done something like this before, bringing together six colleges for one undergraduate degree program,” Daniel Wubah, vice president for undergraduate education, said. “It has been a team effort from the beginning to come up with one vision for the program and implement it.”
Dedicated to its motto, Ut Prosim (That I May Serve), Virginia Tech takes a hands-on, engaging approach to education, preparing scholars to be leaders in their fields and communities. As the commonwealth’s most comprehensive university and its leading research institution, Virginia Tech offers 240 undergraduate and graduate degree programs to more than 31,000 students and manages a research portfolio of $513 million. The university fulfills its land-grant mission of transforming knowledge to practice through technological leadership and by fueling economic growth and job creation locally, regionally, and across Virginia.
