The two-year Master of Professional Studies in Real Estate (M.P.S./R.E.) degree program is an interdisciplinary program that combines courses from nearly every college at Cornell. The degree is designed for aspiring real estate professionals who are in the early stages of their careers. The Field of Real Estate is a committee of faculty members selected from several different colleges that is directly involved in and responsible for the design, delivery, and administration of the real estate curriculum. The professional study of real estate is concerned with the finance, exchange, development, management, marketing, and many other aspects of the real estate business. Real estate professionals in the field bring an understanding of the long-range economic, social, political, ethical, legal, and environmental implications of decisions about real estate.
The sixty-two credits of course work needed to earn the degree provide a comprehensive and lasting foundation for a professional career in real estate. Students take core courses in principles of real estate, the real estate development process, real estate finance and investments, managerial finance, residential development, real estate law, construction planning and operations, design in real estate development and real estate marketing and management, along with a weekly industry seminar. Elective courses are taken in a chosen area of concentration, and there is a leadership and management distribution requirement. Many concentration options are possible and may be structured from the hundreds of related courses taught at Cornell University (e.g., development, finance, investments, real estate consulting, sustainable development, property and asset management, real estate marketing and market analysis, or international real estate concentrations). Students complete real-world, semester-long project workshops during their second and final semesters.