The University of Wisconsin School of Business has partnered with three top international business schools to offer students across the world the opportunity to earn a Global Real Estate Master.
The program will combine a student’s degree program at one of three partner schools — Hautes ?tudes Commerciales de Paris, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Business School, or Instituto Centroamericano de Administraci?n de Empresas — with a semester of intense real estate training at Wisconsin, to offer a dual degree program.
Academic Director of GREM and UW professor Fran?ois Ortalo-Magn? said the program will host its first class of students in May 2011.
The partnership between UW and the three international schools will offer students from around the world some of the best training in real estate, a program the partner schools do not offer Ortalo-Magn? said.
“The idea is to cover the world,” he said. “It’s a new way of thinking about partnerships and dual degrees.”
The program works as a two-step process. Students first attend one of three partner schools where they receive preparatory training and background in business and finance to be successful in completing the real estate program at UW, said Joseph Walsh, senior lecturer at the UW School of Business who organizes administrative aspects of GREM.
He added that once completed, the student will have earned two degrees: an MBA or specialized master’s degree from the partner school, and a global real estate master from UW.
During their semester at UW, students will integrate with UW students in classroom instruction while taking five three-credit courses and participating in a field trip to a major real estate market.
Walsh said both GREM students and UW students will benefit from working together in the classroom.
“For our students to be successful, they need to understand from a global perspective and need to relate to professionals from all over the world,” he said.
Ortalo-Magn? said the School of Business will also benefit from its partnership with the three international schools.
“We have a very strong brand in real estate. It looks good when you see the Wisconsin logo next to three schools that are number one in the world,” he said.
