The Influence of Changes in the Workplace on Graduate Real Estate Education?

This research incorporates previous surveys on real estate education with an eye on the future of real estate education in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, also referred to as the Industry 4.0, the digital age, or several other technology-related terms. Additionally, this research is an update to an earlier survey of graduate real estate programs administered after the Great Recession. Over the last decade, there has been a large amount of research suggesting that the real estate educational community may not be adequately preparing its professionals to deal with rapid changes in tenant dynamics, customer demographic shifts, and disruptive technology, such as automation and artificial intelligence applied to real estate processes currently occurring in the real estate marketplace. This is especially true in terms of the ever-increasing demand for better data and faster data access to determine optimal service levels and amenities. Building on a modified survey originally administered in 2014, this survey was administered during the first quarter of 2019 and sought to determine how changes in the industry may or may not have impacted graduate real estate programs. These impacts may include any changes in the material taught and the skill sets conveyed in the graduate real estate curricula. This paper reviews literature and provides the results of the recent survey administered to the professionals directing and/or teaching in numerous graduate real estate programs. Where possible, some general comparisons are discussed between the 2014 and 2019 survey responses to highlight trends. The results of this research highlight what courses and skills are presently considered the most important in real estate curricula to educate students to be successful in an ever-changing, fast-paced industry.