The real estate industry is a growing market, and one historically Black college in North Carolina is looking to add diversity to the field.
There are more than 150 masters of business administrations (MBA) programs with a concentration in real estate in the country. North Carolina Central University is the only HBCU to offer the program.
Anthony Nelson, dean of the NCCU School of Business, said he believes the program will have a lasting impact on the predominantly white industry.
“Our program will have a significant impact on the Black consciousness when it comes to owning real estate and managing real estate and utilizing real estate to generate wealth,” he told QCity Metro in a recent interview.
Nelson said he wants NCCU to inspire other HBCUs to incorporate real estate programs.
Birthing the program
The idea to launch a real estate concentration within NCCU’s MBA program came in 2020 from the recommendation of a real estate developer who wanted to talk to students about various careers in the field.
Nelson offered an even better idea.
“I said to him ‘That’s great, but why don’t we start a real estate program?’” he said.
Nelson said he believes the program will be a “game changer” by encouraging more Black people’s interest in the industry.
Nelson said the program has grown faster than expected.
“We exceeded our initial goal of graduating 15 students a semester,” he said. “We will graduate 18 to 20 this fall.
He said the program will have 35 to 40 students enrolled this fall.
He said he saw the program as an opportunity to diversify the field, but also help preserve Black neighborhoods.
“[The program] allows more African Americans to be seated at the table on the inside as opposed to on the outside.”
First in the program
Torrence Harrell was the first student to graduate from the program in Dec. 2022.
He initially chose real estate as an elective while obtaining his MBA. in marketing. After taking the course, he decided to switch concentrations from marketing to the real estate program.
Harrell said the program offers a lot of one-on-one help and support from industry partners.
“They help you get your feet wet immediately,” he said.
Harrell earned an internship with Dell Technologies last summer. He received four job offers after graduating but chose to return to Dell as a real estate advisor.
He encourages more students to take advantage of the program.
“If students dig into the program, it will place them in a position to be valuable in the corporate real estate world.”
Expectations
The focus of this program, Nelson said, is commercial real estate and real estate development. He described the course load as “rigorous.”
Students enrolled in the program must complete 36 credit hours, the majority of which are core MBA courses. The real estate concentration consists of four courses:
- Real Estate Investment
- Fundamentals of Real Estate
- Real Estate Development
- Special Topics in Real Estate
Students must secure and complete an internship before graduating.
The program has an advisory board made up of 15 people who own real estate companies and have many years of experience in the field. Nelson said many board members even offer jobs to students in the program upon graduation.
