Graduate Certificates / Graduate Certificate in Real Estate Development
The quality of metropolitan development is an issue of growing public concern, particularly as a result of the housing finance crisis and rising energy costs. Debates over land use regulation, sustainable development, sprawl, and community design occupy virtually every city council and state legislature in this nation and abroad. It is being raised to the U.S. Federal level through the upcoming transportation, energy, and climate change legislation. The revival of many American downtowns, the urbanization of selective suburban places, and the beginning to the end of sprawl on the fringe is testament to the pendulum swinging back after decades of building only drivable sub-urban development. However, just as the United States is adjusting to changed market demands, much of the developing world is emulating the drivable sub-urban American model of the 20th century
Few planners, lawyers, business leaders, and designers who influence metropolitan development understand the complexity of real estate development and are not as effective as they could be in improving the way development occurs. Many of those trained in a single field, such as business, law, or urban planning, could be more effective in creating places that contribute to a positive quality of life and preserve the natural environment if they had an education that spanned several professional fields.
The certificate in real estate development offers graduate students in many fields the opportunity to supplement their major areas of study with broad knowledge about making substantially better metropolitan developments. The program is also a stand-alone certificate in itself for those full-time and part-time students who just want to focus on real estate. The program aims to guide students to integrating disciplines that shape the built environment, enhance the quality of life while conserving the natural environment. Upon graduation, students are professionals equipped to become the place-makers and town founders of tomorrow.
