Should You Get an MBA in Philadelphia or Baltimore?
The Mid-Atlantic region remains a major destination for education, work, and living. The most densely populated region in the U.S., the Mid-Atlantic is home to a third of the 100 highest-income cities and some of the most esteemed universities in the world.
Continue reading…Best Real Estate MBAs in the Mid-Atlantic Region
After World War II, a housing boom created a demand for real estate business expertise. Decades later, demand only increased in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. Now with unprecedented levels of international real estate investment at play, demand for this specialization has reached a fevered pitch.
This rings particularly true for investments in the Mid-Atlantic region where many top real estate MBA programs are headquartered.
Best Mid-Atlantic Real Estate MBAs
Located in Charlottesville, UVA’s Darden Graduate School of Business consistently ranks among the top MBA programs nationally. In addition to Darden’s Real Estate specialization, the Real Estate Club offers alumni connections, internship info sessions, ARGUS training, LEED certification study sessions, and “case competition preparatory sessions.”
The Real Estate Club also participates in the Darden Finance Conference, offering participants the chance to connect with real estate executives in the financial sector. UVA offers in-state tuition of $94,524, $97,524 for non-residents, and $98,796 for international students. Ninety percent of graduates are employed after graduation with a median base salary reported at $125,000.
One out of 10 UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School MBAs complete the school’s Real Estate Concentration, making it one of the largest programs of its kind in the nation. Real Estate MBA students choose from development and/or finance/investments tracks. Here are just a few of the available courses:
- Argus Certification Training
- Financing Real Estate in Today’s Capital Markets
- International Real Estate Investment
- Real Estate Law
- Real Estate Macroeconomics
- Securities Markets
Kenan-Flagler tuition is a hefty $132,648 but the average starting salary is reported at $116,543 with 11 percent of placements in Real Estate.
Founded in 2005, the George Washington School of Business Center for Real Estate and Urban Analysis (CREUA) strives to offer a high-caliber real estate curriculum to both GW graduate and undergraduate students. The Center also conducts real estate research on “walkable urban place development and management,” for which a graduate certificate is offered to MBAs. Tuition at GW is $105,700 and the average starting salary is $96,000.
The University of Maryland at College Park was among the first schools to offer the MRED degree. At UMD Smith, MBA candidates have the option to pursue an MBA/MRED dual degree. Dual degree candidates can expect to begin their studies with MBA coursework and then cross over to MRED focus as the program progresses.
Full-time MBA students can expect to pay $44,766 per year for in-state tuition, while out-of-state students can expect to pay $53,946. Smith reports that 95 percent of its graduates are employed within six months of graduation with an average salary of $114,845.
Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business is home to Steers Center for Global Real Estate, which aims to provide its MBA students an “industry-grade education that produces students who are uniquely competitive in the global real estate job market.”
The Center’s major selling points are its diversified Four Quadrant curriculum model, immersion in the Washington DC market, and the Real Estate Clinic.
Tuition is $59,700, with an average salary of $116,946 and 98 percent percent of employment-seeking students receiving a job offer within three months of graduation.
Lehigh Alumni Named Small Business Exporter of The Year
An aquarium-technology company co-founded a decade ago by Lehigh alumni Tim Marks and Pat Clasen has been named a “Small Business Exporter of the Year” by the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Philadelphia District and Mid-Atlantic Region offices.
EcoTech Marine, whose growth in international markets accounts for 33 percent of its total sales, received the prestigious award for the Mid-Atlantic region, which includes Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Washington D.C., and West Virginia.
“We are proud to have been awarded this honor,” said Clasen. “As a small business—now in our 11th year—we have tremendous respect for the unique challenges presented to a business like ours, as well as for the other entrepreneurs chasing their dreams to make their own success. “
The company was created in an Integrated Product Development class at Lehigh where it won the grand prize at the 2002-2003 Joan F. & John M. Thalheimer ’55 Student Entrepreneurs competition. Revenues of $3.8 million in 2009 helped place them into Inc.com’s Top 500 companies in 2010.
Two years ago, EcoTech Marine expanded from Bethlehem into a 36,000-square-foot facility in Hanover Township, Lehigh County.
Clasen ‘04 ‘07G is the company’s director of finance, and Marks ’04 ‘06G, director of manufacturing.
“It is incredibly humbling to have been selected for this award knowing so many other businesses that are doing such great things,” Clasen said. “It is a true honor to have been selected for this designation and it is one that we will take to heart as we continue to grow and evolve.”
The Exporter of the Year awards recognize the accomplishments of companies that have shown creative overseas strategies, increased export sales and profits, found creative solutions to business strategies and encouraged other small businesses to export.
