Graduate Real Estate Series: NYU Schack Institute of Real Estate’s MSRE and MSRED Programs (Updated Oct 2023)

The Schack Institute of Real Estate at New York University offers a flexible, 42-credit graduate real estate education in various real estate disciplines including finance and development. Located in the epicenter of global real estate, New York City, the program leverages its relatively lengthy history, expansive local network, and varying curriculum options to offer a world-class real estate education.

In this post, the third in a six-part series on graduate real estate programs in the United States, I’ll explore in-depth the Shack Institute of Real Estate’s MSRE and MSRED programs, its students, its curriculum, its admissions process, and whether this prestigious graduate real estate program is right for you.

Description

College: New York University School of Professional Studies

Program Name: NYU Schack Institute of Real Estate

Location: Classes and administration are held in five New York City locations:

• The NYU School of Professional Studies Building at 7 East 12th Street
  • Office of Admissions and other Administrative Offices
  • Jonathan M. Tisch Center for Hospitality and Tourism
• The Midtown Graduate Center at 11 West 42nd Street
  • Schack Institute of Real Estate
  • International Student Support Center
• The Washington Square campus in Greenwich Village
• The Woolworth Building at 15 Barclay Street in downtown Manhattan
• The 838 Broadway in Union Square

Year Established: 1967

Program History: In the late 1960s,  NYU founded an Institute of Real Estate to provide courses and seminars to committed professionals. Over the years, the offerings grew to include professional licensing programs, diploma programs, graduate degrees, and most recently an undergraduate degree program.

In 2008, longtime owners and developers of New York City real estate, the Schack family, donated $10 million to the New York University School of Continuing and Professional Studies to support students and faculty of real estate. At that time, the institute was renamed the NYU Schack Institute of Real Estate.

Dean of NYU School of Professional Studies: Angie Kamath 

Divisional Dean of Schack Institute of Real Estate: Marc Norman

Rankings:

• Undergraduate: New York University is 36th on the U.S. News and World Report’s National Universities Rankings List
• Graduate Real Estate: No reputable rankings of graduate real estate programs exist
• Graduate School: No reputable rankings of graduate schools of professional studies exist

Degree(s) Offered:

• Master of Science in Real Estate
• Master of Science in Real Estate Development

Dual Degree(s) Offered?: N/A

Program Length: Varies

• Rolling matriculation and flexible graduation timelines (students customize their program schedule based on their specific situation)
  • The fall term typically begins in early September, the spring term in mid-January, and the summer term in mid-May
• Master of Science in Real Estate – 42 credits; varies but two years for full-time and up to five years for part-time
• Master of Science in Real Estate Development – 42 credits; varies but two years for full-time and up to five years for part-time

Program Website:  http://www.scps.nyu.edu/academics/departments/schack.html

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Cost and Financial Aid

Tuition: Varies based on academic plan; see details here

Cost of Living Comparison: Using Numbeo’s Cost of Living Comparison tool, I compared the cities where the six graduate real estate schools being profiled are located:

• New York, NY, home of New York University, is the 3rd most expensive city in North America.
• New York, NY is 20% more expensive than Boston, MA (MIT is in Cambridge, MA, across the Charles River from Boston)
• New York, NY is 17% more expensive than Washington DC (Johns Hopkins’ full-time real estate program is in Washington, DC; it also offers a part-time option in Baltimore, MD )
• New York, NY is 61% more expensive than Ithaca, NY (Cornell University)
• New York, NY is 37% more expensive than Los Angeles, CA (USC)
• New York, NY is also the home to Columbia’s Graduate Program in Real Estate

Financial Aid Available? Yes

• Tuition Reimbursement Plans: For those students whose employers will reimburse their tuition, NYU will defer the reimbursable portion of tuition to the end of the term
• Merit and need-based scholarships: Various scholarships are available
  • Dean’s Graduate Scholars Program – One, $10,000 scholarship each year; merit-based
  • Scholarships for New Students
    • The James and Marjorie Kuhn Diversity Scholarship – Two, $5,000 scholarships offered each semester; merit-based
    • Schack Advisory Board Scholarships – Four, $5,000 scholarships offered each semester; merit-based
  • Scholarships for Matriculated Students
    • Schack Alumni Association “Future Alumni” & the Michael F.X. Waters Scholarships – Up to two, $5,000 “Future Alumni” and one $5,000 ‘writing/research’ scholarship each semester; merit-based
    • The Joan Gordon Scholarship – One, $5,000 scholarship offered each semester; merit-based
    • The Association of Real Estate Women Scholarships
      • The AREW Merle Gross-Ginsburg Scholarship Award offers up to $10,000 in scholarships each fall semester; merit and financial need based
      • The AREW Ruth A. Agnese Scholarship offers up to $4,000 in scholarships each spring semester
    • The Douglas Elliman Scholarship – Two, $10,000 awards each semester; merit-based
    • The Leone J. Peters Cushman and Wakefield Scholarship – One, $5,000 award each spring; merit-based
    • New York Women Executives in Real Estate (WX) Scholarship – Up to $15,000 to “deserving” female students each spring
    • Schack Advisory Board Scholarships – Six, $5,000 awards each semester, merit and financial need based
• Yellow Ribbon Benefits: NYU is a participant in the Yellow Ribbon GI Education Enhancement Plan for veterans
• Housing: On-campus housing is limited and restricted to full-time students. NYU provides a guide to off-campus housing
• Teaching Assistantships: The NYU School of Professional Studies does not offer teaching or research assistant positions (source)
• Work Full-Time While Studying?: Common given the flexible nature of the curriculum plan

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Curriculum

At NYU Schack, degree seeking students are given the opportunity to customize their NYU real estate education to best suit their interests, schedule, and situation so long as they meet the graduation requirements.

NYU Schack students may complete their graduate real estate studies on a full-time or part-time basis. Classes are held both during the day and in the evening. Plus a smattering of online courses complement the traditional in-person course offerings. This means that students may finish their degree at their own pace (no more than five years). This is in contrast to the more structured program schedules/formats of other schools in our series on masters in real estate programs.

Note that a full-time schedule consists of taking at least 12 credits per term and that international students studying on an F-1 visa are required to study full-time.

Graduation Requirements

• 42 credits for both MSRE and MSRED degrees; 36 credits must be earned in residence at NYU
• The degree must be completed within five years from initially registering
• Students are required to be continuously enrolled in each fall and spring semester until the degree is completed. Summer is optional.
• Students must have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 and passing grades in their core courses

Concentrations

• MSRE Concentrations
  • Finance and Investment
  • Real Estate Asset Management
• MSRED Concentrations
  • The Business of Development
  • Sustainable Development
  • Global Real Estate Development

Courses Available Outside of the NYU School of Professional Studies

• N/A

Example Electives

• N/A

Full-time Real Estate Faculty

• N/A
• Note (from Spencer): While I can’t find how many full-time real estate professors there are teaching at Schack, I get the impression a lot of instructors are full-time real estate professionals who teach a class or two at NYU. The obvious advantage to this is the real-time, real-world experience that practitioners bring to the classroom. A relevant quote from the program’s website:

“The NYU School of Professional Studies Schack Institute of Real Estate’s faculty of leading senior industry practitioners is drawn from New York City, home to the world’s leading real estate and capital markets. Schack Institute faculty members are deeply engrossed in real estate projects on a local, regional, national and international level. Students benefit from their capacity to identify industry trends and to address issues within the framework of the course content they deliver.”

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Culture

Note: Very little information is available on this topic, and the alumni I spoke with weren’t able to offer much insight due to their having studied part-time. The impression I get is that because the program offers such flexibility, the experience (or culture) is quite different for each student. The same goes for most of the sub-categories here. Very little information is publicly available and so my insights are coming from those I’ve spoken with.

Class Profile

• Size: N/A; its my understanding that it’s the largest of any of our schools profiled
• International (%): N/A; I’m told about a third are international but can’t confirm; international students must study full-time
• Female (%): N/A; likely in-line with their peer real estate programs (10-20%)
• Avg. Age: N/A;
• Age Range: 21+
• Avg. Years Work Experience: Varies greatly; from no work experience to extensive work experience
  • A quote from one of the alumni of the NYU MSRE I communicated with for this profile: “There is certainly a broad range of students in each class from recent college grads to former bond traders on Wall Street. This makes the learning curve and pace more challenging for professors, but the different perspectives make for interesting class discussions.”
• Median GMAT: GMAT is not required for admission
• Avg. Undergraduate GPA: N/A
• Pre-Grad School Industry: Many students come with existing experience in other industries (law, accounting, banking), others come from real estate, while still others come directly out of undergrad

Extracurricular Activities

• REIT Center:
  • “Established in 1998, the REIT Center provides a forum for the study and analysis of publicly-traded REITs and other real estate operating companies and the related corporatization, securitization, and consolidation trends that are transforming the real estate industry nationally and globally.”
• Study Tours: 2015-2016 tours included Nashville, Miami, NYC, Mexico City, London, Tokyo, and Cannes.
• Center for the Sustainable Built Environment
• Alumni Networking Events: there is a heavy emphasis on networking and industry events which help students secure internships and full-time jobs

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Careers

Areas of Focus

As previously mentioned, NYU Schack offers two real estate specific degrees: an MSRED and an MSRE. The MSRED is development focused (hence the name, Masters of Science in Real Estate Development) whereas the MSRE is finance, investment, and asset management focused. This method of splitting the foci into two separate degrees is unique among our profiled schools. Most other schools offer one degree, but then give their students the option of concentrating their studies into one or more specific areas.

Geographic Focus

NYU Schack is very New York City focused. Most domestic students are from the City and the majority of instructors have New York City ties. Further, many students actually worked and lived in NYC before opting to attend the program and continue to work there while studying real estate part-time; approximately 40% – 50% of students I’m told study part-time while working. Thus, and not surprising, alumni generally stay in NYC after graduation and the majority of NYU real estate alumni are based in New York City.

Career Service Offerings

• Full-time Real Estate Career Development Professional?: Career services offered through the NYU Wasserman Center
• Career Coaching
• Employer & Career Workshops
• Career Fairs & Industry Expos
• Selected Alumni Services
• NYU CareerNet Job Board

 Job Placement and Salary Information

The program does not publish job placement or salary information. You can check out our section on real estate compensation for more details on what real estate professionals earn.

2016 Hiring Companies

The program does not publish this information.

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Admissions

Admissions information is always subject to change, so you should confirm this information is still applicable by visiting the program’s admissions page.

Pre-Requisites

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent from an accredited college or university
• Acceptable English language proficiency for international students (see more information here)

Admissions Requirements

• Personal Statement
• Two letters of recommendation
• Resume
• Academic transcripts
• $150 application fee
• Optional
  • GRE or GMAT are not required but are helpful to demonstrate academic potential
  • Interviews are not required, but if invited to interview it will become a requirement for admission

Admissions Statistics

• Applicants: Not available
• Acceptance Rate: Not available

Note: It is generally understood that NYU has the most forgiving admissions standards of the top masters of real estate programs. Given the lack of a GMAT requirement, the flexible nature of the curriculum plan, and the size of the student body, it would not be surprising if Schack had the highest admission rate of our profile schools. However, this data point cannot be verified.

Application Submission Dates

Students may begin there students at the beginning of any of the three semesters (Fall, Spring, or Summer)

• Fall Semester
  • International Early Decision: Feb 1
  • International Final Date: April 15
  • Domestic Early Decision: Feb 1
  • Domestic Final Date: Aug 1
• Spring Semester
  • International Early Decision: Aug 15
  • International Final Date: Oct 1
  • Domestic Early Decision: Oct 15
  • Domestic Final Date: Dec 15
• Summer Semester
  • International Early Decision: Jan 15
  • International Final Date: Mar 1
  • Domestic Early Decision: Feb 15
  • Domestic Final Date: May 1

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Commentary

My goal has been to provide a fact-based profile of the NYU Schack Institute in Real Estate’s MSRE and MSRED degree programs. As such, I’ve been careful not to provide too much commentary on the facts as they’ve been communicated. This last section, ‘Commentary’, deviates slightly from that goal in so much as here’s my chance to share the comments and insights offered me by the two NYU alumni I spoke with personally about their experience with the program.

Strengths

1. Strong Industry Support in NYC. The Institute of Real Estate was initially created in the 1960s by real estate leaders in New York City as a platform to educate the most dedicated professionals within the industry. As the Institute has grown and evolved over the years, its place within the industry has only grown stronger. Students and graduates of the graduate real estate programs at Schack benefit greatly from this strong connection.
2. Flexible Academic Experience. The NYU Schack MSRE and MSRED programs offer the flexibility to graduate faster or slower depending on the student’s specific situation. So domestic students who want to work while studying can, saving money and maintaining professional relationships while at school.
3. Professors as practitioners. As an MSRE alum put it: “The professors really make the program. The ability to learn from active industry professionals is the greatest asset of the Schack program.”

Admissions Advice

1. Take the GMAT. Admission to the NYU MSRE or MSRED does not require submitting a GMAT score, a key difference between it and other schools in our profile series. This opens an opportunity for those who have taken and scored well on the GMAT to set themselves apart from other applicants.

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Other Resources

• 2015 Program Viewbook
• An interesting thread on WSO discussing the program

My hope is that the school profiles, including this profile of the NYU Shack Institute of Real Estate, can be living documents that are regularly updated as new information comes available. So if you have any additional information you think will improve this profile, please share it with me and I’ll gladly add it to the profile. Also, undoubtedly there is inaccurate or incomplete information in this profile and so please let me know if you see something that needs correcting.

 

Browse Other Master In Real Estate Profiles

 

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Read Other Profiles

Columbia MSRED | Cornell MPSRE | MIT MSRED | NYU MSRED & MSRE | Johns Hopkins MSREI | USC MRED | Harvard REBE | Texas A&M’s MRE