An Invitation to Become a Client in the Real Estate
Project Workshop Site

The Capstone Course


“We gained a lot by participating as the client for the 2011 Capstone project. The Cornell student teams were very impressive. Students developed an excellent grasp of the business and design issues that our company is facing in the proposed development of a very complicated site and market, and they came up with some good solutions and ideas for us to consider. We thoroughly enjoyed coming to Ithaca to hear the presentations on their work product, and in fact, we have shown their final work to the public agencies with whom we are working in a public/private partnership to develop this site.”

-- Bob Wulff, Senior Vice President, B.F. Saul Company

One of the core, required courses in the Program in Real Estate at Cornell is the “Real Estate Project Workshop,” which is known as the “Capstone Course.” The Program in Real Estate, one of the most comprehensive real estate programs in the country, requires all second semester/second year real estate masters’ degree candidates to participate in this Capstone experience. The class involves a semester-long applied project that integrates what real estate students have learned to date during their course of study. The class also includes students from other graduate school fields of study such as architecture, landscape architecture and regional planning. Led by Professor Mark Foerster, the Olson Real Estate Faculty Fellow, students work together in interdisciplinary, collaborative teams to prepare the case for a specific real estate development project. Using a real site, and working for a real client, each team prepares a professional quality report that includes market research, site analysis, architectural design, branding and marketing strategies, financial analysis, financing and equity investment considerations, and projected investment returns. The project culminates in the form of written and oral presentations with recommendations for a development project to an actual owner/client.

Recent Experiences

In recent years, the Real Estate Project Workshop has evaluated sites owned or controlled by (1) the Macerich Company in Tysons Corner, Virginia, (2) Boston Properties, Inc. in Reston, Virginia, (3) the Akridge and William C. Smith Companies in Washington, DC and (4) the B.F. Saul Company in Wheaton, Maryland. By allowing their sites to be studied by the class, these project sponsors provided Cornell students with great opportunities to consider mixed use concepts and the viability of transit-oriented development. Capstone clients receive development recommendations from the Cornell student teams at semester’s conclusion, including a presentation and final comprehensive reports. Each team’s materials include an 80-90 page report, a power point presentation, and financial models in Excel. In addition, many teams prepare architectural models and animations or “fly-throughs.” Pete Otteni, Vice President of Development at Boston Properties, stated that participating in the Capstone Course “was very enjoyable, and we got some great work product. The students really did a great job. I anticipate that we will use ideas from each team’s presentation in creating a great plan of our own for our site.”

The Benefits of Participating as a Client

We are always looking to identify sites for study in the Capstone Course. We invite owners of development sites to apply to be considered for the Capstone Course. Participating as the “client” of the Capstone site will offer significant benefits, including the ability to obtain 5-6 different research reports about recommended uses for the site. Because the work is delivered in hard copy and electronic formats, a client will be able to manipulate components such as the Excel financial models to adjust assumptions and test other conclusions. The client will also get valuable exposure to potential job candidates for internships or permanent positions.

Further Information

If you are interested in becoming a Capstone client or know of another company that may be, please contact Professor Mark Foerster by telephone at (585) 738-9416, or by email at mfoerster@cornell.edu. Additional information about Cornell’s Program in Real Estate, the Capstone Course, and Professor Foerster can be found at http://www.realestate.cornell.edu .