Class of 2012 Returns with Strong Experience, Broadened Perspective

One of the unique characteristics that sets Cornell’s Program in Real Estate (PRE) apart from other Master’s in Real Estate Programs is its two-year format. The PRE enables students to enhance their real estate background by participating in a summer internship program between their first and second years.

This past summer, the Class of 2012 gained experience in the real estate industry through a wide variety of internships in fields including private equity, investment banking, development and asset management. Located not only across the country, but also around the world, the Class of 2012 expanded their horizons this summer, honing in on their desired type of full-time employment opportunities. Randolph Zhao, PRE 2012, commented, “My summer internship in Beijing was a great experience and is definitely something that I would be very interested in pursuing in the future.” Highlighted below are four students: Andrew Zak, Jermaine Gause, Randolph Zhao and Tim Shaughnessy who worked in private equity, asset management, institutional investing and development, respectively.

Andrew Zak – PRE 2012
Company: Westport Capital Partners, LLC, Wilton, Connecticut

Company Description: Westport Capital Partners LLC is an investment management company focused exclusively on opportunistic and distressed real estate investments that they believe offer highly attractive risk-adjusted returns. Westport’s investors consist of pension funds, endowments and charitable institutions, as well as family offices and individuals.
Internship Experience: Andrew’s experience centered on supporting the investment team by developing valuation models, compiling and assessing due diligence materials, composing Investment Offering Memorandums, attending site visits and other investment assessment activities. A unique take away of his summer internship included exposure to community development districts and the opportunities that they can present for investors.


Jermaine Gause– PRE 2012
Company: Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc., Bethesda, Maryland

Company Description: Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. is the largest hospitality REIT, owning 133 properties with a market cap of $7.7 billion. They own high quality lodging assets in prime urban, airport and resort/convention locations. By creating value through aggressive asset management and disciplined capital allocation to generate superior performance, they endeavor to maximize shareholders’ returns through a combination of dividends, growth in funds from operations and increasing asset value.
Internship Experience: Jermaine’s internship solidified his interest in pursuing a career in the hospitality sector of the real estate industry. He gained experience in asset management, traveling around the country meeting with management and strategizing ways to operate the properties more efficiently. He also had exposure to acquisitions and strategic planning and looks forward to expanding on that experience in his future career development.

Randolph Zhao – PRE 2012
Company: Prudential Real Estate Investors, Beijing, China

Company Description: Prudential Real Estate Investors (PREI) is the real estate investment management business of Prudential Financial, Inc. PREI’s business is the execution of real estate investment strategies in markets throughout the world for a global client base.
Internship Experience: Randolph was based in Beijing for the summer and his internship exposed him to the rigors of investing in real estate in an emerging market. His experience entailed underwriting a variety of assets, numerous site visits and writing investment memoranda on a range of opportunities across China.

Tim Shaughnessy – PRE 2012
Company: Forest City Enterprises, New York, New York

Company Description: Forest City Enterprises is a NYSE-listed national real estate company with $10.7 billion in total assets. The Company is principally engaged in the ownership, development, management and acquisition of commercial and residential real estate and land throughout the United States.
Internship Experience: Tim’s summer internship focused on a diverse array of residential development projects in New York City and the Northeast. He was involved in many components of the projects, including sourcing deals, market analysis, due diligence, site plan design, construction management, financial modeling, tax credit analysis, RFP response and bid review.

For more information on internship opportunities available to PRE students, please visit: http://realestate.cornell.edu/index.php/career/placement_services/internship.