Tuition & financing for Baker students

As you plan for this important step in your academic and career journey, understanding the financial commitment is an essential part of the process.

The Baker Program in Real Estate is a four-semester program that begins in the fall. Note that you will pay tuition for all four semesters, as listed below. Estimated program costs, including fees, are outlined in the chart.

Estimated program costs for the 2027-2028 academic year will be available in the spring semester.

The Baker Program requires a non-refundable deposit of $1,500 to secure admission, payable at the time of acceptance, which will be credited to your first-fall-semester bursar account.

Estimated cost of attendance for 2026-2027 academic year

Expense	Fall/spring term (academic year)
Tuition	$73,946
Mandatory fees*	$701
Books & course materials	$2,464
Food	$5,768
Housing	$19,962
Transportation	$3,754
Personal expenses	$4,196
Estimated one-time program fee*	$3,000

The estimated cost of attendance for the MPS in Real Estate includes costs billed by Cornell (such as tuition and fees) and non-billed costs (such as housing, books and transportation). Non-billed costs are subject to change depending on student choices.

*Includes student activity fee and Cornell Health fee.

Financial aid options for this program

Students finance their studies at Cornell University with a variety of resources.

Merit-based scholarships

All applicants are automatically considered for merit-based scholarships at the time of submission, with priority scholarship consideration given to those who apply early.

If you are admitted to the program, the scholarship interest form will become available to you to be considered for scholarship funding.

Teaching assistantships (TAs)

TAs provide support to a variety of real estate courses. Based upon your first-semester performance, you are eligible to discuss and accept one or more TA appointments. These are typically hourly paid appointments, with selection decisions made by the faculty member responsible for the course.

Loans

Cornell University has been designated as a direct lender for the U.S. government, which facilitates loan application processing for students who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents. Please see the Office of Financial Aid website for more information on federal and private loans

Loan options for non-U.S. citizens

Non-U.S. citizen students who have a credit-worthy U.S. citizen or U.S. permanent resident co-signer may also be eligible for private education loans through lenders such as Sallie Mae, Discover, and Citizens Bank. Students should research private education loan lenders to determine which option is best for their individual situation. Some of these will have specific requirements for the borrower, so please make sure to contact the lending agency directly.

The Office of Financial Aid can help answer questions about student loans and lending options. They also maintain a historical lending list on their website for your reference.

External scholarships

In addition to the options available through the Graduate School, Baker Program students may be eligible for these outside funding sources:

Appraisal Institute Education and Relief Foundation: The Appraisal Institute Education and Relief Foundation awards several scholarships for both graduate students and undergraduates majoring in real estate appraisal, land economics, real estate, or related fields.
Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW) Network Scholarships: The CREW Network offers a scholarship for female students who are enrolled full-time in an accredited real estate program or other fields of study with the intent to pursue a career in commercial real estate.
Epsilon Sigma Alpha (ESA) Foundation: The ESA Foundation awards numerous scholarships annually; amounts vary depending on the applicant’s home state or country.
George M. Brooker Collegiate Scholarship for Minorities: The Brooker Scholarship is designed to assist minority students, on the basis of academic excellence, who are committed to a career in real estate—specifically real estate management—upon graduation. (Sponsored by the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM) Foundation)
Goldie Initiative: Is a robust scholarship, mentorship, networking and leadership program for female graduate students passionate about commercial real estate.
International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC): Graduate students who are also members are invited to apply for a several scholarships as an individual or a team.
Pension Real Estate Association (PREA): PREA awards scholarships to promising students studying real estate at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
WX New York Women Executives in Real Estate: The WX Scholarship program is designed to encourage and support young women in their pursuit of careers in real estate and real estate-related professions.
FIABCI Scholarship Foundation: The foundation is a non-profit corporation that provides grants to students who demonstrate an interest in international real estate and who are enrolled in an FIABCI-member university.
California Home Building Foundation (CHF): CHF has distributed over $3 million in scholarships to students enrolled in industry-related programs, such as construction management and architecture.
Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans: The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans program honors the contributions of immigrants and children of immigrants to the United States.
Yellow Ribbon Program for Veterans: The Yellow Ribbon Program of the Post-9/11 GI Bill® will help make graduate schools and private universities more affordable for veterans.
Illinois Real Estate Educational Foundation: The Illinois Real Estate Educational Foundation (REEF) awards scholarships to students of real estate and related fields of study at colleges and universities both within and outside Illinois.
NIC Senior Housing and Care Scholarship: Through the Future Leader Council’s University Outreach program, NIC offers partial and full scholarships to our Spring Investment Forum and Fall Conference to participants in the NIC internship program and representatives from the universities that participate in those programs. The scholarships are provided in an effort to deepen students’ understanding of the sector.
American Immobiliare Commercial Real Estate Scholarship: The American Immobiliare College Scholarship Program was founded in 2016. Our goal is to support the next generation of Italian-American influencers and innovators in commercial real estate fields. The scholarship is open to graduate and undergraduate students nationally. Recipients receive a scholarship that helps underwrite part of the cost of their college tuition. Our scholarships provide assistance towards tuition but will not cover payment for all school costs.
Organization of American States (OAS) Interest-Free Student Loans: The Rowe Fund is an educational loan program of the Organization of American States (OAS) that helps citizens from Latin America and Caribbean OAS member states finance their studies or research in accredited universities across the United States.
RTOL Scholarship: Rent to Own Labs offers a $2,500 scholarship to help cover tuition, textbooks, or development courses for a student pursuing a career in real estate.

Learn more about the types of financial support resources available at the Cornell University Financial Aid Office.

The Rubacha Department of Real Estate is a cross-college department jointly led by the College of Architecture, Art and Planning and the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business.