Postgraduate courses
MPhil in Real Estate Finance
An intensive ten month taught programme combining elements of finance, economics and law for real estate professionals.
Introduction
In a competitive international business environment, real estate professionals need a sophisticated understanding of finance, economics and law to succeed. The MPhil in Real Estate Finance has been designed to provide rigorous training in the latest concepts from these three key areas as applied to international real estate markets.
The course is aimed at those who may already have some experience or interest in real estate markets, banking or investment and wish to upgrade their skills or for those who are looking to commence a career in this area. The programme offers an opportunity to study theoretical and practical finance, investment and law applied to global commercial real estate markets, while enjoying the cultural, social and recreational facilities of Cambridge. The course takes students from a wide variety of backgrounds: finance, geography, economics, law, biology, international business, mathematics. These students have in common a strong desire to work in property and investments coupled with strong academic skills.
Tuition in the programme is based around classroom lectures, case studies and field trips to ensure students can apply the theoretical concepts taught. The programme can also serve as an entry point into PhD training for those interested in pursuing research in real estate finance in greater depth.
Real Estate Advisory Board
The Real Estate Advisory Board is a group of senior executives and professionals from the real estate and financial service industries who support the real estate education in Cambridge. Current members of the Board come from Sovereign Wealth Funds, investment banks, property funds, property companies and real estate consultancies and are actively involved in real estate finance and investment at a global scale. The Board provide advice to the Course Team on content of the REF programme and on key issues in the property industry, provide financial support for the course and run a number of networking events where students can meet key players in the industry and hear about significant development in our field. Board Members also contribute lectures, seminars and case studies to the programme. The Board also assist in the production of the Student Resume Book.
Mentoring Scheme
Students have opportunity to be assigned to an industry mentor, a senior executive or professional currently working in the real estate and finance industries. The Mentoring Scheme, supported by the Real Estate Advisory Board and by the Cambridge University Land Society, helps students understand the operation of the property markets, provides a point of contact to other in the industry and allows students to discuss career opportunities, research ideas and professional practice with experienced executives. The Mentoring Scheme enhances the Department’s interaction with Commercial property markets.
Course objectives
The MPhil in Real Estate Finance aims to provide integrated theoretical and practical instruction in finance, investment, economics and law as they relate to global commercial property markets. Students are provided with the methods and techniques of analysis needed for commercial property financing, investment and development. The course is designed to ensure that property specialists are able to interact with other corporate finance related professionals. To this end, particular emphasis is placed on ensuring that students are familiar with the latest concepts in mixed-asset portfolio analysis, risk management, financial engineering and option-based valuation models.
Course structure
The Real Estate Finance course runs from the end of September to the end of July. Ahead of the start of Michaelmas term students on this course are required to attend a pre-sessional course at the end of September.
The MPhil in Real Estate Finance is modular. To complete the course students are required to complete four modules in each of the first two terms and to submit a compulsory dissertation of between 10,000 to 12,000 words in the third term. In all cases students on this course must take a quantitative research methods module as well as other compulsory modules. Assessment of each module is by way of a written examination paper, project or essay work, or a combination of these methods.
In addition, all students are expected to attend the Department’s Research Management Programme that supports the development of projects for the dissertation as well as covering issues of data collection and ethics. More information on modules offered.
Progress to the PhD
MPhil candidates wishing to pursue a PhD with the Department may apply to continue as a Graduate Student via the Board of Graduate Studies. Each application is considered carefully by the Department and by the Degree Committee. Approval of an application will depend on three criteria:
- availability of a supervisor;
- the approval by the Degree Committee of a research proposal; and
- the achievement of a minimum of 67% in the MPhil examination.
Full details of the application procedure for continuing students are given on the Board of Graduate Studies website. Students wishing to continue are advised to apply early in the academic year and to be aware that funding deadlines are also often early in the applications cycle. In all cases, approval to continue is subject to the final examinations results and approval from the Degree Committee.
Professional accreditation
The MPhil in Real Estate Finance is accredited by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). The RICS is an international organisation with over 100,000 members and membership of the RICS conveys a number of benefits. Graduates of the Real Estate Finance course are eligible to enter the Assessment of Professional Competence (APC), successful completion of which entitles full membership of the RICS. The RICS also offers free membership to students whilst they are taking accredited courses.
Information about the RICS, the APC and the benefits of membership can be found on their website: www.rics.org
The Investment Property Forum recognises the MPhil in Real Estate Finance as providing relevant skills necessary for those operating in the property investment market. Graduates from the course will be offered membership of the Forum. However they should have a minimum of 2 years relevant experience in the property investment industry before becoming a member (this could be part-time while studying). This represents fast track membership compared to the IPF standard provisions.
Course Director
The Director for the MPhil in Real Estate Finance is Professor Colin Lizieri (cml49@cam.ac.uk). Professor Lizieri is available to discuss with students specific issues about the content of the MPhil in Real Estate Finance.
Academic and Language requirements
The academic requirements for entry to the MPhil in Real Estate Finance are at least the minimum expected by the University. Details of these requirements are given in the University of Cambridge Graduate Studies Prospectus.
The English language requirement for both MPhil and PhD courses is as follows:
IELTS: Overall 7.5 with a minimum of 7.0 in each element
TOEFL ibT: Overall 110, with a minimum of 25 in each element
TOEFL paper based: 637 overall, 5.5 in TWE
Further information
More information on funding
More information on how to apply