When she wasn’t juggling her work as a teaching assistant, her sorority, or her job search, you could find Corie Cozart, a recent ‘22 Real Estate and Business Management graduate, in her professors’ office hours. Any student can go to class, but it takes a committed, lifelong learner to actively pursue in-depth knowledge by connecting with their professors.

“A lot of the professors have experience and they can teach you what they’ve learned out in the real world,” Cozart said, “I liked forming relationships with the professors and that helped my college experience a lot. I feel like it’s a support system when you have questions or need advice. I’d always go to them. They were so helpful and I will always be thankful to them.”

In fact, one of Cozart’s real estate professors, Greg Azar, was the reason she found her current job. She trusted Azar’s judgment and applied as a property administrator for real estate asset management and operations with Realty Income Corporation — hopeful for an interview with graduation approaching. Sure enough, two days after graduation, Cozart received an offer. If she hadn’t developed such strong connections in the Program, she might have missed an amazing opportunity. She looks forward to working with 12,000 plus properties and learning more about commercial real estate.

Cozart’s role as a teaching assistant (TA) for Financing Real Estate Projects with Michael Walsh enhanced her knowledge of the real estate field. 

“It helped prepare me a lot for the job I have now with all the emailing and making sure everyone is on the same page,” Cozart said, “I enjoyed helping students learn; it also made me better at communicating what I knew and learning how to teach.”

Communication skills translate well to the influx of emails and training Programs she experienced as a new hire. Her other duties as a TA involved setting up the Canvas site, grading exams or case studies and setting up assignments. She also held office hours for students.

The Blackwood Program in Real Estate was a significant factor in determining Cozart’s future career. Originally, Cozart was solely a business management major, and added the real estate double major after taking a few real estate classes.

“Honestly, the Real Estate Program at Tech is why I really started liking real estate and really wanted to pursue it. I think it’s so interesting because a lot of things revolve around real estate, and it can connect people — whether it be the house they’re living in or the office building they go to every day. It’s always changing so you can always learn something which I think is cool.”

Cozart encouraged all undergraduates to make the most of their time at Virginia Tech:

“Take advantage of all the opportunities the Real Estate Program has to offer by meeting and learning from people in the industry and growing your network.”

From the Real Estate Club to several nationally acclaimed conferences to developing meaningful connections with professors, students in the Blackwood Program in Real Estate have plenty of opportunities for success — if they take them, like Cozart did.