Real Estate Club Hosts Recent Alumni Panel

On November 6, the Real Estate Club invited four young alumni to speak about professional life at their Recent Alumni Panel event. The alumni, Amy Cohen, an associate at RSE Capital Partners, Joshua Greenberg, an associate at CBRE, CJ Liuzzo, a finical analyst at JPG Smith and Devan Perry, a property coordinator at Washington REIT, were excited to share their experiences. Each one shared their stories in the hopes of inspiring current students and addressing their concerns about life after graduation. 

“It was a very informative event! It was a nice opportunity to talk to recent grads and hear what life’s like after graduation,” Renee Kasongo, senior, said.

Cohen, a graduate of the class of 2016, offered a variety of perspectives with dual degrees in finance and real estate as well as her experience working in as an investment analyst at a large company like Prudential and experience working in a smaller company like RSE Capital Partners. Her professional journey, however, started with a connection she made in a real estate class:

“In the Careers in Real Estate class, Dr. Boyle brought in somebody from PGM Real Estate, which is Prudential’s Real Estate group and I ended up talking to him after. I was a sophomore and at the time they weren't hiring any sophomore interns, but we stayed in touch over the year. Going into my senior year, I was able to intern at their office in Arlington and got a full-time job offer afterwards. So networking is really important—you've just got to put yourself out there and do it!” Cohen said.

After graduating in 2017, Greenberg was determined to join the team of brokers he encountered during his internship at CBRE. Greenberg explained to students how he learned from his internships, navigated his professional path, and exposing them to his “niche” asset class: data centers.

“After a summer internship at JBG Smith, I realized I did not want to be in property management. I thought that was valuable—that I learned what I did not like, and I also learned what I wanted to learn more about. I realized that I liked the brokers in the office… and so I wanted to give it a shot. I did two internships in the brokerage business. In that last internship before my senior year, I started working on a team of about 11 people in Tyson's Corner who I really liked and I decided was going to do whatever it took to end up on the team. After months of following up non-stop with my then boss, I ended up with a full-time job as a broker on their team focused in data centers.” Greenberg said.

As a with a double major in accounting and real estate, Liuzzo graduated in 2016 well prepared for professional life; however, he found his interest changing as he progressed. Liuzzo was able to share his valuable experience searching for jobs post-graduation.

“I really liked the people I was working with at PwC but just didn't see myself staying there forever so I started casually looking in the real estate area. There was a former board member who worked for JBG Smith and I reached out and asked if my resume fit a job I was looking at there. She said yes and even took time to speak to me on the phone. She walked me through how I should go about the next steps,” Liuzzo said. “So I'm now a financial analyst on JBG Smith’s commercial asset management team, specifically on the office side, working on 20 assets all on different life cycles...I really liked that role and I’ve really been able to help me use my accounting foundation and see how everything interacts together.”

Perry, like Cohen, urged students to take advantage of networking opportunities. A graduate of the class of 2017, Perry was able to make connections her senior year that ultimately lead to a full-time job.  

“My senior year, I still didn't know exactly what I wanted to do but Dr. Boyle nominated me as a CREW scholarship winner and I spent my 21 birthday in New York at a CREW convention. Not what I thought I'd be doing, but it was the greatest choice I ever made in my collegiate career and my career to this day. If I hadn't gone to that conference, and if I hadn't stepped out of the box I was in to meet all those amazing men and women, I would not be where I am today.”

After speaking a bit about their professional journeys, the event turned to a question and answer format, allowing current students to ask the alumni about any aspect of life after college. Cohen, Greenberg, Liuzzo, and Perry were eager to share what they had learned—from finding their first apartments and navigating subway systems to choosing an asset class and earning the respect of their coworkers.

“When you're looking for a job, look for a job with awesome people and an awesome culture. It is a game changer,” Devan said when asked about her job search.

Liuzzo also offered advice when a current student asked about the expectations of a first job:

“They want you to ask a lot of questions—they need you to ask a lot of questions. It's a two-way street—doing something wrong it doesn't help them or you. I felt like that was the biggest change for me—learning to ask lots of questions.” Liuzzo said.

The panel concluded after about an hour, but students were still interested in talking to the alumni, some staying late to get a few more questions in.

“This program really brings people to you and really helps you with opportunities,” Liuzzo said, reflecting on his own experience. It seems Liuzzo, Cohen, Greenberg and Perry, once the beneficiaries of the Program, are now the ones helping to provide students with those opportunities. 

By: Samantha Sproviero