Humber College Launches New Real Estate Certificate

Humber College is excited to announce the NEW Real Estate Leadership and Entrepreneurship Certificate — registration is now open. The program is designed to provide the skills, knowledge and competitive edge that practicing real estate professionals need to take their business and career to the next level.

The program provides learners with the opportunity for a broad-based education in real estate entrepreneurship, sales mastery, and business leadership. The courses range in focus from general management to operations, human resources, strategic planning, marketing, sales, communications, leadership, ethics, and to the entrepreneurial challenges of starting and scaling a successful real estate business. This new program aligns with Humber College’s demonstrated ability to deliver relevant, high-quality, industry-leading curriculum to the real estate, condominium management, and property management sectors.

We recently sat down with Wanda Buote, Dean, Education and Training Solutions at Humber College, to find out more about the new in-demand program.

Q: What was the motivation behind creating and offering the Real Estate Leadership and Entrepreneurship Certificate?

A: The idea for the program came about after we had identified a gap in the training available to real estate professionals. We asked what do real estate professionals do when they may not have the skills and knowledge to establish and grow their business? Current programs focus on the regulatory compliance aspect of the day-to-day activities of registered sales professionals. These programs are not designed to provide real estate professionals with the opportunity to adopt the mindset of an entrepreneur – how to run their small business, how to build it by recruiting and hiring the right talent, or how to expand their role to become a leader with the capacity to start, oversee, and grow a team. Many real estate professionals have struggled with growing their independent business or leading a team within a brokerage. The essence of the program is, you have the compliance knowledge – that is, you know how the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) wants you to conduct yourself according to the Real Estate and Business Brokers Act (REBBA) – but here’s how you can take your real estate business and career to another level by embracing an entrepreneurial mindset.

Q: Who is the program for and what are its benefits?

A: This program is for those looking to enhance their real estate knowledge, implement newly acquired skills, build on their strengths, or boost their leadership and sales acumen. It’s designed to enhance a learner’s personal and/or professional competencies, potentially boost revenue opportunities, allow them to perform better in the real estate sector or to further develop their career. Upon completion of the program, learners will receive a Humber College Certificate of Accomplishment.

Q: How is the program delivered and by whom?

A: The program is facilitated by subject matter experts from the real estate industry – they are professionals who can provide a realistic and practical understanding of the complexities of real estate, running a successful real estate business, and advancing one’s career in the sector.

At Humber, the student’s adult learning experience is central to all our programs. As a key component of a highly engaging learning experience, the program’s courses include live three-hour sessions that provide learners with the opportunity to interact in real time with their peers and their facilitator. During these dynamic exchanges, learners can demonstrate their understanding of the material through quality discussion and presentations, providing them with new perspectives of course concepts. We are very pleased that our subject-matter-experts in related programs continue to demonstrate excellence in meeting our learner needs while earning exceptional results in learner feedback. Online delivery gives learners greater freedom to balance their busy work-life schedules while interacting with peers. This enriched and blended approach creates a highly engaged learning experience.

Q: How is the program structured to work with the busy life of a real estate professional?

A: It was important for us to ensure that working real estate professionals could fit the program into their already full schedules. So, the first three courses can be taken simultaneously or individually, and the capstone project is taken after completing the first three courses. Each course is 10 weeks long and enrolment is available every three months with start dates in January, April, July, and October. The four courses can be completed in as little as six months. Learners seeking flexibility can also choose to take one course at a time on a schedule that best suits their needs and lifestyle. We are very excited that the inaugural courses are just around the corner, starting October 3, 2022. Interested learners can register now.

Q: As a real estate professional who has decided to pursue the program, what courses would I be taking?

A: The four courses of the new Real Estate Leadership and Entrepreneurship Certificate are:

Real Estate Entrepreneurship – In this course, you gain a practical understanding of how to run or build a real estate business by adopting an entrepreneurial mindset, whether you’re working independently, leading a team, or running a brokerage.

Real Estate Sales Mastery – This course helps you take control of your business and helps identify the best strategies to change and adapt effectively to market fluctuations.

Real Estate Leadership Essentials – Whether you are an aspiring or established leader, in this course, you learn the vital leadership competencies needed to scale teams and drive business results.

Capstone – As the final requirement in the program, the capstone brings it all together. This course gives you the opportunity to devise an innovative solution for a real-world industry problem by engaging in a work-related project.