The Six Step Process

1. You have to decide whether you want a career in real estate. A great place to start is by understanding your natural strengths and interest as it relates to career planning in general.
2. Take the time to research the real estate industry. Of course, you can’t learn everything there is to know about real estate. But learn enough to feel that you can make an informed decision about whether to invest your time, energy, talents, and money in pursuing a real estate career. Along the way, you’ll develop a better idea of not only whether you want to work in real estate, but also what the options are and where you might want to work-in what sector of the real estate industry, for what type of company, in what type of position-and whether you might want to go into business for yourself.
3. Talk to people in real estate. Talk to brokers, property managers, project managers, and other real estate professionals. Visit some real estate projects and talk to people on the job site. Also talk to educators in business schools and real estate programs and to friends and relatives working in real estate. Their insights and comments could be helpful.
4. Attend meetings of local real estate organization (like the ones that are highlighted in this site). Get the observations of real estate professionals in attendance on career opportunities in real estate. If your school has a real estate center or club, attend its meetings and talk to the attendees.
5. Take an introductory course in real estate at a local college or other institution. (To locate courses, try a Google search on introductory real estate course plus the name of your city.) Or enroll in an online course.
6. Conduct a self-assessment. You need to go through this process, because finding the right career starts with having a clear understanding of your aspirations, interests, values, talents, and skills. Compare the idea of a career in real estate with other careers that might interest you. There are many good books and resources that can help you with the self-assessment process.