Women in Real Estate (WIRE) is a brand new student organization at the University of Wisconsin – Madison that focuses on empowering women within the real estate industry. WIRE’s mission is to build a community of women that have a passion for real estate and connect them to professionals to promote confidence and success in the traditionally male-dominated industry. Providing its members with professional development events, networking, a mentorship program, and various social events, WIRE encourages women to pursue careers in real estate and maintain a network that extends from students to alumni, benefiting both parties.
WIRE Vice President of Operations, Annie Trucco, a real estate undergraduate, stated, “Last fall, after about a year of being in the program, we realized that in all of our real estate courses, extracurriculars, and professional experiences, we were some of the few women in the room. After looking into research about women in the real estate industry, we found some information that hit close to home–only 22% of all undergrad Real Estate students at the Wisconsin School of Business are women (84 students).
In fact, this ratio of women-to-men students in the Real Estate program is the lowest of any major in the business school. We wanted to create a community of these 84 women so that we can make the most of our experience in the Real Estate program. This is our first official semester on campus, and so far, the enthusiasm for WIRE has been really exciting. To date, we have 33 involved members, we have had guest speakers from companies like Heitman, Sara Investments, and CBRE, and have organized a mentorship program to match upper and lower class men. We are looking forward to our future professional events as well as social events that will continue to foster the community of female real estate students here at UW.”
WIRE will be hosting a panel event on Thursday, November 8th, featuring Lesley Lisser, Director of Asset Management for Invesco Real Estate, Kim Liautaud, Managing Director and Head of U.S. Commercial Real Estate for BMO Harris, and Lisa Konieckza, Executive Vice President of CBRE. WIRE members will be able to ask questions and discuss current topics related to the real estate industry. Graaskamp Center Associate Director Sharon McCabe will moderate the session.
Looking forward to the spring semester, WIRE is planning a field trip to Chicago where members will be able to network with professionals and tour local site developments.
For more information on Women in Real Estate, please visit www.womeninrealestateuw.com/.
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