THE REAL ESTATE EDUCATION IN THE UNIVERSITY OF THE WEST TIMIŞOARA Prof. Alexandru Buglea, Ph.D. University of the West, Timişoara University of the West, Timişoara Director of Master School Assoc. Prof. Ciprian Şipoş, Ph.D. University of the West, Timişoara University of the West, Timişoara Coordinator of Master Program “Real Estate Administration and Valuation” “Real Estate Administration and Valuation”

Established in the 1944 year, the University of the West from Timişoara follows the classic model of the European universities. It includes eleven faculties that educate students in the field of nature sciences, human sciences, law and economics. It is a state institution that represents a traditional centre of education, science and culture in the western part of Romania. Academic Community of the University of the West. The University’s members are the professors, the scientific researchers and all categories of students: the undergraduate students, the postgraduate students, the Ph.D. students and the continuous education students. These persons are representing the Academic Community of the University of the West. The Academic Community includes also the ex-professors or researchers, the graduates, the Ph.D. graduates, the holders of Doctor Honoris Causa Title, the visiting professors and other persons who significant contribute to educational, scientific and cultural life of the University and Timisoara city. 2 / 14 University of the West from Timişoara

3 / 14 Finance, Accounting, Economics, Management, International Economic Relationships Marketing. The Faculty of Economics and Business Administration is one of the most important faculties in the University of the West. It is established in 1967 and assures the educational programs for almost students. The educational offer of the faculty contains many possibilities that include specialities in whole economic and business administration areas as: Finance, Accounting, Economics, Management, International Economic Relationships or Marketing. The high education programs are structured on three successive cycles: undergraduate studies oThe undergraduate studies, with three year duration, organised by study domains and specialities accredited by Ministry of Education and Research; post-graduate and master programs oThe post-graduate and master programs, with two years duration, which are functioning from the years 1995/1996 and has recently reorganised (2007) in the light of Bologna Process according with similar curriculum developed in prestigious Western universities; Ph.D. programs oThe Ph.D. programs, with three year duration, organised in Ph.D. School of Economics, developed in five main research areas: Finance, Accounting, Economics, Management and Marketing. Faculty of Economics and Business Administration

The Real Estate Administration and Valuation Master The Real Estate Administration and Valuation Master The real estate education is present in the University of the West Timişoara at the master’s level. Thus, from the present number of 32 master programs organised by the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, the program „Real Estate Administration and Valuation” faces a very fast growing in its four years of existence. The program started in 2005/2006 under the license of ARACIS (Romanian Agency for Quality in the Higher Education) with 24 students and in 2008/2009 at the master is learning 46 students in the first year of study and 43 in the second year of study. The master program is based upon the Romanian legal framework given by the accreditation of University of the West Timişoara and by the legislation referring to the higher education domains and specialities in the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration. 4 / 14

5 / 14 The mission of „Real Estate Administration and Valuation” The „Real Estate Administration and Valuation” master’s mission is to respond to real needs of real estate market by training students in order to become professionals with specific abilities and competencies for administration and valuation of real estate. The main competencies are based on skills as follows: The ability to gain every necessary information to cover the administration, valuation, developing and financing in the real estate area; The ability to understand the economic and social values within legislation framework and professional conduct; The ability to appropriate the valuation methods and the International Valuation Standards (IVS), adopted as national standards in Romania; The ability to use information from different domains as law, taxation, urbanism, constructions, architecture, environment protection.

6 / 14 The master program is addressing in the same measure to the economic, technical, law or other graduates that are already practising or intend to practice in the real estate administration or valuation. The master aims to create and maintain a strong link between universities and business environment. In that respect it was perfected an Agreement between the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration and National Association of Romanian Valuators (ANEVAR) that statues a long-term collaboration in real estate training. The „Real Estate Administration and Valuation” Master Program is the base of this agreement. Although the main scope of the master is to train professionals for the real estate administration and valuation, the program also gives a significant attention to the research activity. The mission of „Real Estate Administration and Valuation”

7 / 14 The Scientific Research The scientific research in „Real Estate Administration and Valuation” is correlated with Research Program of the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration. The professors that are teaching courses at this master and the students are implied in different research areas at national and international level. Ones of the most important research activities are developed in the Interdisciplinary Research and Training Platform „Nicholas Georgescu Roegen” that is functioning in University of the West Timişoara, accredited by National Council of Scientific Research in Higher Education (CNCSIS) from top themes for scientific research The top themes for scientific research at this master program are: - The risk evaluation in the Romanian real estate in the situation of international crisis; - The impact of International Valuation Standards upon Romanian real estate valuation; - The unitary view about valuation methods under the globalisation conditions;

The Real Estate Curriculum The Master’s Curriculum is mainly structured according with international training programs for Real Estate. The curriculum is based on Transferable Credits System developed in two years of study separated in four semesters, as follows: 8 / 14 NoCourse NameHours/Course Module Number of Transferable Credits CourseWorking seminar F i r s t S e m e s t e r : 1 Business Management Accounting Standards and Procedures Organisational Behaviour Strategic Analysis 28 8 Total Semester I S e c o n d S e m e s t e r : 5 Real Estate Valuation and Appraisal Methods Investment Strategies and Valuation Economics of Property Markets The Construction Processes Technology and Management Total Semester II

The Real Estate Curriculum Second Year of Study: 9 / 14 No.Course NameHours/Course Module Number of Transferable Credits CourseWork seminar Third Semester: 9 Technology and Management of Urban Design and Architecture Taxation and Assurances of Real Estates International Valuation Settlements Statistic Valuation Methods Total Semester III Fourth Semester: 13 Land and Environmental Law Valuation Report Elaboration Practice in Business Environment ­ Total Semester IV Total Master Program

Transferable Credits System The number of Transferable Credits and the number of years of study and semesters are concordant with the Romanian legislation. There is stipulated a compulsory number of 120 Transferable Credits for entire master program, 60 for each year of study and 30 for each semester. These number of 30 Transferable Credits for each semester are differently allocated to each course module according with work volume needed to pass the exam. To promote from the first year to the second year of study is necessary a minimum of 40 Transferable Credits. To graduate the master is necessary, finally, to pass every exam from the curriculum. The master is graduated by presenting a Dissertation in the front of a commission that includes the master co-ordinator and professors who are teaching at this master program. The Dissertation consists in a working paper containing both scientific and practical issues elaborated under the direction of a professor from the master program. 10 / 14

The Academic Staff The Academic Staff The Academic Staff of the master consists in two main categories of professors: - The professors with full activity; - The visiting or partner professors with part time activity. professors withfull activity The professors with full activity in the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration are teaching courses to every types of academic education in our faculty: undergraduates, postgraduates and Ph.D. They also dedicate a significant part of their activity to the real estate education and cover the economic area of master’s curriculum. The Academic Staff with full activity who is teaching courses at „Real Estate Administration and Valuation” Master Program includes a number of 8 persons: 2 Professors and 6 Assoc. Professors who are highly recognised in their professional domains. 11 / 14

The Academic Staff visiting or partner professors with part time activity The visiting or partner professors with part time activity in the faculty are both professors from other universities and professionals from the valuation business. Academic Staff from other universities The Academic Staff from other universities covers the interdisciplinary areas of curriculum such as “The Construction Processes Technology and Management”, “Technology and Management of Urban Design and Architecture” or “Land and Environmental Law” and includes 3 professors. valuation professionals partners The valuation professionals partners cover the practice area teaching the courses as “Real Estate Valuation and Appraisal Methods”, “Investment Strategies and Valuation” or “International Valuation Settlements” and include 2 persons, one of them very well known at national and international level. 12 / 14

Final Issues The Admission to the „Real Estate Administration and Valuation” Master Program is based on an exam that includes also an interview in the front of a commission. From the total students admitted, a number of persons, established by Professor’s Council of the faculty are state financed. Also, exists a number of scholarships that are distributed to the top master students. The other students are self-financed by paying a scholarship tax approved by the University Senate. Moreover, the best students have the possibility and are participating to scientific research activity in the faculty. Some national and international research programs require having in the working team a certain number of master students. These students are financed by funds obtained in those research programs. 13 / 14

Final Issues The evolution of admitted and graduated number of students in „Real Estate Administration and Valuation” Master Program is presented in the following table: 14 / 14 Most of the graduates of this master program are now activating in real estate relating areas: real estate transaction business, real estate valuation or real estate administration in Timişoara or in other cities from Romania or Europe. Number of students 2005/ / / /2009 Admitted in first year of study Graduated (percent of graduation)- 18 (75%) 23 (74%) July 2009