Research and Higher Education course providers: their role in Real Estate Education

Higher or university education must, among other things, stretch students, their minds and their imaginations. RICS with its mission to supply the profession with high-calibre professionals, who will acquire and develop a critical view of their work, feels that they must engage with research in their field. Research activity is a fundamental aspect of a universityÌs mission not only to impart information and understanding but also generate it. The very nature of the university makes it ideal for conducting research that will open new vistas, furnish alternatives and, in general, shed light on complex problems. It is for this reason that research, both in terms of the development of practical knowledge and the transfer of this knowledge to the community, cannot be considered as a university-specific activity: it is an activity essential to the proper functioning of our society. In Real Estate Education especially the involvement of professionals is essential if the research-society balance is to be maintained. Higher education institutions can create the kind of research community which will enable them to satisfy the RICS requirements but, at the same time, allow them to expand their horizons for the benefit of their students. The challenge is to try and find ways of doing this and it is here that the RICS is concentrating its efforts.