Strengthening Real Estate Education through Industry-Academia Collaboration: A Critical Desktop Review

Purpose – This paper explores the current Malaysian landscape of industry-academia collaboration in real estate education through a critical examination. It seeks to assess how the integration and effective engagement of alliances between academia and industry in the design, delivery, and research of the curriculum, with the enablers, barriers, and future developments. Design/Methodology/Approach – A desktop review approach was implemented with the synthesis of scholarly literature, policy reports, and international best practices, and the alignment of the educational institutions with the requirements of the industry. The analysis was structured according to the applicable theoretical models, such as the Triple Helix Model, Experiential Learning Theory, and the Knowledge Exchange Framework. Findings – The results yield high levels of mismatch between academic programs and the changing needs in the real estate business. During the period of policy rhetoric, the industry-academia collaboration is encouraged, however, with no consistency, and is sometimes superficial. The main problems are the absence of institutional incentives, a matter of uncertainty in the collaboration mechanisms, and a mismatch in the goals between academia and industry. Global examples, however, show that through strategic collaborations, the employability of graduates, the relevance of the curricula, and innovations can be improved. Practical Implications – The research outlines a strategic plan of actions to be performed to institutionalise the industry-academia collaboration in the study of real estate. These are setting the co-governance systems, harmonizing the performance indicators, and integrating learning models in teaching and evaluation schemes. Originality/Value – The paper is a contribution to the body of literature as it critically and theoretically reviews the industry-academia collaboration within the framework of real estate education. It also gives realistic suggestions to Malaysian universities, policymakers, and other industry stakeholders who plan to future-proof the real estate talent supply chain.