I am 22 year old attending at Dixie State University, as a freshman in Utah. I am majoring in Business administration with emphasis in finance. I am wanting to start my real estate career right now. But I am so busy with school and work. And the things I am learning don't have a lot to do with real estate. I am about to start an internship at Northwestern Mutual, and might quit my current job. But neither of them do any kind of real estate. I am looking for a mentor that would let me be their shadow, or take me under their wing and show me all the in's and outs. I am ready to do real estate and wanting to start now. I am so determined to be successful and create a legacy. I just don't know if college is the place for me, if I want to do real estate. But I know this internship at Northwestern would help a lot about finance and build my network. I just don't know... I want to hear everyone's opinion and what they think is best. If i should continue school and do real estate on the side, or jump in to real estate and take off!

Please let me know and God bless!

You'll get lots of opinions, but you need to remember you aren't everyone else. It's hard to figure out what your life will bring at your age.

My opinion is to get a degree. Business management will give you background into any career you want and will give you options in the future if you want to get out of REI.

The first step is to figure out WHY you want to do real estate? 

The second is figure out what role of real estate (Agent, Investor, or whatever)? 

The third step is figuring out which direction to go based on the other answers.  If wanting to be an agent, or other career in real estate, you can take a PT job while in college, and get your license, while learning all you can.  If wanting to be an investor, you need to have another high paying job, or live frugally long enough to save up enough money to get started right in real estate.  Whether that means working two part-time jobs while finishing your degree or getting three jobs and not finishing your degree is up to your personal goals. 

There's two types of people who are very successful in real estate investing, A: those with high income jobs doing real estate as a side investment, and B: those who are natural entrepreneurs and just outwork everyone else.

If you want a corporate job and the security of what that brings, get the degree!!

A degree can definitely help you, and open some doors, but there are many, many very successful entrepreneurs who do not have MBAs or any degree for that matter. Here's a few you may be familiar with: Steve Jobs (Apple), Steve Wozniak (Apple), Larry Ellison (Oracle), Michael Dell (Dell), Richard Branson (Virgin), Charles Culpeper (CocaCola), David Geffen (Geffen Records), David Oreck (Oreck), there's many more.

I have a PhD in Business from Real Life U, a Masters in Real Estate from BiggerPockets, a MBA in Marketing from Bing Search, and a BS in General Studies from FaceBook... #Educated :-) 

Best of success!! Keep Grinding!!

@Jeff Filali , i like your degrees. 

Ammon,

my 2 cents, i am an entrepreneur / self proprietor what ever you want to call me. worked during and right out of High School, never went to college, and started my own construction business on the side while working for other contractors, learning from different guys as i went. I have told this to my kids as they were starting High school ( both out now), I always said to them that learning in school what you can in Business and Finance will get you into a lot of different avenues of work in life. No matter what company you work for, whether it is big business or your own, there is always a demand for people that know that side of the business. knowing about business and finance will help you more in Real Estate than you may think. I would stay the course with college, maybe tweak your classes some to involve studies towards the real estate end of it and work with a real estate Mentor, Bank, real estate Co., etc. ,part time , and learn what you can, it will only help you. that is an area i wish i did more study on when i was younger, but i learn every day and that was 31 years ago and still have my construction business, real estate investing ( started 4 years ago) and other businesses.

Suggestion: find someone that may buy Student rentals where you attend, see if they will mentor or partner with you, next year you could probably live in the investment property while renting the other rooms, good way for you to learn.

@Ammon Gutierrez Do what I did @19... Drop out and jump in feet first and be prepared to lots of money... Now 20 years old (1 year in the business) doing 5 properties at a time and done 12 deals collectively with my partner since I started. Everything is risk/reward... if you're prepared and expected to lose money, any money that you don't lose, is a plus. I've lost lots of money, never got mentored, never bought any programs... that's all a load of bull Sh!t, nothing is better than learning from your own mistakes. I know lot more than real Estate, there is nothing that a simple book in the library can't teach you.. College is business. I don't believe in it, it's a way to get into debt and never start doing anything that you're passionate about. That's just my .02, but then again, I got very lucky, can't say I didn't. I don't know anyone my age that is in a position that I am in, not boasting, just simply saying that it takes luck as well as hard work in order to be successful. 

@Ammon Gutierrez , I would recommend staying in school,especially since you are already enrolled and going to a state school in state, so tuition should be reasonable .  A Business admin and finance degree look good on resumes and for employers. If you said you were going to a private school racking up huge debt for a degree that isn't that marketable it would be another thing. 

A college degree definitely isn't necessary like other posters have mentioned but it gives you another option at least.

Are there any real estate investing groups on your campus? If not maybe you could start one. Looks like enrollment is about 9,000..there's got to be some other students interest in real estate there. 

A part time real estate job could be a good idea too. Maybe something with a local investment firm? 

I'm sure your courses will teach you important things even if it doesn't seem like it right now. Finance of course is a very important part of real estate investing. 

Best of luck

Hi Ammon,

I recommend staying in school and getting your degree.  You will likely never regret getting a college degree, but might very much regret not getting one. The four years of college will go by faster than you can image. By studying business and finance you will learn many things that could help with your real estate down the road. While in college you can certainly also pursue opportunities to mentor or volunteer with those actively working in real estate as some of the others have suggested. 

Good Luck and Best Wishes,

Marty

@Ammon Gutierrez , just another opinion, but I would highly recommend staying in school. But don't approach it as a distraction but rather a catalyst. It's a blessing that you know exactly what you want to do in life. If you approach each class with the mindset of "How will this help me build my legacy?" then I'm confident you will graduate ready to conquer the world! Maybe a more practical way to think about it is that a degree in a business-related field (finance/accounting, IT, marketing, construction management, real estate, etc.) should set you up for nice W-2 income, which, along with good credit, will be important as you build your real estate business but also in life. Again, I wouldn't think of W-2 income as a diversion. If you seek employment in the real estate industry, you can kill two birds with one stone.

I've been counseled by my church leaders my whole life to gain as much education as I can. And I certainly include, as other respondents have, non-secular education sources like the great mentors, advisors, and friends you'll find on BiggerPockets, along with the plethora of podcasts and books out there.

Ultimately it's a personal decision. If you think things through, make it a matter of prayerful consideration, and then listen to your heart, you'll know the right direction for you and your future family. Best of luck to you, we're all rooting for you!

Do both

Get the degree but buy a duplex to 4 pled to stay in and rent the other rooms out. You'll kill several birds with one stone.

Ah this is a hard question. I got a degree in public relations from BYU (fellow Utahn woooo) but I've done barely anything with it, unless you want to count my small freelance writing business as PR-based (I could have started that without my degree). Now I work in sales and I absolutely love it. As far as school goes, I think I would have felt more fulfilled if I'd studied something that would have challenged me, like business, IT or a science of some sort. But I don't regret college--if I hadn't spent four years at BYU I might have not met my husband (who had far more initial interest in RE than I had), I wouldn't have made some lifelong friends and I wouldn't have had the experience of "adulting" all on my own. Of course you can have those experiences outside of school, but I think there is some value in having a degree.

I like the suggestions that others have mentioned about finishing your degree and saving up for a property at the same time. We bought a duplex while we were still in school and rented it out to fellow students; it worked great for us :) good luck!

I gained interest in REI since I was 18. It took me 10 years to finally get in the game. I decided to go to college but dropped out my junior year. I majored in accounting/business law and minored in English lit. The things I learned in school still come in handy. I also worked with a lawyer who was also an investor. Learned more from him that anyone else. Ultimately, I decided that I would stick around and become a sponge. If you could stay in school part time and work part time for someone that does REI then take it. You get the best of both worlds. Good luck.

It really depends because of me personally I see it this way, the opportunity cost of going to college is Tuition, fees, plus the opportunity cost of not working full time. If your costs are low and you aren't going into massive debt than I would say finish it, but explore your options(any amount of debt really hurts your chances of getting a home loan and student debt isn't backupable!) 

@Ammon Gutierrez Welcome to BP (going by your post count)

Cutting to the chase. you said 

"And the things I am learning don't have a lot to do with real estate."

If you plan on treating your Real Estate career like a business, I can't see why you would not finish this path you started on. Your in an academic environment! Use it for all its worth.

Talk about Value adding. Wright an extra paper. Think big about what you could plan out with extra input from experienced professional academics (and there network) in the field you wish to pro-sue. 

Stick out! That School of yours is not giving you an education for money. You takeaway what you bother to absorb OR, you plug in and Start building your network through the network of the existing institution your already a part of.

Backing off a bit. Your right, school is not needed to be in biz, but it would be a tool you would bring to any deal. 

Continuing with the internship? Just another chance to add to your network and skills. 

Keep looking for the deals. Just one good deal a year would be epic!

I just BET you would attract the attention of a big thinking friend who would share knowledge with you. (ie. that mentor you spoke of and, you might be theirs)

However, I think you should really hold on a course you set. its what 4 years? and in that time you could study and build a plan like no other.

ahh to be 22 again.

Just a few thoughts from a 52 year old custodian just starting on this real estate path.

@Joseph M.

A part time real estate job could be a good idea too. Maybe something with a local investment firm? 

How would you get a job with an investment firm if you have no experience? Where would you find these firms as well? I just finished up my bachelors in mathematics and would love to try my hand at working for a firm.

@Jeff Filali Great post.

@Patrick Liska more like $1.50 then 2 cents. Love the Suggestion, going to look that way. my boys just started collage.

@Ammon Gutierrez do you have @Mateusz Prawdzik 's Drive? He still studies! Life, cause and effect. Further, he is right, A College IS a Business. so what did you sign up for again?

Thank you @Chris Jensen !

@Joel Moran interesting part time student? would that effect any of your scholarships Ammon? Could you do both? Still get the degree but over a longer period of time?

2nd final thought. I hope you can find your answer Ammon.  Finding your purpose behind what you do can drive you far.

Keep seeking.

Kirk

I was at a similar crossroads in college. My mentor once said, "Earning a college degree (in a significant field of study) will never harm you in any way." it will open more doors than it closes. I stayed in college because of this single discussion and have never regretted it since. I do like that you have an eye toward the future. Why don't you keep an eye on your end goal, which is real estate, all the while finishing your degree. That gives you a solid plan A and a solid plan B. Most people your age might struggle to gain even that. 

More importantly, don't forget to enjoy the journey along the way. Sometimes we live our lives right into the answers of many of our questions. 

Lastly, listen to @James Canoy. 

@Ammon Gutierrez

I wasted thousands of dollars and years of my life studying for a career field that I only worked in for 2.5 years. In the end that education made me a great "worker" and nearly guaranteed that I would NEVER be wealthy or make more than a middle class income.

In other words college was a waste for me. That is not to say it would be a waste for everyone, but for me it got me no closer to my true goals, which have to do with entrepreneurship and being wealthy.

@Ammon Gutierrez assuming you're not going into huge debt to fund college, my advice is to finish. You're 22 and have a bright future. A college degree is not a guarantee for anything but it can benefit you now and in the long run. It's much harder to go back and finish a degree after life gets rolling, marriage, kids, bills, etc. There are lots of great posts on BP from which you can learn and build your RE plans. Build your foundation and then execute your plan. All the best!

Both...maybe you have the ability to purchase a simple property near the college and househack with other students. If not, learn about REI in the meantime and prepare yourself. A degree may just get you a good W2 job which could provide fuel for REI and then go full time when you have built up your company. The degree has not only given you an advantage because it is education and knowledge, but it will always be there as you need it.

If you decide to stick with college, check to see if your business school has some type of Real Estate Organization. If not, start one. We had one at Texas Tech and although it wasn't huge, they got many people from local commercial development companies to come talk to us. Some members got started by doing free internships with those companies which later led to 6-figure jobs, all the while learning a ton about real estate.

Personally I would try to do both. You'll regret not getting that degree especially if you are already in the process of doing so. I would try to find a way to do REI part time, nights/weekends to start building your portfolio now! Look into "multi-family owner-occupied" investments that you can live in (rent free) if the numbers are right, start to build your equity in that property and then rent out your unit once your done with college for an increased revenue.

This way you can start to build that passive income and already have some cash flow when you are done with college and then you can decide to jump in full time! Hope this helps!

I like the "do both" posts best. 

For example, you have to live and work someplace, so look for options like

1.  An apartment where they will let you live for free to manage the place or be on call (great experience for owning your own);
2. An owner finance property you can buy and live in and rent out other rooms or units to others (like other students!); 
3. Work for a local property management firm this summer showing rentals or turning around units; 
4. A final option might even be to live/work in student housing, either as an RA or even better would be in maintenance; both let you handle some people and property problems (real ones, not just the ones in your textbook), problems like the ones you will face in REI (i.e., getting tenants to follow rules, fixing broken items, painting, keeping up the lawn, etc).

Also, read up on REI on your own (I'd start with all the landlording and real estate books in your library) and see if a house hack, or other strategy might work, even getting a parent or partner to help with financing.

You might be able to graduate with a degree and a few years of property experience (maybe even be an owner!)...

Originally posted by @Michael Boyer :

I like the "do both" posts best. 

For example, you have to live and work someplace, so look for options like

1.  An apartment where they will let you live for free to manage the place or be on call (great experience for owning your own);
2. Work for a local property management firm this summer showing rentals or turning around units;

How do you go about getting these jobs? Are there certain credentials or requirements?