Robinson College Real Estate Department Receives Unique International Recognition

Atlanta, October 26, 2001 -  The Department of Real Estate at Georgia State's J. Mack Robinson College of Business has received formal accreditation by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

According to an announcement today by Joseph S. Rabianski, Chair of Robinson's Real Estate Department,   "GSU and the MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) are the first schools in the United States -- and the Western Hemisphere --to receive this distinction."

The RICS designation means that the degrees granted to graduates of Robinson's Master of Science in Real Estate program qualify as part of the requirements necessary for obtaining RICS designated membership. With RICS membership comes certification as a member of an elite worldwide group of highly-qualified real estate professionals.

Headquartered in Great Britain, RICS is an international organization of professionals in the real estate industry and academic community.  RICS has approximately 100,000 members who specialize in all aspects of the real estate discipline. Its current membership spreads across the European, Australian and Asian continents with heavier membership in the English speaking regions of these continents.

Said Rabianski, "We are extremely pleased RICS has accorded us this recognition.  Its members specialize in expertise that ranges from A to Z in the real estate industry-- from appraisal, asset management, construction, development, engineering, facilities management, finance, investment counseling, law, portfolio management, and surveying to zoning. Our students who qualify as chartered surveyors will benefit greatly from the prestige of the organization and the access it will give them to expertise around the world."

The J. Mack Robinson College of Business is one of the nation's top business schools. Robinson's Department of Real Estate is ranked eight in the nation according to U.S. News and World Report. The College's Flex (part-time) MBA program has been listed in the top ten by U.S. News for the past six years.  Forbes magazine lists the Robinson College in the top ten for return on investment for regional schools and BusinessWeek ranks the College's executive MBA program among the top 20.

Contacts: 
Dr. Joseph Rabianski, 404-413-7728
Gary W. McKillips, 404-413-7077