The Burns School of Real Estate and Construction Management pairs all incoming grad students with members of its advisory board
A good mentor may be “priceless,” but it’s easy for Pete Opinante to quantify the value of his relationship with Matt Schuler.
While Opinante—who is pursuing his master’s of real estate and the built environment degree at the Daniels College of Business—chased down an internship, he knew he had a hotline to a man who had done it all before.
“I feel like I can call Matt whenever,” Opinante said. “Being able to leverage him and get feedback from him on his experience at Hensel Phelps has been a good help.”
Schuler’s 30 years of professional experience, including 15 that involved recruiting and hiring, offered Opinante insight into the questions he could expect in interviews and how his responses might be interpreted.
The advice paid off. This summer, Opinante is a preconstruction intern at Holder Construction, and Schuler couldn’t be prouder.
Matt Schuler
“I recognized really quick that Pete is invested in his future,” said Schuler, a general superintendent who serves on the advisory board at the Burns School of Real Estate and Construction Management. “He’s got energy and he’s got drive to do what it takes to succeed. If I’m able to give back and help in any way, even if it’s very small, I think that’s a great thing to do.”
Schuler and Opinante connected thanks to the Burns School’s new Xcutive Coaching Program, an initiative designed to pair graduate students with experienced industry professionals on the advisory board.
“To our knowledge, few—if any—graduate real estate programs provide students with a dedicated executive coach, drawn from a network of accomplished C-suite and senior industry leaders from the beginning of their studies,” said Vivek Sah director of the Burns School. “This personalized mentorship not only enhances the student experience but also strengthens our connection to industry and reinforces our commitment to the three Es that guide the Burns School experience: Educate, Engage and Experience.”
The advisory board used student surveys to create pairings, based on career goals and interests. Once the pairings were made, each duo was encouraged (though not required) to meet 3-4 times per quarter.
Opinante and Schuler started with some phone calls and then went out to breakfast. Eight months later, they check in regularly.
“I gained a friend,” Opinante said, who leans on Schuler for personal and professional advice alike. “I’m here in Colorado by myself. I don’t have much family. Being able to have someone that has the life experience beyond a professional standpoint has been beneficial to me.”
Pete Opinante
Working with Schuler has also allowed Opinante to round out his education. He had a strong background in real estate finance and development, but less understanding about how to be a good builder. Schuler has helped fill in the gaps outside of the classroom.
“At DU, being that the classes are smaller, the program is more intimate, being able to have somebody to leverage outside the classroom to speak to their real-world experience and how to properly align what you’re learning in the classroom really does help from a professional standpoint,” Opinante said.
He’s far from the only one that feels that way. The feedback Sah has received has been overwhelmingly positive. Next fall’s class of incoming students will also participate, allowing each board member to take on two mentees.
“It’s been a unique experience that adds exceptional value for our students and distinguishes the Burns School from other programs,” Sah said. “We are excited about its impact thus far and the opportunities it creates to further connect classroom learning with real-world leadership and industry insight.”
There’s value in it for Schuler too.
“Anytime you feel like you can help out, provide advice and give an example of what happened to me in this situation and it helps somebody? That’s fantastic, it makes you feel good,” he said.
“My mission is to help Pete any way I can to make sure that when he gets through this program and moves on that he’s got the best opportunities and he’s got a great option of jobs. I wish other students out there had an advocate for them that’s out there in industry. I think this is a pretty rare program.”