Networking events become increasingly important to the business school experience as summer rapidly approaches and students rush to secure internships and full time positions.

Making new contacts and taking advantage of illustrious alumni core, however, is a critical venture for students year round. Responding to the need, the Real Estate Association and the for Real Estate host three Real Estate Career Cocktail nights each year.

Career Cocktail receptions bring MBA students together with alumni from targeted areas of the real estate industry. Real estate private equity will be the focus of the March event. Previous receptions have brought students together to meet with alumni from investment banking and the capital markets, and REITs and development.

These networking events create informal opportunities for small groups of students to speak candidly with practitioners. Many productive professional relationships are established.

"I found my internship [at Vornado Realty Trust] through a career networking event last year," said Shannon Bauer MBA '07, VP of Careers for the Real Estate Association. "I met Andrew Galvin, MBA '05, who was working at Vornado, and we were just generally discussing the internship hunt. He offered to meet me for coffee to discuss the search further. It turned out Vornado had not yet hired an intern, and he arranged for me to interview with them."

Shannon added that she hadn't been specifically looking for a job at Vornado, but by mingling at the event and talking to Andrew, a serendipitous fit emerged.Shannon will be returning to Vornado in the fall to work full time in their acquisitions and capital markets group.

This year, companies represented at the Career Cocktail receptions have included Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, iStar Financial, Deutsche Bank, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, Citigroup, UBS, Lehman Brothers, Toll Brothers, Vornado Realty Trust, Hines Interests LP, The Related Companies, NYC Economic Development Corporation, American Continental Properties, Lennar Urban, MJC Associates LLC, Dunn Development Corporation, the LeFrak Organization and the Chetrit Group.