Oxford Brookes/OBREMS Mentoring Scheme 2026: the Launch

The Mentoring Scheme is managed jointly by OBREMS (our alumni association) and the School of the Built Environment and is open to second year students on the BSc Real Estate and the BSc Property Development and Planning as well as students on the MSc Real Estate. The Mentoring Scheme offers students a unique opportunity for students to be mentored by one of our alumni. 

The Mentoring Scheme has been running for 14 years now and this year (19 March) we headed back to the offices of Montagu Evans in the Can of Ham Building at 70 St Mary Axe in the City of London. It was great to be joined by Nick Maclean OBE RD FRICS, the new (and 144th) President of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) who kindly opened the evening with some words of encouragement for the students. Thanks also to Josh Myerson (mentor) and Emma Buxton (a student mentee and now a mentor) for their words of advice on how to make the most of the Mentoring Scheme.

Nick Maclean, Josh Myerson and Emma Buxton (l-r)

Thanks to Montagu Evans once again for hosting and thanks to the presenters and all the students, staff and mentors who came.  This year we matched 75 students with mentors. Anyone who is interested in becoming a mentor should contact: rdixon@brookes.ac.uk

And now for the photos...

The OBU/OBREMS Mentoring Scheme 2026

 

The Mentoring Scheme Launch at Montagu Evans, March 2025

The Mentoring Scheme has been running since 2013, successfully matching more than 1000 students from the BSc Real Estate and the BSc Property Development and Planning with one of our alumni. That's a lot of networking. The Mentoring Scheme is managed jointly by OBREMS (our alumni association) and the School of the Built Environment and is open to second year students as well as students on the MSc Real Estate. On 16 February we will open applications to the OBREMS/OBU Mentoring Scheme 2026 for second year undergraduate students. So why should you take part? Some quotes from students, alumni and mentors...

• The Mentoring Scheme was certainly useful and the networking launch event was a great illustration of how important networking is within Real Estate. Thank you. 
• Brilliant, and we will keep in touch after the scheme ends. 
• Helpful - as it improved my CV massively, which helped secure a job.
• Amazing, my Mentor was extremely helpful and the scheme provided fantastic contacts.
• I think the mentoring scheme was a brilliant way to get us in touch with industry professionals. For me it has opened many doors and built my CV by getting work experience through the scheme. I think its a brilliant initiative, in which I hope I'll be able to take part in when I am working. 
• Speaking to 3rd year students at the Real Estate society socials, and other sports activities, the Mentoring Scheme has helped people in many different ways, that might not seem like the obvious choices. For example, just putting people in touch to help find a room in London, where they secured a summer internship. I also think that a lot of the property industry is about building connections, which the Mentoring Scheme can also assist with.
• Having benefited positively from the Mentoring Scheme myself as a student it has made me realise how important continuing that contact is and the benefit of maintaining the alumni community as it's great for meeting new people and being able to help students out.

This year, the mentoring period for undergraduate students will start at the end of March 2026, with a launch event kindly hosted by Montagu Evans at 70 St Mary's Axe (the Can of Ham Building) on the evening of 19 March (6pm to 8pm). The launch event will include guest speakers and a chance for networking and meetings between students and mentors. 

There are a wide range of mentors who volunteer to take part, from recent graduates to CEOs - and a lot of our younger mentors took part in the Mentoring Scheme themselves when they were students. All our mentors are alumni of Oxford Brookes (Real Estate or Planning and Property Development) and are also volunteers. Students - please remember that if you sign up to the Mentoring Scheme you must be prepared to make use of your Mentor and initiate contact. Our Mentors sign up to the scheme as volunteers because they want to help and they enjoy being part of the scheme - when students sign up and then drop out, we end up with disappointed Mentors and a wasted opportunity for the student. There is a lot of help on offer and it's up to you to make good use of it. 

2nd year students...apply here.

BSc Real Estate: field trip to Bristol

The first-year BSc Real Estate field trip to Bristol took place on 18 November. Presentations on the property market in Bristol (from Savills and Cushman & Wakefield) were followed by a walking tour of the city’s office and retail cores. Thanks to Chris Berry for organising a great trip...

Presentations on the property market in Bristol (from Savills and Cushman & Wakefield)

Starting at Cabot Circus, the largest shopping centre in Bristol’s retail core and then walking through the Broadmead retail area. Broadmead is the central shopping street in Bristol extending east-west about half a mile away from Cabot Circus. Together with the streets around it, it forms the heart of the traditional retail area and is home to The Galleries.

The Galleries is (or was) a shopping centre which opened in 1991 and currently has planning permission for demolition and redevelopment into 450 homes, student accommodation, offices, restaurants, and shops.

Passing by St Peter’s Church (ruins) at the historic heart of the city, devastated during the Blitz, leaving only its outer walls and tower surviving, the tour moved onto Queen’s Square. 

Queen’s Square is one of Bristol’s most elegant public spaces and is a large Georgian garden square combining residential and commercial properties. Next up, the Harbourside office cluster at Canon’s Marsh - this waterfront area is the second largest office area of Bristol and home to about twenty office buildings.

And finally a visit to Temple Quay office core and residential district. Temple Quay is Bristol’s largest office district, developed on former railway sidings from the early 1990s to the present, with buildings dating from across that period. The final destination was BLOK,  1 Castle Park for a guided tour of the new A Grade office development hosted by Alice Short of Boultbee Brooks.

Vacant office space inside BLOK

The lounge area inside BLOK, adjacent to the cafe

The view from the roof garden at BLOK and finally, down to the basement to see the bike and scooter park and the gym...

Great field trip. To find out more about the BSc Real Estate, click here.

OBU/OBREMS Mentoring Scheme Launch 2025

The Mentoring Scheme is managed jointly by OBREMS (our alumni association) and the School of the Built Environment and is open to second year students on the BSc Real Estate and the BSc Property Development and Planning as well as students on the MSc Real Estate.

The Can of Ham Building at 70 St Mary Axe

It's been running for 13 years now and the OBREMS/OBU Mentoring Scheme offers students a unique opportunity to be mentored by one of our alumni. This year, the launch took place on 26 March at the offices of Montagu Evans in the Can of Ham Building at 70 St Mary Axe in the City of London. Thanks to Montagu Evans for hosting and thanks to the presenters and all the students, staff and mentors who came. It was the biggest ever launch event with 120 students and alumni and a lot of networking. It was especially good to see those who took part in the Mentoring Scheme as students return as mentors and we had some laughs looking at the OBU Real Estate and Construction My Social Book from 2015. This year we matched 73 students with mentors. Anyone who is interested in becoming a mentor should contact: rdixon@brookes.ac.uk

Thanks to Josh Myerson (mentor), Alexandra Williams and Emma Buxton (both student mentees and now mentors) for their words of advice on how to make the most of the Mentoring Scheme and James Stacey (Chair of OBREMS), Rebecca Gee (OBU) and Dan Sames (OBU) for their words of encouragement. 

And now for the photos...

Emma Buxton talking about her experiences

Memories from My Social Book...

Time for more networking in the local bar...

The Oxford Brookes/OBREMS Mentoring Scheme 2025

The Mentoring Scheme Launch - March 2024

The Mentoring Scheme has been running since 2013, successfully matching more than 1000 students from the BSc Real Estate and the BSc Property Development and Planning with one of our alumni. That's a lot of networking. The Mentoring Scheme is managed jointly by OBREMS (our alumni association) and the School of the Built Environment and is open to second year students as well as students on the MSc Real Estate. In early February we will open applications to the OBREMS/OBU Mentoring Scheme 2025 for second year undergraduate students. So why should you take part? Some quotes from students, alumni and mentors...

• The Mentoring Scheme was certainly useful and the networking launch event was a great illustration of how important networking is within Real Estate. Thank you. 
• Brilliant, and we will keep in touch after the scheme ends. 
• Helpful - as it improved my CV massively, which helped secure a job.
• Amazing, my Mentor was extremely helpful and the scheme provided fantastic contacts.
• I think the mentoring scheme was a brilliant way to get us in touch with industry professionals. For me it has opened many doors and built my CV by getting work experience through the scheme. I think its a brilliant initiative, in which I hope I'll be able to take part in when I am working. 
• Speaking to 3rd year students at the Real Estate society socials, and other sports activities, the Mentoring Scheme has helped people in many different ways, that might not seem like the obvious choices. For example, just putting people in touch to help find a room in London, where they secured a summer internship. I also think that a lot of the property industry is about building connections, which the Mentoring Scheme can also assist with.
• Having benefited positively from the Mentoring Scheme myself as a student it has made me realise how important continuing that contact is and the benefit of maintaining the alumni community as it's great for meeting new people and being able to help students out.

This year, the mentoring period for undergraduate students will start at the end of March 2024, with a launch event kindly hosted by Montagu Evans at 70 St Mary's Axe (the Can of Ham Building) on the evening of 27 March (6pm to 8pm). The launch event will include guest speakers and a chance for networking and meetings between students and mentors. 

There are a wide range of mentors who volunteer to take part, from recent graduates to CEOs - and a lot of our younger mentors took part in the Mentoring Scheme themselves when they were students. All our mentors are alumni of Oxford Brookes (Real Estate or Planning and Property Development) and are also volunteers. Students - please remember that if you sign up to the Mentoring Scheme you must be prepared to make use of your Mentor and initiate contact. Our Mentors sign up to the scheme as volunteers because they want to help and they enjoy being part of the scheme - when students sign up and then drop out, we end up with disappointed Mentors and a wasted opportunity for the student. There is a lot of help on offer and it's up to you to make good use of it. 

The OBREMS/OBU Mentoring Scheme 2024: The Launch

 

The Mentoring Scheme 2024 at JLL

...and a flashback to 2013 at JLL

The Mentoring Scheme is managed jointly by OBREMS (our alumni association) and the School of the Built Environment and is open to second year students on the BSc Real Estate and the BSc Property Development and Planning as well as students on the MSc Real Estate.

This is the 12th year of the OBREMS/OBU Mentoring Scheme which offers students a unique opportunity to be mentored by one of our alumni. The launch took place on 20 March at JLL West End in London - where we first launched the scheme back in 2013. Thanks to JLL for hosting and thanks to the presenters and all the students, staff and mentors who came. It was a great evening - the networking was made even better without the old table format. It was especially good to see those who took part in the Mentoring Scheme as students return as mentors. This year we matched 65 students with mentors and there was a great turnout at the launch as you can see from the photos. Anyone who is interested in becoming a mentor should contact: rdixon@brookes.ac.uk

Thanks to Michael Clarke (mentor), Harriet Costello (one of the first student mentees in 2013 and now a mentor) and James Mohsen (student mentee in 2018 and now a mentor)  for their words of advice and finally from Rebecca Gee (programme lead for BSc Real Estate at Oxford Brookes):

It is in your hands now how much you make of the opportunity but you have the chance to build a relationship that will not only benefit you over the next 12 months but throughout your career as well. Do let us know though if there is anything we can do to facilitate further if required.

To the final year students who have had the benefit of the scheme last year don't let the relationship stop now. That was an overwhelming theme of the talks yesterday evening and many of the mentors were discussing how much they have relied on a mentor across their whole working life.

To all first year students, I hope you are looking forward to the opportunity next year. All I can say is grab it with both hands as it is an invaluable chance to get support with both your dissertation and the job application process as well as throughout your future career.

And now for the photos...

Finishing off the evening with more networking at The Glasshouse in Soho

What were we doing with the spaghetti and marshmallows? When student numbers were smaller we had a few team building events. The winning team from 2014.