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...

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 OBREMS/OBU Mentoring Scheme Launch - March 2023

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 BA Property Development and Planning as well as students on the MSc Real Estate.

This is the 11th 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 22 March at the HQ of CBRE in London. Thanks to CBRE for hosting and thanks to the presenters and all the students, staff and mentors who came. It was a fantastic evening and it was especially good to see those who took part in the Mentoring Scheme as students return as mentors. This year we matched 74 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

And now, a few words of advice offered by the of mentors (Andrew Whitehead, Jo Jackson, James Vivian and John Gilder) who presented at the launch:

• As a student mentee it's up to you to reach out to your mentor. If they don't reply immediately, don't be put off - they have busy jobs, don't be afraid to be persistent - you WILL get a reply!

• As a mentor, our job is to listen and give advice, the benefit of our experience, guidance and reassurance - we've all been through what you're going through and will be going through as you enter the world of work. Make good use of us.

• We can offer all these things, but in the end it's also up to you to make the effort.

• We can help you with networking and through our contacts who probably know someone who can help you with a particular issue.

• It's a unique opportunity and one which doesn't need to stop at the end of a year - many mentees and mentors keep in touch for a long time which can be hugely beneficial for both (offering useful advice for the APC process and beyond). The industry is all about people and building networks - this is a great place to start!

Introduction to the Mentoring Scheme Launch by Elaine Tooke

Finishing the evening off with more networking in the pub...

OBREMS Annual Dinner 2022 - it's good to be back

After a gap of 2 and a half years (thanks Covid), the 10th OBREMS Dinner was held on 11 May 2022. The Oxford Brookes Real Estate Management Society (OBREMS) is the alumni association of OBU for graduates who work in the real estate industry - find out more on the OBREMS website.

The evening went something like this...

Location: the Institute of Directors, Pall Mall, London
Guests: more than 200
Drinks: from 6.30 pm
Music: Glen Johnson (saxophone)
Welcome: from Andrew Hynard (President of OBREMS) and James Stacey (Chair of OBREMS)
Game: Heads or Tails compered by James Stacey and Harriet Costello (OBREMS Committee)
Dinner: two courses
Raffle Draw
Dessert and Coffee
Live Auction: with Will Clough from Allsop (Commercial Auction)
Networking: in the Champagne Bar (sponsored by PRE Surveyors)

So, what have OBREMS been doing recently?

Influencer Events

In November 2021 the OBREMS Committee hosted the first of its Influencer Events. This is a new initiative aimed at engaging with more senior alumni to seek their advice, thoughts and experience on the more challenging topics of the day. In addition, OBREMS hopes to host a number of Women of Influence events to encourage more women to consider a career in Real Estate. Check the OBREMS website for more details of future events. 

CPD Seminars

OBREMS ran a series of CPD events in 2021 and is looking to continue this in 2022 - anyone interested in being involved in a CPD event - contact OBREMS.

The OBREMS/Oxford Brookes Mentoring Scheme

The Mentoring Scheme ran successfully during the lockdowns in the UK and was much appreciated by students and mentors as a way of making connections during difficult times. It was so good to get back to a face-to-face launch in March 2022 - read the report here.

Student Property Monthly (SPM)

Student Property Monthly is the first student run property paper in the UK providing insights and professional opinions on current trends from leading industry experts. Founded by 3 students (Andrew Whitehead, Ben Jennings and Charles Major) SPM continued to run during the lockdowns providing students with an additional resource and way of connecting with the property industry. The founders are due to graduate this summer (2022) and will be handing the running of the paper over to a new group of second year students. SPM can be found on the OBREMS website as well as on LinkedIn and Instagram. 

SPM helping with the raffle

The launch of the OBREMS/OBU Mentoring Scheme 2022

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 BA Planning and Property Development as well as students on the MSc Real Estate.

This year we are celebrating 10 years of the OBREMS/OBU Mentoring Scheme which offers students a unique opportunity to be mentored by one of our alumni. The launch was even more special as it was the first face-to-face launch for 3 years. It happened on 31 March at the offices of Savills in London. Thanks to Savills for hosting and thanks to the presenters and all the students, staff and mentors who came. It was an excellent evening and it was so good to be back to face-to-face networking. As always, it's especially good to see those who took part in the Mentoring Scheme as students return as mentors. This year we matched a record 90 students with mentors. Anyone who is interested in becoming a mentor should contact: rdixon@brookes.ac.uk

The videos of the presentations...

Dan Sames and Elaine Tooke introduced the Mentoring Scheme - watch the video here

James Stacey talking about OBREMS - watch the video here

Harriet Costello, Kitty Snaydon and Liv Ashby talked about their experiences of the Mentoring Scheme as students and now as mentors and gave the students lots of tips on how to get the most out of the mentoring relationship - the videos are below:

An evening of networking...

The networking continued...