Real Estate Asset Program · Marquette University

The Nation's First Undergraduate-Only Classroom-Based Real Estate Investment Program

Students underwrite, pitch to an Investment Committee, and asset manage real private real estate investments — with real capital, from the classroom.

Apply to REAP → See our closed deals

REAP students presenting to the Investment Committee

$5M+

Closed-end equity fund

2021

Launched · 1st cohort Spring '22

Colleges · Business, Engineering, Law

Now open · Fall 2026

Interest survey open for Marquette Law students

Law students only. Deadline to submit is April 17, 2026 at 11:59 PM CST.

Fill out now →

Alumni outcomes

Where REAP gets you.

REAP analysts leave the program with real underwriting reps and IC pitches on their resume. A sample of the firms current and recent REAP students have interned and worked at:

About REAP

Real investing. Real capital. Real experience.

The Real Estate Asset Program (REAP) at Marquette University is the nation's first classroom-based, undergraduate-only real estate student investment program. Founded in 2021, REAP gives undergraduate students the opportunity to underwrite, pitch, and asset manage actual private real estate investments — not simulations.

Unlike club-based or graduate-level funds, REAP is built into a multi-semester academic sequence where students work alongside an Investment Committee of seasoned industry professionals to evaluate and manage a real closed-end fund.

REAP is interdisciplinary — drawing students from the College of Business Administration, the Law School, and the Opus College of Engineering — creating a uniquely collaborative environment that mirrors the real-world nature of commercial real estate.

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Undergraduate-Only

The only program of its kind exclusively for undergraduate students in the nation.

🏛

Classroom-Based

Built into a multi-semester academic sequence — not a club or extracurricular.

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Real Capital

Students work with a real closed-end fund, making LP equity investments in commercial real estate.

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Interdisciplinary

Business, Law, and Engineering students collaborate on every deal.

Investment criteria

REAP Buy Box

REAP targets LP co-investments in private commercial real estate across the Midwest and nationally. Our investment criteria reflects the program's educational mission and the fund's return objectives.

Asset types

Property Types

Multifamily residential

Industrial & logistics

Mixed-use

Retail (select)

Office (select)

Geography

Target Markets

Midwest focus

Milwaukee metro

Secondary markets

National (select)

Structure

Investment Role

LP co-investor

Equity investments

Closed-end fund model

Multi-year hold

Returns

Return Targets

Risk-adjusted returns

Income + appreciation

Sponsor track record required

IC approval required

Student experience

What analysts actually do.

REAP isn't a simulation. Students work on real deals with real capital across a multi-semester sequence.

Step 01

Deal Sourcing & Screening

Students evaluate inbound deals against REAP's investment criteria, separating quick kills from underwriting candidates.

Step 02

Underwriting & Modeling

Market, Sponsor, and Finance teams build full underwriting packages — market analysis, sponsor review, and financial models.

Step 03

IC Presentation

Students present their investment recommendation to a committee of seasoned real estate professionals who make the final call.

Step 04

Asset Management

After a deal closes, students track performance, review sponsor reports, and prepare investor reporting for REAP's LPs.

Curriculum & academic requirements

A three-semester cohort, taken together.

Required prerequisite

Introduction to Commercial Real Estate (REAL 3001)

Recommended

Commercial Real Estate Finance (REAL/FINA 4002) · Real Estate Modeling (REAL 4061)

01

Applied Real Estate Asset Management & Modeling

3 credits · Fall, junior year

Students prepare for active investing by re-underwriting past and existing deals to learn acquisitions, asset management, and investor reporting — then begin underwriting new deals and learning investor pitching.

02

Intermediate Real Estate Investing

3 credits · Spring, junior year

Students refine their skills through intensive underwriting of new deals, in-depth due diligence, and market analysis — pitching deals directly to the investment committee.

03

Advanced Real Estate Investing

3 credits · Fall, senior year

Students develop advanced analysis, underwriting, and pitching skills, deliver advanced portfolio reporting metrics, and mentor the incoming cohort of REAP students.

Ava Villarreal discusses the REAP investment portfolio at the 2024 Marquette Real Estate Strategies Conference

Watch on YouTube

Ava Villarreal (Bus Ad '24) discusses the REAP investment portfolio at the 2024 Marquette Real Estate Strategies Conference.

Student voices

What REAP analysts say.

“Presenting to the Investment Committee for the first time was unlike anything I'd done in a classroom. The room pushes back hard, and you have to defend every number in your model — that pressure is what makes REAP different.”

Juliana Russo

Class of 2027

“I came in with no real estate background. By the end of my first semester I'd underwritten a real deal, built a full financial model, and pitched it to a room of industry professionals.”

James Keough

Class of 2027

“The asset management side surprised me most — tracking a live investment, reviewing sponsor reports, flagging issues to the committee. That's real responsibility, and recruiters notice it.”

Alexandra Ritchie

Class of 2027

“Working alongside classmates from Law and Engineering on the same deal taught me how commercial real estate actually gets done, not how a textbook describes it.”

Teddy Dabrowski

Class of 2028

“Walking into internship interviews with a deal I'd helped underwrite and an Investment Committee I'd presented to changed the conversation completely.”

George Liapis

Class of 2027

“The interdisciplinary structure is what sets REAP apart — working with law students on diligence and engineering students on site analysis changes how you think about every deal.”

Eva Hoch

Class of 2028

The students

Meet the cohorts.

Class of 2027

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Carenna Blackwell

HR Intern, Willow Bridge Property Company

Class of 2027

Charlie Clark

Capital Markets Intern, Phoenix Investors

Class of 2027

Guadalupe Juarez

Real Estate Management Services Intern, Colliers

Class of 2027

James Keough

Commercial Real Estate Analyst, Tremé-Parker

Class of 2027

George Liapis

REAP Student Analyst

Class of 2027

Kerry McCarthy

Greenridge Realty

Class of 2027

Ella Reimer

Real Estate Analyst Intern, Northwestern Mutual

Class of 2027

Alexandra Ritchie

Summer Analyst, Logistics Property Company

Class of 2027

Juliana Russo

Metals Planning Intern, Clairos

Class of 2027

Ninjin Tugsbayar

Development Intern, Three Leaf Partners

Class of 2027

AJ Van Vuren

REAP Student Analyst

Class of 2027

Quinn Warwick

Intern, Tripost Capital Partners

Class of 2027

PJ Wisniewski

Intern, JLL

Class of 2027

Jaime Yamat

Real Estate Accounting & Development Intern, New Land Enterprises

Class of 2027

Class of 2028

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Eva Hoch

REAP Student Analyst

Class of 2028

Michelle Murias

Acquisitions Intern, Equity LifeStyle Properties

Class of 2028

Jack Walkenhorst

AI Intern, MLG Capital

Class of 2028

Jack Keigher

Commercial Lending Intern, Marquette Bank

Class of 2028

Andrea Batiz

Commercial Real Estate Intern, Judson & Associates

Class of 2028

Connor Gurgone

Credit Intern, Heartland Bank & Trust

Class of 2028

Jimena Perez

Research Intern, Colliers

Class of 2028

Stephen Ryan

Capital Markets Intern, CBRE

Class of 2028

Teddy Dabrowski

Investment Analyst & AI Dev Intern, Midlock Investment Partners

Class of 2028

Cristian Coca

REAP Student Analyst

Class of 2028

Owen Krueger

Fixed Assets & Occupancy Intern, Sobeys

Class of 2028

Brandon Frey

REAP Student Analyst

Class of 2028

Rajko Perduh

REAP Student Analyst

Class of 2028

Alex Lopez

Commercial Lending Intern, Consumers Credit Union

Class of 2028

Peter Paleothodoros

REAP Student Analyst

Class of 2028

Investment Committee & Managing Members

The industry leaders who fund, mentor, and hold REAP accountable.

Thank you to our committee for their time, mentoring, investment funding, and significant oversight of REAP's success. Students pitch every deal to this room.

Pat Biernacki

Lead Managing Member · Ex-Officio

The Canopy Company · Bus Ad '08

Krista Casper

Investment Committee

Associated Bank · Bus Ad '04

Trisha Connolly

Investment Committee

Catal Capital · Arts '07

Steve Disse

Investment Committee

Colliers International · Bus Ad '86

Austin Mautz

Investment Committee

Fiduciary Real Estate Dev. · Grad '13

Michelle Panovich

Investment Committee

MichDon Investments · ret. Mid-America

John Petrovski

Investment Committee

BMO Harris Bank, N.A. (retired)

Perry Vieth

Investment Committee

Ceres Partners LLC · Bus Ad '79

Peter Borzak

Co-Managing Member

Pine Tree Commercial

Greg Warsek

Co-Managing Member

Associated Bank · Grad '91

Pat Biernacki

Lead Managing Member · Ex-Officio

The Canopy Company · Bus Ad '08

Krista Casper

Investment Committee

Associated Bank · Bus Ad '04

Trisha Connolly

Investment Committee

Catal Capital · Arts '07

Steve Disse

Investment Committee

Colliers International · Bus Ad '86

Austin Mautz

Investment Committee

Fiduciary Real Estate Dev. · Grad '13

Michelle Panovich

Investment Committee

MichDon Investments · ret. Mid-America

John Petrovski

Investment Committee

BMO Harris Bank, N.A. (retired)

Perry Vieth

Investment Committee

Ceres Partners LLC · Bus Ad '79

Peter Borzak

Co-Managing Member

Pine Tree Commercial

Greg Warsek

Co-Managing Member

Associated Bank · Grad '91

Applying to REAP

Guidelines for applying (Spring 2027)

The Spring 2026 application process is now closed. Future candidates should review the guidelines at right. Questions? Contact Vito Taphorn, Director of the Real Estate Asset Program, at vito.taphorn@marquette.edu.

01 Fill out the entire application.

02 Complete both essays (500 words or less).

03 Attach your resume as a PDF, named "Resume_Last Name_First Name".

04 Attach your graduation checklist, named "Grad_Last Name_First Name".

05 Include a letter of recommendation (not from CoBA real estate faculty/staff), emailed to Vito Taphorn or attached as "LOR_Last Name_First Name".

Spring 2027 cohort

Think you belong in the room?

Marquette real estate majors can apply in the spring of their sophomore year. Bring your analysis — pitch real deals to the investment committee.

Start your application →