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Going back to school
Don’t look at your real estate education as a burden.
by Louise Hull No one likes being told what to do. Doesn’t matter if it’s the government, your broker, or your parents issuing the demand, our first instinct is to consider that activity a waste of time–or worse. I am beginning to wonder if that phenomenon is one of the biggest problems with MCE.
By its very nature, mandatory continuing education will always be perceived as less than acceptable, because it’s forced upon us. Worse yet, there’s a deadline we must meet or we can’t practice our profession. Throw into the mix that REALTORS®–in my opinion–dislike being told what to do even more than the average person, and you’re looking at a lose-lose-lose situation.
It is in that challenging atmosphere that the Texas Real Estate Commission Education Task Force embarked on finding ways to improve mandatory continuing education.
A survey conducted by the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University revealed an interesting picture. The final question on the survey asked what one thing the respondent would recommend to change mandatory continuing education for the better. Some licensees suggested broadening the scope of courses. Others said it should cover nothing but new laws. Making every licensee subject to MCE–including those who previously were exempted–was a frequent response, but so was the idea to eliminate MCE requirements for actively selling brokers. The idea of doing away with this "waste of time" came up frequently, as did the suggestion to keep up the MCE so that everyone stays professional.
I could go on but I think you get the drift. How frustrating! We were hoping for a clear directive that would enable us to make some significant improvements.
Be patient with us at the commission. We really don’t want to waste your time. Believe it or not, we want the courses you take to earn your MCE to be valuable, informative, and to actually help you in your business practices.
My hope is that you will take it upon yourself to identify some kind of education, not just because it is mandatory, but because you have a genuine desire to better serve your customers and clients. Again, the name mandatory would seem to indicate that the current 15 hours represent the minimum acceptable standard.
Surely we can set our goals a little higher. Have you been planning to take some classes to work toward obtaining a designation? Do you need only a class or two to finish a course of study? Stop procrastinating. You will never have more than the present 24 hours in your day!
It’s been quite a while since I took my GRI classes. I had been a REALTOR® for eight years. I still recall telling my associates that I had made a big mistake in waiting so long. I had spent many hours in those eight years "learning things the hard way" that I could have learned from a great teacher.
I cannot even begin to express the difference my CRS and CRB classes have made in my career. Last year I added ABR. What a help with understanding the nuances of buyer representation.
I have been saying for
a while that I would like
to work on a CIPS designation and learn more about international real estate.
And I will. Not only do I not have to be forced to pursue it ... I will enjoy
it.
Louise Hull, ABR, CRB, CRS, GRI, is broker/owner of Cornerstone Properties in Victoria. She is a TREC commissioner and served as TAR chairman of the board in 2000. You can e-mail her at louise@louisehull.com.
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