A Solid Foundation
But in today’s increasingly complex world, homebuilding has become more a profession than a trade. Homebuilders need technological expertise, marketing knowledge and business savvy to be successful.
But can you get a college degree in building? Actually, you can, through the University of North Florida’s Building Construction Management program.
In fact, UNF boasts one of the oldest and most respected such programs in the country, offering a bachelor’s degree in Building Construction Management and a master’s degree in business administration with a concentration in construction management. The program offers four career tracks: residential, commercial, civil and green sustainable building.
When it began about 25 years ago, the UNF program was graduating just 12-15 students a year—a number that grew only incrementally over the years. But in 2005, when Dr. John Martin came on board, the pace picked up.
After working with successful construction management programs at Boise State and Texas A&M, Martin was drawn to UNF by Jacksonville’s growth potential.
“Twelve percent of the national construction market is right here in Jacksonville, Florida,” says Martin. Plus, he says, large building companies are increasingly seeking to hire people who hold degrees in construction management.
In Martin’s first year at UNF, after a concerted effort to increase enrollment, the program had 75 graduates. Next year, he expects to graduate 100.
“The building profession has changed dramatically in the last 100 years,” says Dr. David Dubbelde, residential construction specialist in UNF’s program. “Going all the way back to the Romans and Greeks, it was architecturally based. The builder was also the designer and construction manager. Everybody on the project worked for him.”
Increased specialization has separated those functions and created the need for someone qualified to oversee the entire process. That’s today’s homebuilder.
“It’s now all about managing the project,” says Dubbelde. “You’re working with engineers, architects and contractors. That requires knowledge about estimating, scheduling, materials, methods, contracts, management styles and delivery methods.”
Time and cost pressures have also heightened the demand for highly educated project managers who have the necessary skills, knowledge and leadership qualities to take a project from conception through completion.
“You don’t have a few centuries to build a cathedral any more,” notes Dubbelde.
Glenn Layton, division president of Woodside Homes of North Florida, is a 1984 graduate of the UNF program and has continued his involvement with it.?
?“What it offers is a realistic approach to the construction industry,” Layton says. “The professors have actually been in the construction industry for years and are able to provide real-life examples of how it works.”
Layton has watched the program grow under Martin’s guidance. Now, he says, the curriculum covers all aspects of the business.
“The classes are organized so the students flow logically through them, from start to finish,” Layton says. “The kids coming out of it now are really well prepared.”
The largest program of its kind east of Denver and one of only three in Florida, UNF’s Building Construction Management program, which is part of the College of Computing, Engineering and Construction, now has more than 300 students enrolled.
Its graduates may start their careers as cost estimators, field engineers or project managers and can expect to make around $50,000 a year upon graduation.
“That’s unheard of for most new graduates in any field,” says Martin.?
Every student in the program must complete a 15-week internship, for which they can earn credit. Weekly reports and feedback from intern supervisors helps instructors assess the student’s progress.
A “capstone class” pulls together all the knowledge the student has gained through a construction-related community service project.
One highly visible example of this was the recent project to restore a 20-foot-tall, circa-1960s T-Rex statue on Beach Boulevard. The dinosaur, which once anchored a Goony Golf course, was going to be demolished by a company developing a shopping center on the site.
However, Ash Properties, the developer, relented when there was a public outcry to save the beast, which had become a local landmark.
“Ash Properties was willing to listen to public input on the T-Rex,” says Martin. “After that story hit the Associated Press in May of last year, they were getting calls about it from around the world. Multiple universities from all over wanted to restore it. But the developer contacted UNF about taking it on as a community service project.”
Students met with Ash Properties and developed a restoration plan, including the schedule and scope of work, says Martin.
Builders Care, the charitable arm of the Northeast Florida Builders Association, has also assigned some projects to students in the UNF program.
“This gives the students a leadership component to their education that other universities just don’t have,” says Martin. “We’re teaching kids to give back. The people who build the world are in a position to help the world. They have the connections, the skills and the means to do that. It’s about teaching kids to do the right thing.”
Leadership and community service are important concepts of the UNF program. For example, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, 21 students traveled to New Orleans to help in the rebuilding effort. In St. Bernard Parish, where they worked, they were invited to supervise other students who had come to volunteer.
One of the major factors behind the success of UNF’s program in recent years is industry support.
Local and national companies underwrite the annual Hard Hat Banquet, the Employer Showcase, student competition trips, degree tracks and even individual courses. More than 30 companies are actively involved in the program.
“We get five times the money from private industry that we get from the state,” says Martin.
While not unique among institutions with construction management programs, such extensive private-sector support of an academic program is unusual at most colleges and universities.
“That’s not the case here,” says Martin, who was a general contractor for more than 25 years. “We’re in touch with the industry, which values what we teach here at UNF.”
For example, Centex Homes sponsors the program’s Housing and Development course, which is a requirement for those seeking a bachelor’s degree in Building Construction Management.
“This course is a great opportunity for Centex to give back to the community as we work with the university,” says Carl Holman, operational marketing manager for the company’s North Florida Division. “It’s a perfect program to develop leaders within our current staff and it allows us to develop interest among young people who’d like to have a career in residential construction.”
In fact, UNF is looking for even more private-sector support. The program currently needs a building and additional funding to become its own school, separate from the College of Computing, Engineering and Construction.
Students interested in residential construction who also have a financial need can apply for the Arnold Tritt Scholarship, awarded annually by NEFBA and named for the organization’s former executive director.
The scholarship’s focus is more on need than on academics. “They really focus on the character and situation of each applicant, not just grades,” says Martin.
Martin would like to see more women and minorities entering the construction industry.
“Women actually get more money and more job offers than the men going into this field,” Martin says. “It’s a very creative career, where business, engineering and architecture intersect, and a lot of women overlook it as an option.? The same goes for minorities. Both of those groups get priority in government contracting, so it’s an excellent field for them.”
Adds Martin: “If kids really want to be somebody, this program gives them the opportunity."
UNF’S BUILDING CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT PROGRAM IN BRIEF
Mission: Through a program of self-assessment and continuous improvement, to provide students with a program of study that enables them to achieve their potential and support Northeast Florida’s economic development.
Goals: To provide and maintain a high-quality Bachelor of Science in Building Construction Management academic program that enables graduates to achieve their maximum potential in the building construction field.? To provide and maintain a strong, active relationship with the building construction industry in Northeast Florida through graduates, an industrial advisory committee and internships.
Internship Objectives: To meet the challenges of the future by educating the student, supporting intellectual contributions by faculty and assisting the construction industry. The Internship Program’s primary purpose is to prepare the construction student with leadership responsibilities in a technologically-oriented, diverse, dynamic and global construction environment.
Requirements for Admittance:
Completion of an AA degree or 60 semester hours of undergraduate work.
Prerequisite lower-division courses in accounting, statistics, macroeconomics, business law, calculus, construction materials, construction drawing, structures, physics, business foundations and microeconomics.
Immunization, foreign language and continuous enrollment requirements for admission to UNF.
Contact:
James J. Sorce,? Academic Advisor, Instructor
(904) 620-2759
james.sorce@unf.edu
Department of Building Construction Management
College of Computing, Engineering and Construction
(904) 620-2683
www.unf.edu/ccec/bcm