Gregory Durgin

Boston University, Questrom School of Business

“A relationship builder, committed learner, and stewarding leader who is committed to supporting others.”

Fun fact about yourself: I grew up pole vaulting! I jumped 13’6” at my best and still talk about it often – much to the chagrin of my friends.

Hometown: Mechanicsville, Virginia

High School: Atlee High School

Major: Business Administration with concentrations in Real Estate, Finance, and Law

Favorite Business Course: FE 469 – Real Estate Finance

Extracurricular Activities, Community Work and Leadership Roles During College:
–  Questbridge Scholar

–  Questrom Class of 2026 President

–  Duke Fuqua New Ideas Project – Board of Advisors and previous Grand Prize Winner

–  BU Student Managed Real Estate Fund – Founder & Director

–  BU Financial Modeling Club – President

–  BU Real Estate Club – President

–  3x Research Assistant

–  2x Teaching Assistant – (IS223 – Intro to Information Systems)

–  Undergraduate Presidential Runner-Up

–  BU Alternative Investments Group – VP Corporate Relations

–  BU Finance and Investment Club – Investment Associate

–  Questrom Dean’s Host

–  First Year Peer Advisor

Where have you interned during your college career?

Summer 2025: Real Estate Private Equity Summer Analyst – Harrison Street, Chicago
Summer 2024: Real Estate Investment Banking Summer Analyst – Wells Fargo, Boston
Summer 2023: Technology Consulting Summer Analyst – Welsh Consulting, Attleboro

Where will you be working after graduation? I will be in New York working as an acquisitions analyst on the Lightstone Group’s logistics team.

Who is your favorite business professor? My favorite professor at BU has been Professor Munsell, who leads the real estate concentration in Questrom. Having built a successful career as a practitioner before transitioning to academia, every conversation with him is rooted in real world application. Combined with his unparalleled willingness to support students and a case-study method of teaching, the time I have spent in his classes has been the most edifying of my time on Commonwealth Ave.

Additionally, Professor Munsell serves as the faculty advisor to the BU Real Estate Club. Throughout my tenure on the executive board, his support has proved invaluable. Whether it be organizing career fairs, speakers, or answering questions, his insight has allowed the club to grow into something incredible. To all who know him, Professor Munsell is a true mentor, and I have been, and am, deeply grateful for the opportunity to learn from him.

What is the biggest lesson you gained from studying business? During my time in Questrom, I have come to realize the importance of being, and finding, stewarding mentors. As a freshman I came to know two upperclassmen who guided me through the world of business. At the time, I often found myself blindly relying on their advice only to realize in retrospect just how helpful it truly was. As I look to the current underclassmen, it has been a privilege to play a role in helping them navigate the same challenges. Now, in graduating, I look forward to finding such mentors both at Lightstone and in the broader industry.

Looking back over your experience, what is the one thing you’d do differently in business school and why? I would say doing a better job of building on the networking connections I made early on. During my freshman year, I conducted many coffee chats and zooms. In many case, I never ended up reaching back out to these people. Knowing what I know now, each connection is a possible employer, colleague, or link to someone else you may one day like to know or meet. By failing to stay in touch over the years, I inadvertently trimmed many branches off the tree of what could have been my network. That said, I currently have a much more refined way of keeping track of such things that I have come to be very happy with!

What is one way that your business school has integrated AI into your programming? What is one insight you gained from using AI? Alongside Professor Munsell, I worked to build an automated real estate valuation system that leveraged AI to estimate investment prices. After months of working out the kinks, the machine was able to accurately value 1.1 million properties (worth in aggregate over 64 billion dollars) at sub-human error – all in less than 5 minutes. I am unsure where AI will be in the coming years, but what I can confidently say is that the ability to leverage technology to accelerate work will be a defining pillar of the paradigm of tomorrow.

Which academic, extracurricular or personal achievement are you most proud of? I would have to say being president of the BU Financial Modeling Club. Having been in the club for all four years of my time at BU, the support I have received from its one-of-a-kind community has been immeasurable. The focus of the club has always been peer-led education and it is at the core of all it stands for.  Now, as I have gotten the chance to lead the club, the opportunity to see freshman and sophomores I mentor change the course of their life by landing roles at these incredible companies has truly been a highlight of my college experience.

Which classmate do you most admire? I would have to say Ryan Leo. Ryan, a current sophomore, is one of my earliest mentees at BU and by far one of the most persistent people I have ever met. After being accepted into BU, Ryan reached out to me by googling the FMC E-Board list before even matriculating. His clarity and conviction in what he wanted to do was incredible – especially for someone not even yet in college. Now having secured an internship in investment banking with Lazard, Ryan has demonstrated an incredible desire to give back and has begun mentoring a group of 20 freshman through a program we built in the financial modeling club. Seeing the full circle nature of all he has done has been a highlight of my college experience.

Who would you most want to thank for your success? I feel I would be remised if I did not mention Esat Bayar. In the summer before matriculating, I was a fellow of Esat’s “Bayar Fellowship.” Essentially, the fellowship teaches low-income students throughout the world how to network, build a resume, build a LinkedIn, etc. As I grew in my professional endeavors, Esat and the Bayar Fellowship community supported me through both ups-and-downs. I truly don’t think I’d be responding to this today without his support. With this said, I must say an obvious incredible thank you to my mom whose continuous support has enabled me to take risks beyond what I deemed possible.

What are the top two items on your professional bucket list?

1. After building the requisite understanding of the industry, I have always had the dream of starting my own real estate fund. The idea of entrepreneurship has always interested me.
2. After retiring, I would like to come back and be a teacher either at the high school or university level. The idea of mentoring the next generation has always been appealing. Bonus points if I could also coach pole vault!

What made Greg such an invaluable addition to the Class of 2026?

“Greg is a truly outstanding student and human being.  I have known him for two years now, in the classroom where his work was exceptional, so much so that I asked him to complete a directed study in part on the effects of AI in the real estate industry. He is the president of the BU Real Estate Club and in that position has brought a number of speakers to campus as well as overseeing the institution of a series of ‘problem sets’ for underclass men/women to complete to further their knowledge in the real estate field.  He is a student member of a local real estate trade organization (Real Estate & Finance Association) where he has worked with a mentor to help analyze properties for consideration for acquisition. His mind never stops; he is intellectually curious, has a thirst for knowledge, and enjoys a challenge.  He is well deserving of this recognition.”

Keith Munsell
Master Lecturer, Strategy and Innovation Department

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