Should I just shadow someone and gain knowledge in my spare time while I work and go to school?

If you sold at a profit, you could defer the gain if payments came over time.  

@Robbie Reutzel I mean no ill will towards you, with you regarding House Hacking, but you are speaking as a typical Realtor.

My questions are is, (a) is anyone familiar with the Tulsa area REIA (b) is this typical for the Tulsa area REIA and (c) if this is typical, is there another REIA that serves Tulsa?

Also, paying off student loans early typically incurs a penalty.

How can I minimize my capital gain taxes?

This means upon sale the only tax liability would be the capital gain.

How do I minimize capitol gains?  

ALL RE is cyclic and Calif is typically an 8-9 cycle, especially in the most desirable areas like SF Bay area, Orange County.  2008 was a major down turn due to the mortgage industry collapse, not true property values. 

Typically they want to see something like accepting a new job that is further away.