<p>For all the aero engineers out there in Cali or those that know of them, what are the job opportunities like out there? Is the pay pretty good for living Cali? Do the main aero companies mainly hire grads from the UCs/Cali universities? </p>
<p>I always here about how expensive the housing is in CA. Does the increase in pay make up for the cost in living?</p>
<p>Job opportunities for Aeros here are probably better than most of the states. I don’t think increased pay makes up for increased COL, personally. But, then, some people feel their quality of life is better in CA because of the things available to do versus, say, Iowa. Individual opinions vary on this, though.</p>
<p>Main employers hire from an assortment of places. Where I am, we have a bunch of people from local Cal States, but they’re typically not the ones involved in the sexiest jobs.</p>
<p>I see I see. What do you mean by local Cal states?</p>
<p>The California university system is made up of a couple of sets of college. The most well known around the country are the UCs. There are also the California State Universities (Cal State Northride, LA, etc) as well as the Cal Poly (San Luis Obispo and Pomona are two I know off the top of my head), plus the entire community college system.</p>
<p>Aero people, as far as I’m aware, aren’t really paid a premium over other engineering fields out here. We’re certainly paid less than people at many of the well known computer/internet companies.</p>
<p>RacinReaver,</p>
<p>How is the job market for mechanical engineers and petroleum engineers in Southern California? Is it just as bad as any other field ?</p>
<p>Job opportunities within the aerospace industry in California are in a decline right now (except for the space sector - i.e. SpaceX and associated contractors). Most of California’s aeronautical industry is government-run or government-contractor, and the sequestration is having a significant impact on hiring.</p>
<p>As for cost of living and lifestyle, it depends entirely on where in California you want to live. I’m currently working near Palmdale, where the cost of living is low by California standards. I’m paying $550/mo for a 2 bedroom apartment in a nice area of town with my girlfriend - also an engineer. Our combined salaries give us a very comfortable lifestyle, with over 55% of our incomes going directly to savings/investments.</p>
<p>Where I work, the most common California schools recruited from are Cal Poly SLO and CSULB. However, hiring is usually pretty diverse, with most people coming from all over the country and from a wide range of schools (MIT to Cal State Channel Islands and everything in between).</p>