<p>Inc Magazine recently published their annual list of the cities across America that are posting the largest gains in job growth. We all hear about the job market in places like NYC, LA, Chicago, but the fact is that those cities have been losing jobs for years. For students thinking about where they might want to live (or for high school students looking for a college with links to fast-growing cities), I thought it might be helpful to list Inc’s Top 20 Large Cities. </p>
<li> Las Vegas, NV</li>
<li> Phoenix, AZ</li>
<li> Fort Lauderdale, FL</li>
<li> Orlando, FL</li>
<li> Riverside, CA</li>
<li> West Palm Beach, FL</li>
<li> Raleigh, NC</li>
<li> Honolulu, HI</li>
<li> Northern Virginia</li>
<li>Salt Lake City, UT</li>
<li>Tampa, FL</li>
<li>Jacksonville, FL</li>
<li>Washington, DC</li>
<li>Nashville, TN</li>
<li>Sacramento, CA</li>
<li>Austin, TX</li>
<li>Houston, TX</li>
<li>Seattle, WA</li>
<li>Bethesda, MD</li>
<li>Portland, OR</li>
</ol>
<p>Of these 20 cities, 14 would be considered in the Sunbelt and none are in the Northeast or the Midwest.</p>
<p>Hey, it's a good list. A lot of universities don't have as much regional appeal as others. I.e. University of Maryland would have great connections to DC and Bethesda, but not so in Riverside. You might say, "Why the Hell would I ever want to go to Arizona State?", but if you're on a tight budget and want to work in Pheonix...</p>
<p>Also, I've had my heart set on San Francisco post-graduation, and this list has reminded me there are other great cities that would be better investments! Portland, Seattle, and DC sound like places I would like to live :).</p>
<p>One thing is a lot of these places are freaking expensive. My parents could not afford to live in them comfortably, and the family income is like $200,000/yr+. The ones I immediately went, "whoa, NOT for students just graduating college" were Northern Virginia and Bethesda. Those places will dent your pocket book for serious, with 2 bedroom houses in the $1,000,000 range, haha. They aren't populated with college grads for the most part, either - try middle-aged professionals. I'm sure there are tons of other way-too-pricey places on that list (Honolulu?), too...haha.</p>
<p>the old big cities may have been losing jobs for quite some time, but that doesn't mean they aren't adding high-value jobs that are the ones we actually want.</p>
<p>Take Philadelphia. It has been losing jobs (and people) since postwar deindustrialization started 60 years ago. Yet right now even as the population shrinks it is labeled by Forbes as one of the hottest cities for high-tech job growth. Philadelphia is losing manufacturing jobs but making up for it with armies of legal and biotech firms.</p>
<p>That's absolutely true JohnnyK. Its the same with Chicago, Pittsburgh, and similar cities. Frankly, using the OP's argument to justify where one should attend college or graduate/professional schools is entirely misleading and off-base.</p>
<p>Some previous posters bring up a good point. It would be more useful to see a list of cities with the greatest growth in jobs that require a college degree.</p>
<p>Actually, johnny's point about Philadelphia may be overstating job growth in that area. Philadelphia has barely retained its level of employment. Check out Michael Barone's piece today on the editorial pages of the WSJ. His analysis about demographic change, job growth and the political impact reinforces the original thrust of this thread. The South and the West have been and continue to be the regions with the strongest population and job growth.</p>
<p>Much of the job growth in these areas is low wage. A big part of it is construction and related trades. The important sectors for college grads would be FIRE, engineering and professional jobs. Growth in these areas may be totally different than overall growth. Most major companies, banks, and professional services firms that pay well are still in the older cities.</p>
<p>Framers, sheetrockers, waiters etc head to Vegas but professionals still are better off in Chicago.</p>
<p>barrons,
I think you are missing it on Las Vegas. Yes, home building has been part of the growth story, but the scene is far broader and far more entrepreneurial than you may realize. Lots of job growth is happening, including in professional services. Also, there are 20 cities listed by Inc so if Las Vegas is not your preference, then look at the next 19. Also, I think that all 20 and then some would have a much better climate than Chicago and that is a part of the reason for their growth. Many, many people want to live where they aren't going to freeze for 7-8 months of the year and where clouds don't cover the sky from Halloween to beyond Easter.</p>
<p>A--you don't freeze in Chicago 7-8 months. Typically nothing more than a light jacket is needed from April-October. The other months will have some cold days and some completely comfortable ones so long as you have a decent coat. There are many sunny days--even in winter. You must have Chicago confused with Cleveland where the lake effect means more clouds and snow. On the other hand you get a virbrant city with culture, major league sports, great food, public transit and fine older neighborhoods that the average young professional can still afford. More big business is done out of Chicago than most of those sunbelt cities combines. Big law, big advertising, big banking, big investing, and big corporations are all abundant.</p>
<p>Here's what Moody's says about Chicago</p>
<p>Recent Performance. The Chicago-Naperville-Joliet economy continues to improve at a measured pace, driven by payrolls gains in business/professional services. Data through the second quarter from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages suggest that the expansion has been both stronger and more balanced. Household employment also depicts a much stronger pace of growth, suggesting a more dynamic economy than does the payroll survey. Accordingly, the unemployment rate ended the year at only 4%.</p>
<p>barrons,
Chicago is a wonderful city. Very fun place that I know well and visit on a regular basis. But let's just plan to disagree on the weather which is comparatively lousy to those in the Inc Top 20. I got engaged in Chicago on a May 5. I remember it well for many reasons. I also remember that it was cold as hell and that it snowed.</p>
<p>It doesn't matter. Where you go to college should have little or nothing to do with some publication's ranking on regional job growth, especially for an undergraduate.</p>
<p>I think there is some value to H's point. Unless you go to some Top 30 or so school most of the recruitment on campus is going to be from the region. It is reasonable to conclude that going to school where there are more jobs may be of benefit to the student when looking for a job.</p>
<p>For H--May 5, 2007 in Chicago--65 degrees. Into the 80's thereafter. One bad May 5 does not make a trend.</p>
<p>I would say yes for that 10-15 years ago, but we are much more "national" nation now. People travel around all the time, especially people in finance, engineering, and medicine. I think a large contingent of college graduates will not seek a job near where they went to college, with the gross outlier exception of California, and even so, since it is becoming much more expensive to live in decent parts of California these days, a significant number of people will go elsewhere.</p>
<p>Employment by Region: Kelley students accepted employment in 28 states; District of Columbia, and several countries worldwide. Three-quarters (75%) accepted employment in the Midwestern states of Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin, Kansas, Minnesota, and Missouri. </p>
<p>The top states were Illinois (36%), Indiana (25%), New York (8%), and Ohio (6%). The most popular city for employment was Chicago, followed by Indianapolis, New York, Minneapolis, and Cincinnati</p>
<p>78% of Wisconsin Business grads stay in the midwest</p>