For many recent college and university graduates, the real work is just beginning. After the tests, papers and projects are completed, graduates must find a job, preferably in their chosen career fields, and make the transition from students to working professionals. To add more pressure to the job search, many graduates are finding that relocation is necessary to find jobs.
For decades, graduates have known that to work in films or technology, they needed to live in California; to pursue theater or broadcast and print journalism, New York was the best bet. Now, more industries are following suit. A growing trend of industry-specific regional employment means that returning home or finding work where graduates went to school is unlikely.
Relocation is rarely an easy thing for even a seasoned veteran. Compound that with a lack of current income, fewer companies offering relocation costs, and more graduates competing for a handful of jobs, and you have a sticky relocation situation. There are some things you can do to improve your chances of finding the perfect job and successfully relocating to a new city.
Planning is key to a successful relocation job search. You must look at the job market to see where the jobs in your industry are concentrated, determine the cost of living in that area, explore the area to see what it has to offer someone in your age group with your likes and interests, and consider what would be involved in searching for a job and relocating to that area.
For graphic designer Angie Huse, relocation was the best option. “Being from a small city in Nebraska, I knew I had to look for jobs in another city,” said Huse. “Career opportunity was bigger in Kansas City.” Huse used the Internet and the career services office at her school to locate her job at an advertising firm.
“When quantifying the number of people who actually obtain their jobs through the Internet, one survey has placed the number as high as 20 percent, but most surveys say the number is between 4 and 6 percent,” said Katharine Hansen, Editor of the job seeker’s newsletter QuintZine.
As you consider relocation, the Internet is a great place to start your job search. While it is highly unlikely that you will get the jobs you locate through Internet job searches, it offers a great opportunity for conducting research about the job market.
Myjobsearch.com contributing writer Jeff Westover believes “job boards can be used to compare not only the number of jobs in an area, but also how much they pay and how desperate companies may be for new hires.”
Once you have found some companies for possible future employment, use their Web sites to conduct research. Contact someone in the human resources departments to gather more information about the companies. Find out what relocation resources they provide new hires. For Huse, the relocation resources were key to her accepting her job.
“They were very helpful,” she says of the HR staff. “I had never been to the city before, and they drove me around the area and gave me helpful hints for apartments that were good to look at.”
Relocation due to a job offer involves much more than simply starting the job. Living arrangements must be considered as you weigh the job options. Factor that in as you conduct your job search.
Many relocation packages include moving expenses for upper management, but new graduates and other entry-level employees are not so lucky. According to the Employee Relocation Council, companies reported a five percent decrease in overall relocations from 2001 to 2004. Costs totaling $14,000 for each renting new hire and nearly $50,000 for home-owning new hires contribute to the decline in relocation allowances.
Because the expense of relocation will most likely be passed on to you, it is wise to make sure relocation is worth the expense of moving all your belongings to another city, securing living arrangements and acclimating to the new city as well as your new job.
Relocation can be a successful tactic when you do your homework before you move. If you are willing to pack up your life and move, relocation could be the best way to find a job following graduation.
“You only live once,” said Huse. “If the job is right for you, go for it.” Huse has been on her job for two years. For her, relocation was the right choice. It might be the right choice for you as well.
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