moving to Boston...without having a job lined up... (Cambridge: apartments, for rent)

[toucansam]

This is a very informative forum. Thank you for all your info. I have a quick question as well...



Is it silly to move to Boston without any employment offers lined up?

My wife and I are thinking about relocating from Florida to Boston in May. We’ve both read on this forum statements that Boston has (a) higher taxes, (b) more competition from college grads, and (c) the fact that cities such as New York or Washington, D.C. are more “recession proof”.

However, we will have around $18,000 saved up prior to our move and we are planning on paying anywhere between $1000 and $1500 a month for rent.

My background is in Project Management -- Software (8 yrs. exp.) with an MBA and a Project Management Professional Certification while my wife is a Human Resource Administrator.

Any comments or suggestions as to what would be best to do will be greatly appreciated.

[MovingForward]

I think it would be relatively easy for you to find a position as a Project Manager in the area, especially at one of the universities/colleges (there are many). Because it is, to some extent, a "college town," staff in the academic setting move in and out of positions more often. It seems to me that Harvard (especially the Business School) and MIT often have project manager positions. The pay is not bad, either (generally speaking, with your credentials, $50,000-60,000). Boston would be a good area for your wife's line of work, as well.

As for rent: If you want to live in a decent neighborhood, within a quick commute to Boston/Cambridge, you will need to pay at least $1500/month for a 2-bedroom apartment. But you could probably get a fairly nice apartment for that price in Arlington or even Cambridge (Cambridge is across the river from Boston; Arlington borders Cambridge). The cost of living in the Boston area is high (although not as high as NY or San Francisco), but since I love Boston, it is so worth it to me.

[toucansam]

MovingForward,

Thank you for your quick reply.


We hadn’t considered that many of the universities or colleges in the area would be in need of project managers. I will definitely look into this prior to our departure.

My wife has already received several offers for interviews in Boston and she just started applying last night which was somewhat surprising to both of us.

$1500 a month for a two bedroom apartment sounds quite reasonable to us. We were thinking that rent would be somewhat more expensive. Although, we will be looking for an apartment within walking/biking distance to public transportation since my wife doesn’t drive.

Another question: Are there any groups/sites in Boston to do professional business networking? I’ve seen that Marksguide.com has several networking events for Boston listed are there any others?


Again, thanks for the help.

[MovingForward]

You're welcome. As an academic myself, I have no information to share in terms of professional business networking. I do know about this source, however. Maybe it can help?

Boston Business Journal: Local Business News

[whinton]

I am an IT project manager at a major university in the Boston area, I agree that the universities are good places to look. However, the culture in higher ed is very different than corporate (I previously worked at a Fortune 50 company), both good and bad. The biggest positive is that most colleges here give amazing amounts of vacation/personal days off.

[eslteacher]

I think that $1500 for a two bedroom is not realistic if you want to be in a nice neighborhood near public transportation.

[toucansam]

Thank you all for your input.

Whinton and MovingForward - I was wondering...in your opinion: what percentage of jobs in Boston can be found through general media (i.e. internet, newspapers) as opposed to the vacancies that you hear only from knowing the right person?
There are places in US where you have to cruise in the right circles in order to hear about the good job openings...i was wondering how 'open' Boston is?

Thank you.

[MovingForward]

Unfortunately, not being a part of the corporate world, I can be of absolutely no help. If, however, you are looking for work in academia, you can simply log onto the college/university's HR website for current job listings. For example, here's a link to current IT jobs at Harvard:

http://jobs.harvard.edu/jobs/search_req_quick_read (broken link)

Notice the Project Manager position for the FAS is rated at 58 pay scale. In Harvard-speak, this means between $61,400 and $104,000, depending on qualifications. Not bad. Hiring range is usually somewhere in the middle.

General HR page at Harvard:

Search Harvard Jobs

It appears that you are highly qualified for finding a job around these parts.

[smarty]

Originally Posted by toucansam

Thank you all for your input.

Whinton and MovingForward - I was wondering...in your opinion: what percentage of jobs in Boston can be found through general media (i.e. internet, newspapers) as opposed to the vacancies that you hear only from knowing the right person?
There are places in US where you have to cruise in the right circles in order to hear about the good job openings...i was wondering how 'open' Boston is?

Thank you.

You can see jobs...through internet... but if they will interview you... that is another story... Please understand they get 1000s of resume a day.

[caligirl1082]

My boyfriend & I just relocated from CA, he had a job offer that he accepted, and I moved over jobless. I work in construction project management, and was given/accepted an offer from a company the second week we were here, after interviewing the first week. BUT, I put my resume on monster & careerbuilder and sent out my resume like crazy about a month before we even moved (after I had a MA address). The company that hired me viewed my resume on one of the sites, not sure which.
I think if you have a good resume (ie skills), market yourself well, and apply non-stop something will come up quickly. Be prepared to not have a job for several months though.
Look on craigslist for apartments - there are loads. And, don't pay a fee - we found ours on the owner only section, and it was much less of a headache. the brokers just BS you, and it's frankly very annoying.
Boston is awesome. There is so much to do within and out of the city. As long as you don't mind "bad" weather you will love it. Today is low 40s and grey, cold, and just plain gross.