I'm just gonna pack my things up and move! (Chicago: apartment, rent)

[immajustdoit93]

I have been living in Florida since I moved to US about 8 years ago. I grew up in a city and this Florida life doesn't suit me. I hate it here and I need to get out. After my graduation next month, I'm just gonna pack my things up and leave.

I don't know anyone in Chicago and I don't have a job lined up. I can probably bring about $1500 with me. I don't know how I'm gonna survive this but I need to do this for myself. If you guys have any advice for me, please share.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by immajustdoit93

I have been living in Florida since I moved to US about 8 years ago. I grew up in a city and this Florida life doesn't suit me. I hate it here and I need to get out. After my graduation next month, I'm just gonna pack my things up and leave.

I don't know anyone in Chicago and I don't have a job lined up. I can probably bring about $1500 with me. I don't know how I'm gonna survive this but I need to do this for myself. If you guys have any advice for me, please share.

If you are graduating from any kind of reputable college / technical school it would be odd that you don't have at least some on-campus interviews setup. Ideally several of the firms holding interviews ought to be able to connect you with jobs in Chicago.

If you don't take advantage of these sorts of opportunities you will be hard pressed to deal with the reality of trying to find a job and a place to stay in Chicago during the worst part of the year...

[glass_of_merlot]

Where are you gonna live when you have no income?

[JustMike77]

If it gives you any encouragement, I moved from Ohio to Los Angeles 40 years ago with $ 500 in my pocket. Didn't have a job, didn't know a soul. It all worked out fine. But things were probably different then.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by JustMike77

If it gives you any encouragement, I moved from Ohio to Los Angeles 40 years ago with $ 500 in my pocket. Didn't have a job, didn't know a soul. It all worked out fine. But things were probably different then.

40 years there were dozens of cars you could buy brand new for less than three grand and even a couple that that could get for less than $2000 -- The 7 Cheapest American Cars of 1972 (With AM and Auto) | The Daily Drive | Consumer Guide® The Daily Drive | Consumer Guide®

[IrishIllini]

I have a friend who was born and raised in the Bay Area and did a move similar to yours. No job lined up, didn't know a soul, but felt he needed to be here. He's a transit planner, so finding work was an uphill battle, but he managed. I don't know your circumstances, but if your degree is in high demand I don't think you'll have trouble finding work, it just may be better to do so before moving here. $1,500 isn't enough to survive more than a month and half if you're incredibly frugal. I don't even know who would rent to you with no job and with no deposit down.

Have you even visited? Chicago's a great place, but looking at pictures of somewhere online versus actually experiencing it are two totally different things.

[immajustdoit93]

I looked around AirBnB for cheap rooms and I'm graduating with an IT degree. The IT job market in Chicago seems decent. I think I just need to do this for sake of my well being.

[s0nginmyheart]

1) if by "next month" you mean January, it'll be right in the heart of winter. So, be mentally and physically prepared for that move.
2) maybe you can pick up some side jobs while you look/interview for a job related to your field. Such as Lyft or Uber? Not sure if you will have a car. But it could at least help put some change in your pockets.

FWIW when I moved here almost a decade ago, I did not have a job lined up either but had an apartment (with now ex bf) and more savings to rely on. It took me about a month to find employment then. Good luck to you!

[chet everett]

While there is a fairly large and diverse IT market in the Chicago region it is nothing like that in the greater Silicon Valley. The first factor is that the vast majority of hiring for true entry level programmers happens via rather traditional methods: Recruiters visit colleges in the Midwest and utilize their long standing connections to the "campus placement" offices to find graduates with the potential to contribute to the success of firms. For folks that do not get involved in this "channel" the likelihood of good entry level employment is rather different. Few firms, be they established or start-up", want to take a risk on a new graduate from a school that may not have the same reputation of schools well known for solid computer science / technology departments.

The second factor is that there are a large number of experienced people in the Chicago market that are often competing for positions as the various shifts send some firms into economic distress as well as making certain technical endeavors obsolete. In simple terms that means many employers are going to interview dozens of people that have deep experience working on large projects for firms that may have once been "first rate" until disruptive competition whacked them for a loop. That makes it really hard for a "new grad" to compete -- you may have a theoretical understanding of what it takes to complete a large project but for folks that have experience and a desperate to escape the "sinking ships" of some of the region's once premier employers you will get lots of rejections...

Bottom-line: It is foolish to not take advantage of the likelihood that any good college will be able to leverage their record of placement even for folks looking outside of the school's state. If you are literally weeks away from graduation and you have not been actively using your school's placement services that is something that all potential employers will notice and won't be a positive.

"Students who did not receive job offers through Career Services and Placement used two job search methods to find employment: mailing resumes to and contacting employers and responding to newspaper classified. Students who had received job offers augmented their on-campus interviewing by contacting employers they had interned, co-oped, or worked part-time and participating in student organizations/job clubs. ...Newspaper classified and mailing resumes were rated as "not very helpful" in finding employment opportunities. "

CSTS - Publications

[cfbs2691]

OP why does your post sound like you're in a mad rush?
Are you and if so why?
Trust me, I get wanting to get out of Florida, but please have somewhat of a plan in place.


Have you lived on your own before?
Have you applied for any jobs in Chicago?
How much time have you spent in Chicago and do you own winter clothes?