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Boston is one of the best cities in the U.S. It's just not a great place to practice architecture if you weren't your professor's pet at Harvard.
Parts of Boston and D.C. are more charming than anything you'll find outside of the east coast. And Boston has some of the best "suburbs" in the U.S. as well in Cambridge and "Slummerville". If you get a good job there, you'll love it. D.C.? It's more of toss up. The nicer parts of D.C. are only a small fraction of the whole district. But those nice areas are really wonderful, even if the subway doesn't stop there or anywhere else useful (but it will be one of the nicest stations you'll see in the U.S.). D.C. living is really focussed on suburbs more than New York, Boston, or Chicago. Everyone lives in Virginia or Maryland, it seems.
Which nice sections of DC are you referring to? They say the city is turning around and is a LOT nicer now than in the past. That said, I always feel the need to watch my back even in the 'nice' parts (my own neighborhood included). There's still no shortage of interesting characters on the street and or panhandlers/homeless.
While some of us do live in the district, it's somewhat frustrating that this area is decentralized. A lot of the better dining and social options are outside the city. The dining scene here has been weak thus far, though I lack the means to go to the more expensive places. Supposedly, the suburban areas are better than DC itself for the more reasonably priced dining spots. The city has a lot of chains and non-so-good options for those of us watching our finances.
Where are you looking in Chicago? And where are you talking about in NY?
I've never heard of any two-bedroom apartment in New York - I'm from New York, by the way - that's not in a ghetto (and I mean ghetto, not like a gentrifying part of Bed-Stuy or something) for less than $1300-$1400. And nearly all of those are railroad-style apartments, where you have to walk through someone else's bedroom to go to the bathroom at 2AM.
What kind of apartment are you looking for in Chicago? You can definitely get a one-bedroom in a nice area for under $1,000, sometimes well under - sure you won't be in Lincoln Park or the heart of Lakeview, but it's still nice.
I love New York, and I do think some people tend to overstate how expensive it is - I agree with a previous poster who noted that you can get most things cheaply there, with the notable exception of rent. But the rents are pretty wacky.
I have been looking in lakeview, downtown, lincoln park, Streeterville, bucktown and many other places. The apartments are very small and would have to sell all of furniture to move in. I will be going out there on the 9th of September so I guess I will be able to look more in depth into apartments.
I currently live in NY and plenty of people that I know pay that amount of rent including a friend of mine who lives in the Lower East Side in a secured building and pays $800.00. My In-laws live in Willaimsburg (literally 10 minutes from the City) and pay about $900.00. Grant it thier surroundings are not so great but thier building is also secure. My parents own a 3 family home and they rent a nice small 2 bedroom in Woodhaven Queens (right by the J train) for 1,000. I can go on and on.
Please dont get me wrong, I agree that NY is expensive (trust me, I have been dying to leave for a while) but so is Chicago.
I have been looking in lakeview, downtown, lincoln park, Streeterville, bucktown and many other places. The apartments are very small and would have to sell all of furniture to move in. I will be going out there on the 9th of September so I guess I will be able to look more in depth into apartments.
I currently live in NY and plenty of people that I know pay that amount of rent including a friend of mine who lives in the Lower East Side in a secured building and pays $800.00. My In-laws live in Willaimsburg (literally 10 minutes from the City) and pay about $900.00. Grant it thier surroundings are not so great but thier building is also secure. My parents own a 3 family home and they rent a nice small 2 bedroom in Woodhaven Queens (right by the J train) for 1,000. I can go on and on.
Please dont get me wrong, I agree that NY is expensive (trust me, I have been dying to leave for a while) but so is Chicago.
Yeah, I'm not saying Chicago's cheap - it really only is in comparison to New York. Me, I like both a hell of a lot .
Anyway, I live in Edgewater, which is a nice area, and a bit cheaper than some of the places you mentioned. Other places that run a bit cheaper are Logan Square, Uptown, Rogers Park and Pilsen - these places can get a bit shady, but if you're from a big city, I don't think you'd have a problem with them. Just FYI - good luck!
Yeah, I'm not saying Chicago's cheap - it really only is in comparison to New York. Me, I like both a hell of a lot .
Anyway, I live in Edgewater, which is a nice area, and a bit cheaper than some of the places you mentioned. Other places that run a bit cheaper are Logan Square, Uptown, Rogers Park and Pilsen - these places can get a bit shady, but if you're from a big city, I don't think you'd have a problem with them. Just FYI - good luck!
useasbackup, I'm in a similar boat. I'm strongly leaning towards Chicago, with Boston my #2. I considered NYC, but I've never been and don't know anyone who lives there.
I can't speak for the architecture job market, though. I'm an electronics engineer and am hoping my chances of landing a job in Chicago are decent. (if anyone works in this field in either city, I'd love any advice, by the way!). I agree with your comment about Boston though; there's so many students, I feel like I'm back in college every time I visit.
My general impression about the job market in chicago is that it is not a high growth market. nowadays a lot of companies are like a revolving door with extremely high turnover rate, mostly because of layoff, but again, if you have the right kind of experience and skills, I dont think it will take you too long to find one.
This might not be relevant to you, but one thing to point out is that across the board, this years starting salaries for MBAs have in fact decreased compared to last year. Some companies I personally know have decreased MBA salaries from the 90k range to 80s. Also Chicago is categoried by major companies, especially fortune 500 as a second tier pay scale/cost of living market. I know for a fact that my firm pays people 10% less in Chicago than if you get hired in CA, NY, Northern VA, etc.
Quote:
Originally Posted by chrisl999
useasbackup, I'm in a similar boat. I'm strongly leaning towards Chicago, with Boston my #2. I considered NYC, but I've never been and don't know anyone who lives there.
I can't speak for the architecture job market, though. I'm an electronics engineer and am hoping my chances of landing a job in Chicago are decent. (if anyone works in this field in either city, I'd love any advice, by the way!). I agree with your comment about Boston though; there's so many students, I feel like I'm back in college every time I visit.
Thanks, that's the impression I've gotten. Chicago seems to have a large job market, just not an expanding job market (but who does these days). I don't have an MBA, but several years' worth of work experience; hopefully enough to land something. From what I've seen, it doesn't seem like the local job market's as bad as some say it is, though.
If you google " best city for singles" Chicago ranked high but when you look at job growth, I think it ranked 30 something.
I've looked in NY for a month, nothing exciting coming up, then I turned to Chicago. bldg scene seems much better there. good luck to you too.
Quote:
Originally Posted by chrisl999
useasbackup, I'm in a similar boat. I'm strongly leaning towards Chicago, with Boston my #2. I considered NYC, but I've never been and don't know anyone who lives there.
I can't speak for the architecture job market, though. I'm an electronics engineer and am hoping my chances of landing a job in Chicago are decent. (if anyone works in this field in either city, I'd love any advice, by the way!). I agree with your comment about Boston though; there's so many students, I feel like I'm back in college every time I visit.
I would say Boston, New York, and Chicago in that order. The winter in boston is only slightly worse than NYC's by the way.
I'm biased a bit against chicago (just don't like it very much), but if the jobs are better in Chicago than NYC and you like it okay, you should definitely consider Chi-town. There is a lot to do in Chicago--museums, music, arts, restaurants--but if it doesn't "fit" you, then it likely never will. Don't know if it's a concern, but Chicago definitely has the most typical American feel of the three--it feels at times like a big suburb.
Sure, if there were a city the size of a planet, maybe Chicago could be that city's suburb. That is such a ludicrous statement (no offense)--how much time have you spent in Chicago? Could it be that you maybe are saying that because Chicago is in the "Midwest" instead of your precious Northeast?
There is only one other city that I have been to that even comes close to the urban-ness of Chicago, and that's NYC. If Chicago feels like a suburb, then there are no "real" cities in America.
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jobs in chicago
