[thelifespark]

Hello everyone! I'm thinking about making the move to Connecticut sometime next year. I was looking elsewhere previously, but Connecticut seems to have everything I'm looking for and then some, plus it's much, much closer to friends/family. Currently I'm in Southern California (LA area) and pretty sick of it.

After doing a little research I decided that the Norwich area looked good. It seems very pretty and in driving range of some good places. Plus the apartments I looked at seemed fairly reasonable. I wouldn't say they're cheap, but compared to SoCal they're not half bad. I just wondered what job availability is like in the Norwich area and maybe some opinion on the area from people who have live or visited. Is it as nice as it seems?

[thelifespark]

does anyone know about job availability in Norwich?

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

Originally Posted by thelifespark

does anyone know about job availability in Norwich?

The largest segment in that area is service jobs with the casino's, one of which has laid off staff in the past year. The Defense sector was the largest employer, that segment continues to decline and will not rebound. The most stable and growing occupational fields in that area would probably be those that are in the medical field.

[GrotonMan]

The term Norwich area is pretty broad, so I'm not sure if you are looking at just Norwich or if you are talking about New London County as a whole. Norwich itself is a small city, with areas of blight, but also with some very nice neighborhoods. In terms of employment in the area, around Norwich the largest employers are the two casinos, but the tourism sector has been hit pretty hard in this economy. Around Groton-New London the largest employer is the defense industry, which contrary to popular belief is still alive and very strong in the area, and as a matter of fact is one of the few industries that is actually growing. As long as this country still needs a navy, the defense sector will remain strong, even through the scares of decreased defense spending and possible base closings. Recently several hundred (and I really mean more than 500) engineers, draftsmen, and skilled workers were hired by Electric Boat, and they are still looking to hire quite a few more people. As SCR said, the medical area is ALWAYS hiring people. ALWAYS.

The thing about the jobs in the area are either pretty specialized or they are fairly low paying service sector jobs. I think if we knew more about what kind of experience you have or what kind of job you are looking for we could give you more insight into that particular job market in the area.

[thelifespark]

I'm sorry that was silly of me. I've had my had so filled up with a million things lately I didn't even think to specify. I'm hoping to get back to school and get my Bachelor's in Education but meanwhile I've worked mostly secretarial/office assistant type jobs. I also have a lot of experience with childcare such as nannying and animal care.

As for Norwich...from what I saw while researching it looked fairly nice but then again I've never been in person so if you say there are areas of blight I'll take your word for it. I was looking in the Mystic area since I really like being near the shore but wasn't coming up with any apartments or anything there. Are there other areas you might suggest?

[GrotonMan]

Where you want to go with a degree in education (ie elementary school teacher vs district curiculum developer) would mean a world of differences in how many jobs are available. Jobs in education seem to be a year by year thing. Sometimes school districts suddenly find that they need to hire several teachers, while other times they don't hire anybody. Luckily each town generally has it's own district so there are lots of different places to teach, and consequently more opportunities.

Norwich isn't horrible, but by the same token it isn't great. It isn't a massive blight by any means, but like any city, it has it's areas. New London is comparable in terms of urban activity. It is actually a little more dense, and a little easier to navigate. It is also right at the mouth of the Thames river, so it is on LI Sound. New London also has it's rough areas, but it's pretty simple to figure out what you ought to avoid, if it looks sketchy... it is sketchy. If you want somewhere not actually in one of the small cities, but still with all of the access you might want to check out Groton, Waterford, or even Stonington. Mystic is actually a part of both Groton and Stonington so if you liked the idea of mystic then those might be appealing; and Waterford just about surrounds New London and still has great beach access at Harkness Memorial State Park.

Groton, New London, and Norwich will actually end up having the most rentals, especially at reasonable prices. They will also have the most jobs. I have seen several places hiring for secretary/front desk workers in the area so that might work out well for you. I hope you are able to find something that works out for you! If you have any other questions ask away.