Relocating to Johnstown PA, any advice on how to land a good paying job? (Pittsburgh: school districts)

[acarlson27]

We are relocating the the Johnstown Pa area. We are college educated and have 20 plus years experience in running companies (all of which we owned)
We need health care and a good salary. Don't we all? I will be moving from a metro area and would like to truly know if this is a good place to raise kids and find a decent job to make a comfortable living. Any feedback would be appreciated.

[62jeffrey]

Johnstown is a great place to raise a family and seek employee.
We have alot of defense companies hiring and moving people to Johnstown.

[Caephas]

Originally Posted by acarlson27

We are relocating the the Johnstown Pa area. We are college educated and have 20 plus years experience in running companies (all of which we owned)
We need health care and a good salary. Don't we all? I will be moving from a metro area and would like to truly know if this is a good place to raise kids and find a decent job to make a comfortable living. Any feedback would be appreciated.

I'm originally from Pittsburgh, but moved out to Johnstown when I married my wife back in 2004. I made that decision because my wife had three daughters still living with her from a previous relationship.

To answer some of your questions, I think that the health care is decent in Johnstown. I have dealt with both the Conemaugh and Windber hospital systems and they have done well in taking care of my family. And if specialties are need, you have McGee Women's Hospital and Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh only two hours away.

As for being a decent place to raise kids? I think it is if your careful about which school district you move into. The Richland and Windber school districts are very decent, as is the catholic school system in the area. Avoid the Johnstown school district if you can. Despite Johnstown being somewhat 'small town', the Johnstown school district has the airs of a big inner city school, though I have known both troubled and decent kids to come out of that system.

As for a decent paying job, good luck. I have degrees in computer science and mechanical engineering and with over 10 years experience in my fields and no one will pay you what you are worth. I have applied to many of the major companies in and around Johnstown (Concurrent Technologies, DRS, Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, Mountaintop Technologies to name the bigger ones) for the last four years and no one will hire me. And it wasn't because I was asking for an exhorberant salary. I was looking to start at $35k, a significant paycut from what I was making working for US Steel in Pittsburgh just so I could be closer to home. No, those companies were looking for and hired individuals in the pay range of $25k to $30k. I have since given up looking for a job in Johnstown and have gone on to work full time for my family business in Pittsburgh, hopefully moving back to the Pittsburgh area next summer.

Sorry, I went off on a little bit of a bitter tangent there. If you are intent on moving to Johnstown, start knocking on the doors of companies in that area now until you land a decent and good paying job. If you're looking for a relatively quiet life then Johnstown is a decent area to live in.