Thinking of moving to Alaska (Anchorage: apartment, crime rate, home)

[Dariusz]

Right now I live in Illinois right outside of Chicago. My roommate and I are thinking about moving there. Right now I am a Security Guard, I was wondering if there is any Police work or Security jobs around there that would be open. I hear the pay is better there but the cost of living is higher.

I am getting sick of the Chicago traffic. I do see people complaining about the traffic in Anchorage but is it like Chicago traffic? It takes me around 40 minutes to drive 12 miles to work because of the traffic and around 1.5 hours to get home.

My current town has around 300k people in a 10 mile radius, I would like less conjestion. With Chicago being right next to me and a million people there it gets so fusterating.

Where I currently live the crime rate is kind of high I have to deal with a lot of crazy people and a lot of a-hole corperate people. Is there

My education is High School with some collage and I am certified in Armed Security. My major is Criminal Justice (Criminal Justice, Psychology, Law Enforcement). With my education would it be hard for me to get a job in Alaska, since my education is kinda low? I was thinking of finishing my collage degree this year then moving to Alaska but I would like to leave sooner.

I am the type of guy who likes nature and over here you do not to get to see much of it other than in Forest Preserves and State parks.

I do not mind cold weather, here it gets below zero also and I do not even notice. The summers are too hot here sometimes in the 100s. I do not like the sunlight much, the main reason I work overnight and sleep during the day.

I was thinking of moving to Colorado but it seems kind of overpopulated and Alaska just seems better.

To get started there I was planning on moving into a apartment if I could find one for a reasonable cost then save some money and buy some land and build a house.

Say I made 50k a year, would that be enough to live on? I currently make around 50k yearly in Chicago and living here is no problem I can live on half that and be fine here, but I always hear the cost of living in Alaska is expensive.

Yes this topic is all unorganized and probably some grammar errors I just woke up about 15 minutes ago so I'm still in the wake-up state where my mind is foggy

[Rance]

We have the Alaska State Troopers, city police forces, and many security business's. You should have no trouble finding work in that field.

[superstition]

The traffic here can be frustrating. Driving from the south side to downtown (about eight miles) in morning rush hour easily took 30 minutes, sometimes more. For comparison, to get to work at 7 AM rather than 8 AM it only took 10-12 minutes. I lived in metro Detroit for a year and it was actually easier getting around down there. The timing of the traffic lights is programmed by an imbecile who doesn't understand traffic patterns, and the city has grown so much over the years that the road systems haven't been able to keep up.

There aren't a lot of corporate people up here, unless you make the effort to be in those circles. What we have instead are a lot of small business owners who have money but no class. There are pros and cons to this. Crime varies greatly within the city.

I do not have a degree and have never had a problem finding appropriate work. My husband has some college but no degree, and within three years of living here more than doubled his salary. Experience is valued highly up here. So is hard work.

Cost of living is expensive. Groceries (especially produce) will probably be a bit of a shock, as will housing. It may be difficult to find a place in a decent neighborhood for less than $800-$900 per month. If you're planning on buying land and building, look into that carefully before moving. Anchorage is running out of land, and the prices keep going up.

[leofer]

I too am looking into moving to Alaska to be with my boyfriend. I am from Toronto, Ontario Canada. Any help on US companies that are willing to sponsor Canadian workers in the field of Administration/Secretarial work would be great. Thanks

[gumbykase]

A good friend of mine and I are looking to move into Alaska in the future. We both have a high school diploma or GED, both willing to do alot of back breaking work for minimum wage. We've just had enough of this area, and have always had the urge to move there because its supposed to be less crowded. Is it hard to find general labor jobs? Also would it be hard to find a place to stay? Because both of us are close to broke and are hoping to start fresh up there. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Jonotastic]

Originally Posted by gumbykase

A good friend of mine and I are looking to move into Alaska in the future. We both have a high school diploma or GED, both willing to do alot of back breaking work for minimum wage. We've just had enough of this area, and have always had the urge to move there because its supposed to be less crowded. Is it hard to find general labor jobs? Also would it be hard to find a place to stay? Because both of us are close to broke and are hoping to start fresh up there. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

If you are both broke, Alaska is not a good place to start fresh. Wages are low and the cost of living is high. You have to be realistic... If you can afford it, take a trip here, job search...don't come without money and without a job.

[gumbykase]

That makes sence.

[AADAD]

Originally Posted by gumbykase

That makes sence.

Funding your desires is a primary task of adulthood and it's not required to get a degree. I like many have put on a backpack and headed out. Now, a touch older and wiser I advise looking around and seeing if a license of some sort attracts you. From MRI techs to Nurses to Engineers you can get a job by picking up a phone. If however, you are not at that point then by all means, put some decent retreads on your vehicle and head up.

[Dream It!]

The State of Alaska has a State Trooper Recruit posting.
[url=http://www.dps.state.ak.us/ast/recruit/]Alaska State Troopers - The First Response in the Last Frontier[/url]

There are also job postings available at: [url=http://www.workplace.alaska.gov]Workplace Alaska Home Page[/url]

[truch]

I would try the seafood ind. first see if you could get a job in dutch harbor .its a good way to get up to alaska.try some of the seafood prosesing plants once you are hired on alls you got to do is make it to seattle wa. They cover the rest once you sign on.They cover your fighlt to dutch,your housing,food.Hell they even wash your loundry for you.Alls you have to do is work your contract out witch last about 4 months.Then they fly you back to seattle but first you go through anchorage now you can make a start in alaska. I worked for Unisea frist great company good food and housing try them first.Next try westward seafoods thier ok yull do fine at eitheir one but be prepair to work 12/7.Any ways hope this helped live long my friend.