Finding work in Alaska (public school, tax, live)

[mrouska]

My wife and I want to move to Alaska from Oregon, but it seems difficult to find work there. Yet according to the web Alaska is one of the best states to be working in. We both have Masters Degree in fact I have two, can anyone please give me some advice on what a person has to do to get a professional position there. We really would like to make a big move in our lives and to fulfill our goal of moving to Alaska.

Thanks
Mark

[Alaskan Mutt]

Without knowing what fields you are looking for work in I can not directly answer your question. However I can list a few things in general. Alaska is just like everywhere else. Who you know is just as important as what you know if not more so. Two of the biggest employers in Alaska are the U.S. Government and the oil companies.

Just like the rest of the U.S. the Federal Government is in slowdown mode. Many vacant positions are not being filled. Funding for many civil service positions on military bases has dried up. Thus there already is a pool of qualified people looking for the the good paying Government jobs. Furthermore, unless you have a skill that is in very high demand, the Fed's will require you to apply and hire on in Alaska so they do not have to pay your moving expenses.

Unless something changes real soon, there is going to be a major downsizing in the oil industry in Alaska. When this happens it is going to get real ugly in Alaska. Active oil fields are in decline. That means less oil is flowing thru the pipeline which means less royalties for Alaska. The oil companies have said they have to get major tax breaks in order to develope new ways to extend the life of the exsisting oil fields. It is my opinon the oil companies are not really interested in further developement of exsisting oil fields. I think they are just hanging around on the chance ANWR opens up to developement. With the advances in production of other types of oil fields around the U.S. I do not believe ANWR will open up. Thus I do not think it will be long before Alaska becomes known as a former oil producing state. When this happens the economy in Alaska will tank.

The way I see it you have a few choices. If you have the financial resources to wait things out and see what happens, if the economy gets better there will be more jobs. If the economy tanks there will be a mass exodus from Alaska of professional workers. There will be high demand for employees. The downside is given the tanked economy the pay will suck. You can also come on up and get your foot in the door somewhere and then try to move up from there. You can also contact everyone you know and start networking. There is a chance someone you know will know someone that can help you get your foot in the door.

Sorry about the gloom and doom but Alaska has tied the health of it's economy to the oil companies. I fail to see where Alaska has any plan of action for when the day comes when the oil companies pack up and leave.

[AKStafford]

What are your degrees in?

[mrouska]

Thanks for the feed back from both of you, my Degrees are in Masters of Education and a Masters of Business, my wife has a Masters of Education as well.

[Frostnip]

Getting public school teaching job in Alaska isn't super hard if you have the credentials. Getting a job in one of the sizable road system communities, OTOH, can be. They have far more applicants than positions so they can be very choosy. Without some kind of "hook" for the district or Alaska experience, teachers from outside the state tend to start out in rural and bush districts who have more trouble finding and retaining employees. Obviously this is not the case for everyone, so it's not hopeless to apply, but realistically ASD has its pick of hires and it's reasonable for them to view people who are already in-state teachers as more appealing candidates.

There's really not a teacher shortage in Alaska anymore. There is a lot of turnover in some districts, but shortages, no. That means more competition for jobs than there used to be.