Recent College Grad... Should I move to Austin!? And Where!? (Alamo: cheap apartment, renters) - Texas (TX) - City-Data Forum

becky22x · 01-06-2009, 05:05 PM

I am 22 and just recently graduated from University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee with a Marketing and International Business Degree. I'm originally from Madison, WI and like the so called 'wierd-ness' there and my boyfriend is a huge fan of the music scene. I have around $6,000 saved up and would be willing to work with a temp agency when I first got there, any agency suggestions? Also, we are looking for young neighborhood atmosphere and was wondering any areas or streets that might fit our needs? I heard people suggest to go through a renters agency to help suggest neighborhoods or rentals themselves, any suggestions on that? I am looking to move in the next couple of months, so any kind of help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!!!

thedude72 · 01-06-2009, 05:13 PM

Don't go through the temp agency there just looking for suckers,try to get hired on permanently and since your a girl or pretty girl I'm sure you'll have no trouble, most Texas business men make there decisions from the waist down anyway, watch out for sexual harassment.

Trickmystir700 · 01-06-2009, 05:33 PM

I would go through the temp agency, its a good way to get to know the company before you actually get committed. That way if you like the company then you could try to get hired on permanetly. Beware though most Texas business men are very picky about new hires, try to show them that you have a great personality and work ethic. Watch out for being advanced to quickly.

paul6835 · 01-06-2009, 11:43 PM

Temping is a great way to get a full time job if you are personable and competent. When you meet with the agency, ask them what thier conversion fee is (or if they have one for temp to perm), most agencies will charge a partial recruitment fee to a company who hires thier temps full time. Many companies simply won't pay this and will pass on good people to avoid this fee. Also ask them how long you would need to work there before the fee expires. Most conversion fees have a period after which they expire after you've worked some place long enough (the reasoning behind this is that the recruiting costs have been recouped after they've made thier markup on your hourly charges over a certain period). Don't be afraid to insist on the type of company you want to work at, you'll find out faster if the recruiter fills positions you'd be interested in.

killer2021 · 01-07-2009, 04:09 AM

Don't rush into the temp agency. Personally I would go for the cheap apartment like 500 or less per month. You don't want anything too expensive and end up homeless because you couldn't find a job. Once you get your place settled, you'll need a job - any job. Just go to the local businesses within walking distance and ask if they need any help. Grocery store, fast food, anywhere! If nothing turns up then go to the temp agency. Once you've got your job lined up start looking for your career job. You don't want to be looking for your career job while your unemployed and living off savings. It is a bad situation to be in.

thedude72 · 01-07-2009, 04:24 AM

Get hired on permanent with the company first don't waste your time getting stringed along with a temp agency.Your educated and have a degree don't settle for peanuts when you should be making the $$$ molahh. I've lived in Austin For more then 20 years so I might know just a little about what goes on there.Your going to need money if you want to live in a decent part of town the best I would recommend to cushions your blow for first time living in Austin is off of Far West blvd that's a decent area and the people are nice and respectful everything you need is close by Grocery HEB,Post Office,and close to the arboretum ,Cheese cake factory TGIFriday's,Barnes and Nobles.Office depot not to far from all that.the only down side is the train gets noisy on the other side of MOPAC ... Plus you won't have to go through are they going to hire me? or did someone else kissing but get it ?the job market in Austin has become fairy competitive recently. Make sure you research the oppurtunity there and watch out for cutthroats.

Austin97 · 01-07-2009, 10:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by becky22x

I am 22 and just recently graduated from University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee with a Marketing and International Business Degree. I'm originally from Madison, WI and like the so called 'wierd-ness' there and my boyfriend is a huge fan of the music scene. I have around $6,000 saved up and would be willing to work with a temp agency when I first got there, any agency suggestions? Also, we are looking for young neighborhood atmosphere and was wondering any areas or streets that might fit our needs? I heard people suggest to go through a renters agency to help suggest neighborhoods or rentals themselves, any suggestions on that? I am looking to move in the next couple of months, so any kind of help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!!!

Dont know what kind of marketing you are interested in, but Dell might be a good place to check out as they are international. There is only one big PR firm in town (GSD&M) and they do churn and burn, but it is a good place to cut your teeth on PR marketing.

becky22x · 01-08-2009, 07:31 AM

thanks for the help about the marketing information. I hoping that there are some marketing positions available at some the of the IT firms as well. I am going to come down for a weekend to check things out. Any suggestions on a cheap place to stay?

TexasHorseLady · 01-08-2009, 01:43 PM

One does wonder what thedude72 knows about sexual harrassment in the workplace from the perspective of a woman.

Don't worry about it too much - I've been in the workplace in Austin in a variety of areas and I can't recall being sexually harrassed once. (Of course, I'm not silly enough to take a comment like, "My, don't you look nice today!", when I do happen to be feeling and looking particularly nice that day, to be sexual harrassment - especially if I'm treated with respect for my work. I know some women are, indeed, that silly.)

I've always found temping to be an excellent route to permanent employment, if I wanted to take the offer (only have once out of many, many offers over the years). You just have to choose your agency carefully. I've not been in the temp world in a while, so wouldn't know which ones are currently the best in the area.

bm1984 · 01-13-2009, 01:42 PM

I'd say move here! I did it right after graduating from college in 2006 and found a job a month after living here and job-hunting. And it was the best decision I ever made, I love it!

My cousin would visit his girlfriend in Madison often after graduating from UT and he said it has a feel very similar to Austin. Both cities are very liberal and have a lot of young people. Austin's music scene really is awesome if you take the time to indulge in it.

By far the youngest area to live is anything around the UT campus, though when I moved here I didn't want to live in a college area. The biggest "yuppie" area is the South Congress area, just south of the river -- though, it is quite expensive. Anything south of downtown will have more of a liberal vibe, while anything north of downtown/UT area gets more and more conservative the further north you go.

The youngest and most affordable areas are...

1. The area outlined by Loop 1, US183, McNeil Dr, and Parmer Ln (FM734). There is an area called the Arberoteum near where Loop 360/Capital of Tx Highway and US183 intersect that is a real hot area up north. It's a little more of a conservative area in my opinion and I wasn't feeling it really.

2. East Riverside area. Though dirt cheap, it's pretty ghetto. Not my area of choice. But there's a lot of young people... and it's quite liberal (b/c it's south of downtown).

3. Southwest Austin. There's a lot of new developments and younger people moving in. It's a much more liberal and scenic area and is my area of choice because it's much closer to downtown, the greenbelt (which is this amazing place to hike and bike), parks, and only minutes from the hill country. The area off of Brodie Ln. or anywhere off of Loop 1 south of where it intersects Loop 360/Capital of Tx Hwy on the south-side, but north of Slaughter Ln. is what I'm reffering to. You're also not far from S. Lamar which has a lot of cool little shops and the Alamo Drafthouse.

However, the most ideal place in my opinion to live in Austin is downtown. It's severely overpriced though, but I often see people get lucky.

As far as a cheap place to stay, any chain hotel that's not an obvious 5-star luxury hotel is cheap enough. I'd try to stay somewhere that's a quick drive from downtown. I know there are some really nice and cheap hotels where I-35 and SH71/US290 intersect that are only minutes away from downtown and minutes away from what South Austin has to offer. Check out A, B, D, C, and F on the following link:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&sour...2,0.01442&z=16