[floridaboy92]

I am seeking to move out of Florida after graduation next May (2016), which gives me roughly a year to decide where I want to move. I've been here in Florida for almost 4 years and it's just not working out here.

I'm currently 22 years old and studying communication with a minor in film at UCF in Orlando. I'm more of a quiet, reserved person but like to have fun and be the center of attention at the same time. Orlando is not for me. I've been here for long enough and the subculture does not define who I am. I just don't see anything worth reaching for here.

I need to be living in a place with a progressive nature and intellectual environment. Somewhere that focuses on education, creativity and hard work. I cannot find it in Florida.

Ideally, I would like to find a city or town somewhere on the West Coast or in the Northeastern U.S. I'm originally from Connecticut. But unfortunately, Connecticut is another state I cannot see myself living in again.

I am open to suggestions. I grew up in various small and rural, anglo-saxon protestant towns my whole life, so somewhere that has a mix of nature, social structure and city amenities would be ideal for me.

Any advice, input or guidance would be greatly appreciated. I'm really ready to get out of here. Thanks everyone.

[Miss Hepburn]

Seattle is hopping! No earthquakes...if you've been in one you don't
want to be again.

More southwest? San Diego. FUN!
They do pretty well with no quakes.

Personally, I have had enough of the NE.

[floridaboy92]

People in the Northeast are very aggressive. However, I believe New England is the only place in this country where friendships for life are truly valued.

[Icemodeled]

For out west, Portland? I know Ohio isn't considered NE but columbus may be good for you. Otherwise, maybe around Boston.

[PDF]

Yeah, check out Portland. I will add, though, that a few years ago I thought the same thing as you. Turns out I can find everything I want in Florida.

[macrodome2]

Have heard of a couple of college graduate kids (parents retired early) going to Chicago and getting jobs- although not the east or west coast
If you want to go into film, I would say- NYC or LA. I did have someone from the NE that moved to Silicon Valley tell me the same thing about friendships. Problem he had with CA was people only wanted to be your "friend" if you could do something for them. He said the friendships he developed in the NE were for life.

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by floridaboy92

I am seeking to move out of Florida after graduation next May (2016), which gives me roughly a year to decide where I want to move. I've been here in Florida for almost 4 years and it's just not working out here.

I'm currently 22 years old and studying communication with a minor in film at UCF in Orlando. I'm more of a quiet, reserved person but like to have fun and be the center of attention at the same time. Orlando is not for me. I've been here for long enough and the subculture does not define who I am. I just don't see anything worth reaching for here.

I need to be living in a place with a progressive nature and intellectual environment. Somewhere that focuses on education, creativity and hard work. I cannot find it in Florida.

Ideally, I would like to find a city or town somewhere on the West Coast or in the Northeastern U.S. I'm originally from Connecticut. But unfortunately, Connecticut is another state I cannot see myself living in again.

I am open to suggestions. I grew up in various small and rural, anglo-saxon protestant towns my whole life, so somewhere that has a mix of nature, social structure and city amenities would be ideal for me.

Any advice, input or guidance would be greatly appreciated. I'm really ready to get out of here. Thanks everyone.

Do what many progressive, intelligent college graduates from Florida seem to do, head to Washington DC.

I left the state in my twenties to move there as my first time out of FL experience and wound up living there many years among quite a number of ex-Floridians coincidentally enough. It's a fantastic city with a world class cultural scene, great restaurants, a thriving economy with lots of jobs, has an internationally diverse population, almost a park-like setting with lots of trees/greenery, is largely quite safe for a big city and overall is a great first big city experience given it's human scale design versus some of the other very vertical and heavily congested options out there, which is why I think many Floridians unaccustomed to big scary cities wind up there.

[unquiltom]

If weather is not a concern, you might look into Boise, Idaho. It's a growing community of mostly younger people and the quality of life there is very high. Lots of things to do year round and the cost of living is still reasonable. If weather is a concern, Austin, Texas ranks high among best places to live for people under 30.

[kokonutty]

The OP needs to do some heavy investigating of the job market before he tries to narrow down locations.

[StreetSmarts]

I'm not sure about areas out West, but if it were me, I'd look into places like Charlotte, Raleigh, Austin, Dallas, Atlanta. Some small cities equally appealing are Asheville NC and Greenville SC.