Interested in moving to Oakland, CA for a job

[etoile_filante]

Originally Posted by GarrettD

The average salary of graphic designers in the Bay area is what, 45,000-50,000k a year? Is that enough to get a nice cozy apartment in a safe area in Oakland?

$45k-50k might be a little high as a starting salary, going into the field with no experience you may have to take what you can get lower down in the food chain, and work your way into the job you want. Broaden your scope from the advertising field, and be prepared to work in an industry you hadn't previously considered. That salary is plenty to live in a nice area of Oakland unless your college loans are high.

[llowllevellowll]

In addition to selling real estate, I also conduct minor work in web and graphic design (and have been for going on 7 years now). I never pursued that market much out here in California but was offered $13/hr to start in Dixon (LOL). Like other comments, I don't get the feeling that the market is real satisfying right now. Graphic and web design are very easy to cut down in markets like this. In addition, it's important to remember how many out-of-work artists there are in this region. Any job opening is going to be highly competitive. When Wix moved out to SF, it was a bum rush even for simply customer service reps.

[Shelacious]

Not pile on, but tis true. I'm in marketing, and the graphic design field is really soft. You can contact Aquent or the The Creative Group for freelance work. But expect an hourly wage, no benes, temp assignment. We have in-house graphic design, and we had to lay-off a (lesser experienced) designer last year. We supplement with a temp agency person when needed.

[GarrettD]

All I want to do is do advertising. It's like I'll never catch a break.

[mayorhaggar]

So, again, look in LA and NYC, that is where the advertising world is based as well as the big media markets. The Bay Area's economy is more based around specialized tech fields, law firms, and finance.