Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Will not get into details since City-data does not let me remove posts and the fear of family finding the stuff I post on here, but I am from the East Coast and miss it so much, but I (25M) live in California with family (moved out of my parents in 2020) and my living situation is not sustainable and not so great right now. I am becoming more and more desperate for a job. I have been applying for remote jobs so I can move since I started my current job, which is a full-time entry level job, but I stopped applying for remote jobs due to fierce competition, so now I am only applying for in person and hybrid roles. I am not planning on becoming a lawyer, but I am interested in legal / compliance roles and I have experience working at law firms and I work at a law firm now (will not get into detail) Maryland seems to have a ton of government jobs and I have been applying for roles such as Program Analyst, Program management, and Contracts Specialist on USAjobs since January of this year. I have a decent resume that stands out and has no errors I have even applied to the state of Maryland, individual counties within the state, individual cities, and job within "Maryland department of X".
Is it really a waiting game at this point? I have been receiving emails from USA jobs that my resume has been referred to the hiring manager. I know that the government can take long when it comes to going through the hiring process.
This has been one of the worst job searches ever. I had few interview back in late 2021 for remote jobs (in private sector) up to February 2022, then a huge gap, never had an interview until October 2022, then few interviews here and there in 2023. Last interview was in October 2023.
I think your focus is very narrow. Also: why just Maryland? If you're only looking to "escape" California, why not a whole host of states? Indiana and Ohio are cheap, and much of the south still is.
I'm a native Marylander, but I imagine that this is a very hard state to gain a foothold in unless you are either from here or come with some serious credentials.
Maryland also has a ton of private law firms that you will never find on USAjobs.
Also, at age 25, does your experience level really match up with some of these positions? Not saying that you have no qualifications, but you'll likely have to dial back your expectations, including pay expectations, which might make this HCOL state difficult.
I know everyone wants to make $80-100k right out of college, but that is super unrealistic without a decade of experience in many/most fields, especially not-actually-a-lawyer "legal-adjacent" roles.
I think your focus is very narrow. Also: why just Maryland? If you're only looking to "escape" California, why not a whole host of states? Indiana and Ohio are cheap, and much of the south still is.
I'm a native Marylander, but I imagine that this is a very hard state to gain a foothold in unless you are either from here or come with some serious credentials.
Maryland also has a ton of private law firms that you will never find on USAjobs.
Also, at age 25, does your experience level really match up with some of these positions? Not saying that you have no qualifications, but you'll likely have to dial back your expectations, including pay expectations, which might make this HCOL state difficult.
I know everyone wants to make $80-100k right out of college, but that is super unrealistic without a decade of experience in many/most fields, especially not-actually-a-lawyer "legal-adjacent" roles.
I am looking at Maryland specifically due to not being too far from family in NJ, so I do not need to fly in a plane to see them and I have a few family members out here (who are not close family members). MD is a high cost state for sure, but it is still a little bit of a breeze from NJ and CA. At least MD has plenty of jobs in less populated areas and I am willing to live more in nature (semi-rural areas), which is what I want anyways. I'm not expecting 80K or more right now, but I am expecting $60K if I am making $56K at my current role in San Francisco, which is actually underpaying for entry level roles in San Francisco. I have seen private law firms in job searched in Maryland, but I will not apply for any small law firms that have no reviews on Glassdoor. I am only applying for bigger companies that have plenty of reviews and I do research to see if the company does layoffs and if the company lays people off, then I am not going to apply for the job. Majority of the jobs I see in Maryland that fit me are government related. I have been applying to state, county, and even individual city jobs.
Not really interested in the Midwest as it does not have nice scenery and does not have moderated Mid-Atlantic weather.
Overall, salaries in Maryland do not make a ton of sense for the cost of living, while in California, people get treated more fairly and get paid for what they deserve (like the new wage for fast food).
I am looking at Maryland specifically due to not being too far from family in NJ, so I do not need to fly in a plane to see them and I have a few family members out here (who are not close family members). MD is a high cost state for sure, but it is still a little bit of a breeze from NJ and CA. At least MD has plenty of jobs in less populated areas and I am willing to live more in nature (semi-rural areas), which is what I want anyways. I'm not expecting 80K or more right now, but I am expecting $60K if I am making $56K at my current role in San Francisco, which is actually underpaying for entry level roles in San Francisco. I have seen private law firms in job searched in Maryland, but I will not apply for any small law firms that have no reviews on Glassdoor. I am only applying for bigger companies that have plenty of reviews and I do research to see if the company does layoffs and if the company lays people off, then I am not going to apply for the job. Majority of the jobs I see in Maryland that fit me are government related. I have been applying to state, county, and even individual city jobs.
Not really interested in the Midwest as it does not have nice scenery and does not have moderated Mid-Atlantic weather.
Overall, salaries in Maryland do not make a ton of sense for the cost of living, while in California, people get treated more fairly and get paid for what they deserve (like the new wage for fast food).
$60 for knowledge-worker entry-level is somewhat reasonable anymore (heck, you can make $20/hr. or about 41k/year starting out at Taco Bell these days), and you'll have a much better time affording anything here compared to San Fran.
I'll disagree with the notion that there are a lot of jobs here in rural areas. Are you thinking Western Maryland or the Eastern Shore? Those will often require long commutes into either Baltimore, Annapolis, or DC. where the law firms are. Personally I recommend people live not too far from work if you want any kind of work/life balance, and while that can mean paying a little more, it's very much worth it.
I am looking at Maryland specifically due to not being too far from family in NJ, so I do not need to fly in a plane to see them and I have a few family members out here (who are not close family members). MD is a high cost state for sure, but it is still a little bit of a breeze from NJ and CA. At least MD has plenty of jobs in less populated areas and I am willing to live more in nature (semi-rural areas), which is what I want anyways. I'm not expecting 80K or more right now, but I am expecting $60K if I am making $56K at my current role in San Francisco, which is actually underpaying for entry level roles in San Francisco. I have seen private law firms in job searched in Maryland, but I will not apply for any small law firms that have no reviews on Glassdoor. I am only applying for bigger companies that have plenty of reviews and I do research to see if the company does layoffs and if the company lays people off, then I am not going to apply for the job. Majority of the jobs I see in Maryland that fit me are government related. I have been applying to state, county, and even individual city jobs.
Not really interested in the Midwest as it does not have nice scenery and does not have moderated Mid-Atlantic weather.
Overall, salaries in Maryland do not make a ton of sense for the cost of living, while in California, people get treated more fairly and get paid for what they deserve (like the new wage for fast food).
MD is a commuter state. Wages in D.C. will allow you to live in Montgomery County. Wages in Montgomery County will allow live in Frederick. Wages in Frederick allow you to live in Washington County.
MD is a commuter state. Wages in D.C. will allow you to live in Montgomery County. Wages in Montgomery County will allow live in Frederick. Wages in Frederick allow you to live in Washington County.
I commute from a suburban-city (and from a quiet neighborhood far from the train station) to a big city every day and commuting kills my soul, so I am not willing to destroy my life to commute to DC or Baltimore every day. I like semi-rural living with proximity to suburbs, I am trying to escape going to into big cities for work. I like how Maryland has plenty of government jobs out in the towns I am interested in, but there are not too many private sector jobs in MD as a whole unless you go to Baltimore or DC.
I commute from a suburban-city (and from a quiet neighborhood far from the train station) to a big city every day and commuting kills my soul, so I am not willing to destroy my life to commute to DC or Baltimore every day. I like semi-rural living with proximity to suburbs, I am trying to escape going to into big cities for work. I like how Maryland has plenty of government jobs out in the towns I am interested in, but there are not too many private sector jobs in MD as a whole unless you go to Baltimore or DC.
I'd focus on my job search in upper Montgomery County and Frederick County then. Montgomery will have far more non-JD law based jobs, but Frederick may too these days.
A job in either should put you within 45 minutes to an hour from a semi-rural place. Frederick would get you semi-rural outside of city limits within 15-20 minutes, but the job may be harder to land there.
MD is a commuter state. Wages in D.C. will allow you to live in Montgomery County. Wages in Montgomery County will allow live in Frederick. Wages in Frederick allow you to live in Washington County.
That's an interesting way to look at it. I live 7 minutes from work. Honestly, can people afford the commute? I look at commuting as lost wages. Why go to work for 8 hours but be forced out of the house for 10 or more in order to get it?
Rough Calculation:
Worker makes $20/hr.
20x8=160
But then 160/10 because you have a 1 hour commute each way = $16/hr. That's assuming gas is free and you pay no taxes. People are struggling.
I commute from a suburban-city (and from a quiet neighborhood far from the train station) to a big city every day and commuting kills my soul, so I am not willing to destroy my life to commute to DC or Baltimore every day. I like semi-rural living with proximity to suburbs, I am trying to escape going to into big cities for work. I like how Maryland has plenty of government jobs out in the towns I am interested in, but there are not too many private sector jobs in MD as a whole unless you go to Baltimore or DC.
Have you thought about getting into the trades? Honestly the pay might be better, you feel good about the work you do, and you can take the skills anywhere. They'd also be private sector.
I commute from a suburban-city (and from a quiet neighborhood far from the train station) to a big city every day and commuting kills my soul, so I am not willing to destroy my life to commute to DC or Baltimore every day. I like semi-rural living with proximity to suburbs, I am trying to escape going to into big cities for work. I like how Maryland has plenty of government jobs out in the towns I am interested in, but there are not too many private sector jobs in MD as a whole unless you go to Baltimore or DC.
If I recall some of your earlier posts correctly you have a degree in IT but never worked in IT and have an administrative role at a small law firm. 60k in semi rural Maryland sound like a lofty goal. Of course you can apply for .gov jobs while you are still in Cali.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
