Young Professionals in SC

[gs3]

Jax, Im right there with you man! I lived in Greenville for two years and it never did much for me. I couldn't wait to get out.

[The_sandlapper]

I'm right there with you Sandlapper. Did two weeks in Columbia scoping out the city for my companies move to South Carolina. Couldn't wait to get out. To each his own.

[The_sandlapper]

just different vibes for a different city.

[Spartan]

So basicly we're arguing over beige and khaki? So why are we still debating these small differences in points of view? Some people need to chill out and stop being so defensive of their cities. Others need to let some issues go. Lets just chill out for a minute.

I think Charleston is on a different level entirely due to its urban nature, and its location on the coast in terms of its attractiveness to young professionals- and I'm not sure why it hasn't been mentioned here more often (it did rank #17- the highest in SC, after all) since the discussion changed from focusing on why the low ranking cities are ranked as such to the current talk. It doesn't need alternative urban centers when it already has the far and away oldest, largest & best in the state.

When I graduated USC and Clemson- Charleston was the place everyone wanted to go. Even just on a vacation. If they hadn't been, they wanted to go. If they had, they wanted to go back. Its where I wanted to end up BOTH times I graduated. Not every one of my friends ended up there, but a good chunk from USC did. Some of my high school friends did as well come to think of it. Obviously I did not. And on top of that, any time it comes up, all of my friends pretty much agree that Charleston is where they would go if they could pick anywhere in SC to go and live. Columbia gets some mentions from time to time (not just by USC grads). Gville and Spartanburg don't get the mentions as often except by natives.

Thats my experience with the coolness factor as a young professional. Thats why I think that ranking on the first post for each city is probably fairly accurate- at least within SC. I know that lots of Clemson folks end up in Gville, and USC folks end up in Columbia, due to their respective proximity and influence on each city... blah blah. But where people end up is not always reflective of desire.

What really interests me is what people who don't live or work in any of the 4 larger cities mentioned in the rankings think about each one (Greenville, Spartanburg, Columbia, and Charleston). Particularly those from other cities in SC (but not limited to them).

[krazeeboi]

I think we totally missed the purpose of the article with the rankings that I referred to. It has nothing to do with some "coolness factor"; it's about the places were jobs are most plentiful for young job seekers, i.e. college graduates. None of the indicators relate to "coolness," like arts galleries and museums per capita and the like. So I think we need to understand what the subject here actually is, because if it were "coolness," Charleston would be the hands-down winner if you ask me.

Now, my original question (before we got sidetracked with all this talk about "coolness") had to do with the state of the local economies of the Big Three that would explain their placement on this list, so can we please get back to that before we sink even further into an ever-deepening abyss?????

[GvilleSC]

What really interests me is what people who don't live or work in any of the 4 larger cities mentioned in the rankings think about each one (Greenville, Spartanburg, Columbia, and Charleston). Particularly those from other cities in SC (but not limited to them).

[Greenville]

I agree that a lot of young professionals in SC want to move to Charleston. It is perceived as lively, cool, different - and having the beach definitely helps. Having the College of Charleston, MUSC, and The Citadel all on the peninsula helps greatly too.

But I don't think young professionals moving here is any indication of the job opportunities that exist. Sure, some graduate from college and get decent jobs. But many take jobs that are beneath their qualifications, simply because they want to be in Charleston. I can think of several people I know who want to attend medical/nursing/PA school at MUSC, but did not get in so they take a crappy job at the hospital while they reapply. Do they need a college degree to do that? No. Are they making much money? No. But they want to live in Charleston, and think it will help them to be working at MUSC while reapply.

I also know others - recent college grads - who move to Charleston for a few years of fun while they "figure things out." They might work as a server at a restaurant or something, simply because they want to be here and party for a year or two. It says something when people want to be here badly enough that they take a job that hardly pays them what they are worth. They could probably get a better job in Greenville or Columbia, but instead they choose to be in Charleston.

On the flip side, I also know plenty of people who don't like Charleston and never considered living here. They did not want to put up with the high cost of living, the smell, the bad streets, or the perception that Charleston is more "ghetto" than other parts of the state.

I also know people who currently live here and look forward to the day when they can move somewhere else. I know the feeling well, because I am one.

[krazeeboi]

Killian's Crossing will indeed be humongous, but I wouldn't call it urban.

So does anyone actually want to tackle the question I posed in the initial post in this thread, which is what this thread is supposed to be all about?

Hint: it has nothing to do with "coolness."

[digital_sandlapper]

I agree that a lot of young professionals in SC want to move to Charleston. It is perceived as lively, cool, different - and having the beach definitely helps. Having the College of Charleston, MUSC, and The Citadel all on the peninsula helps greatly too.

But I don't think young professionals moving here is any indication of the job opportunities that exist. Sure, some graduate from college and get decent jobs. But many take jobs that are beneath their qualifications, simply because they want to be in Charleston. I can think of several people I know who want to attend medical/nursing/PA school at MUSC, but did not get in so they take a crappy job at the hospital while they reapply. Do they need a college degree to do that? No. Are they making much money? No. But they want to live in Charleston, and think it will help them to be working at MUSC while reapply.

I also know others - recent college grads - who move to Charleston for a few years of fun while they "figure things out." They might work as a server at a restaurant or something, simply because they want to be here and party for a year or two. It says something when people want to be here badly enough that they take a job that hardly pays them what they are worth. They could probably get a better job in Greenville or Columbia, but instead they choose to be in Charleston.

On the flip side, I also know plenty of people who don't like Charleston and never considered living here. They did not want to put up with the high cost of living, the smell, the bad streets, or the perception that Charleston is more "ghetto" than other parts of the state.

I also know people who currently live here and look forward to the day when they can move somewhere else. I know the feeling well, because I am one.

[goodbye]

...

So does anyone actually want to tackle the question I posed in the initial post in this thread, which is what this thread is supposed to be all about?

Hint: it has nothing to do with "coolness."

[krazeeboi]

To be fair, I had nothing to do with the subtitle of this thread. If you look at the article/ranking I linked to, it had absolutely nothing to do with "coolness." I'm not saying we can't discuss that, but not exclusively. I see no correlation, positive or negative, with how "cool" a city is and the availability of jobs, that's for sure; if anything, there may be an inverse relationship.

My question was really more of a comment concerning the large gap between Charleston and Columbia, which ranked in the upper tier, and Greenville. I understand that this is just one study looking at a limited set of factors, but how much does it correspond with reality? I would also assume that this ranking is looking at data from a year ago or so.

To everyone: we're done with the "additional urban entertainment" discussion; it's totally off-topic. Start a new thread about it if you so desire, but don't continue it here.

[Spartan]

Thats a good point. Most people I know moved here to take real jobs though. The more I learn about Charleston, the more I realize that there are a lot of YP type jobs here. More than you think. Charleston is just better known for other things (the port, arts, history, etc).

I agree that a lot of young professionals in SC want to move to Charleston. It is perceived as lively, cool, different - and having the beach definitely helps. Having the College of Charleston, MUSC, and The Citadel all on the peninsula helps greatly too.

But I don't think young professionals moving here is any indication of the job opportunities that exist. Sure, some graduate from college and get decent jobs. But many take jobs that are beneath their qualifications, simply because they want to be in Charleston. I can think of several people I know who want to attend medical/nursing/PA school at MUSC, but did not get in so they take a crappy job at the hospital while they reapply. Do they need a college degree to do that? No. Are they making much money? No. But they want to live in Charleston, and think it will help them to be working at MUSC while reapply.

I also know others - recent college grads - who move to Charleston for a few years of fun while they "figure things out." They might work as a server at a restaurant or something, simply because they want to be here and party for a year or two. It says something when people want to be here badly enough that they take a job that hardly pays them what they are worth. They could probably get a better job in Greenville or Columbia, but instead they choose to be in Charleston.

On the flip side, I also know plenty of people who don't like Charleston and never considered living here. They did not want to put up with the high cost of living, the smell, the bad streets, or the perception that Charleston is more "ghetto" than other parts of the state.

I also know people who currently live here and look forward to the day when they can move somewhere else. I know the feeling well, because I am one.