There are many recent college graduates running around. Undoubtedly, some are still wondering what they should do and where they should go. In partnership with LinkedIn, Trulia compiled its new Graduate Opportunity Index. The index ranks forty of America’s strongest jobs markets based on what they have to offer recent college graduates.
As reported by Bloomberg, three equally weighted factors went into each metropolitan area’s score on the index. These factors include the share of entry level job openings for recent graduates, the percentage of rental units affordable to a median income graduate between the ages of twenty and thirty, and the share of the area’s population ages twenty two to thirty with at least a bachelor’s degree.
Basically, the best areas are those that are affordable, offer lots of jobs and are home to many young college graduates. Based on these factors, the best metropolitan area is Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Then comes Indianapolis, Kansas City Missouri, and Minneapolis.
The lowest ranked areas are Miami and Los Angeles. Because they tend to me more expensive, East Coast markets tended to have middling rankings – Philadelphia ranks eighth, Washington ranks seventeenth, Boston eighteenth, Baltimore twentieth and New York twenty sixth.
