- Madison, Wisc. was recently named the best place to find a new job by forbes.com
- Madison's unemployment rate is 3.3 percent lower than the national average
- Jobs in government and in the healthcare and insurance industries are mostly responsible for the stronger economy
Many seniors looking for post-graduation employment options may not think of Madison, Wisc., initially. However, the state's capitol was recently named the top city in the country in which to find a new job by forbes.com.
The Web site based its criteria on a survey conducted by Ajilon Professional Staffing, which examined unemployment rates and new jobs created in the last six months.
The national unemployment rate in November was 7.2 percent, the highest it's been in 16 years, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Madison's, however, was only 3.9 percent.
The large number of government jobs in Madison was cited by forbes.com as a major factor in maintaining low unemployment figures.
The Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce said federal, state and local governments are responsible for nearly one-third of all jobs in the greater Madison area.
"Madison has been historically more insulated from economic challenges as the home of our city government, the seat of Dane County government, the state capitol of Wisconsin and a federal court building, in addition to (the) home of Wisconsin's flagship university, the University of Wisconsin-Madison," said Jessica Burda, communications and marketing manager at The Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce.
Burda said the city is also home to companies in the healthcare and insurance industries, which have helped stabilize the economy.
One of the larger companies is Epic Systems, which designs software used in the healthcare industry.
Dan Hoechst, who works in the human resources department as a recruiter at Epic Systems, said the company hires a decent number of people directly from undergraduate and graduate schools for both their technical and non-technical departments.
Hoechst said "spin-off" businesses from UW-Madison have helped grow the technical and bio-technical industries in the area.
The quality of life in Madison is also an appealing factor for people looking for new jobs, Hoechst said.
"People are often surprised as to what Madison has to offer," Hoechst said. "Downtown there are many pedestrian zones and plenty to do. It's urban, but also near nature with the lakes. It also doesn't take too long to drive to pure countryside."
When beginning a job search, Hoechst said it is important for people to look at what a company does overall and what its mission is, and decide whether that is something in which he or she is interested.
Laura Kestner, director of Career Services said a good number of Marquette students find jobs with Epic Systems.
Kestner said most students return to their home cities directly after graduation, especially with the current state of the economy. Many feel they need a backup plan if they can't find a job immediately, and having their parents around is an advantage.
Madison however is appealing to young people for many reasons outside of its job market.
"It's a pretty young, hip and trendy city that is forward-thinking with environmental issues. It's a great place to live an alternative, green lifestyle," Kestner said. "And it's still centralized in (the Midwest), so Chicago is still not that far away."
But although Madison is doing better than other cities with the recession, Kestner warns that jobs are by no means easy to find anywhere in this economy.
"This is not an economy where you can just wait until April to find a job," Kestner said. "There are no recession-proof jobs. We've seen so many recent graduates laid-off."
If, however, students prepare themselves ahead of time and set goals for their career, then they should be fine, Kestner said.
"In this economy, students are going to have to start compromising," Kestner said. "Students having the pick of what they want right after graduation will be rare.and right now, students need to go where the jobs are."