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Michigan Has One of the Best Cities to Start a Career – And Worst

Author Anne Erickson
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It’s spring, and that means it’s graduation time. Students across the U.S. are graduating from high school, college and trade schools and looking to start their careers in the best way possible. So, when it comes to the best cities to start those careers, which cities are on top?

The staff at WalletHub has put together a study to determine the best and worst places to start a career in America. “Deciding where to lay the foundation for a long and prosperous career can be a tall order, especially for recent graduates entering the job market for the first time,” they state in the study. “After all, there are many factors — job-market saturation, housing affordability and commuter-friendliness, for instance — to consider about each prospective area.”

They add that things are bright for recent graduates, stating, “Fortunately, new graduates are entering the market at a good time, as the unemployment rate for people ages 20 through 24 is currently 6.9%. The job market has made a huge recovery from the damage done by the COVID-19 pandemic, and employers plan to hire 31.6% more graduates from the Class of 2022 than they did from the Class of 2021.”

In the study, WalletHub “compared the relative market strength and overall livability of more than 180 U.S. cities to help recent college graduates find the best cradles for their budding careers.” They used 27 key metrics to examine each city, including availability of entry-level jobs, monthly average starting salary and housing affordability.

So, which Michigan cities made the cut? The highest Michigan town on the list is Grand Rapids, Michigan, at No. 33. It got a total score of 53.35. One other city made the cut, but unfortunately, it’s towards the bottom of the list. That’s Detroit, coming in at No. 178 out of 180. I actually think Detroit is a great place to start a career, but this is the study. The No. 1 city in the entire country to starts a career, according to the study, is Salt Lake City, Utah. For the full list, go here.

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Anne Erickson started her radio career shortly after graduating from Michigan State University and has worked on-air in Detroit, Flint, Toledo, Lansing and beyond. As someone who absolutely loves rock, metal and alt music, she instantly fell in love with radio and hasn’t looked back. When she’s not working, Anne makes her own music with her band, Upon Wings, and she also loves cheering on her favorite Detroit and Michigan sports teams, especially Lions and MSU football. Anne is also an award-winning journalist, and her byline has run in a variety of national publications. You can also hear her weekends on WRIF.

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Author Anne Erickson
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