Rochester is the third most populous city in the state of New York. As of 2010, the Rochester metropolitan area had a population of more than 1.08 million people. Interestingly, as citizens of many medium sized American cities like Buffalo, Pittsburgh, and Cleveland continue to flee to southern states, 2012 estimates indicated that the Rochester population had increased by several thousand people since the 2010 U.S. Census.
Although Rochester was heavily impacted by the recession of 2007, the Rochester economy fared better than many other similarly sized cities, as healthcare, education, and optics technology are its leading industries. In fact, the most frequently dialed phone numbers in the Rochester phone book are different numbers to Strong Hospital, which is Rochester’s number one employer. Therefore, it’s no coincidence that a quick browse through the Rochester NY classifieds will reveal that many job openings in Rochester NY are related to healthcare, education, and, to a lesser extent, technology.
As far as job opportunities are concerned, living in Rochester can be a wise move for anyone who is interested in careers in health care and education. Although the first decade of the new millennium was not kind to Kodak, coupled with the recent exit of Bausch and Lomb’s corporate office, the optics industry is still one of Rochester’s primary strengths; and this strength is also reflected in the world class optics technology programs that are found at the University of Rochester and the Rochester Institute of Technology.
If one is in the midst of a Rochester job search, there are several helpful Rochester internet job sites. While many cannot be found in the Rochester phone book, most will advertise more jobs than can be found in Rochester classified ads. In the event that one is scouring Rochester classified for job, it is important to keep it mind that lucrative paying jobs outside of the above fields are difficult to come by; and the majority of those jobs will consist of low paying, entry level service industry jobs.
While it does not have the strongest economy in the United States, Rochester does offer employment opportunities that are at least on par with other northern cities of its size. Since the cost of living in the city is one of the lowest in the country, it is possible for almost any hardworking individual to live a comfortable life in Rochester.