Change of Careers
 

Ladies and Gents:
I am in the midst of changing careers. I am currently enroll in paralegal certificate program. After I complete this program, I am planning to relocate out of the New York area to the DC/Maryland area.

Can anyone guide me in the right direction in the do's and don'ts of relocating and job hunting? I do not complete the program until May of 2002. All suggestions are welcome.

Although I know nothing about the paralegal profession, here are some relocating tips from one who's recently been there.

1) Take a job with a company that will cover your moving expenses. I forgot to ask about this and incurred a lot of debt moving from Pittsburgh, PA to Huntington Beach, CA.

2) If a company will not interview you via telephone or at least pay half of your travel expenses to make it to the interview, turn them down.

3) Start applying for jobs no less than ten weeks before graduation. Once you are hired, have your new boss write you a letter stating your new position and salary. You may need to show this to your future prospective landlord, because some will require you to show that you make 3x the rent.

4) Negotiate that salary!! Yahoo has a cost-of-living calculator, which was very helpful to me when I had to negotiate mine. It's cheap to live in Pittsburgh but not in HB, and I'm SOOO glad I got a list of living expenses.

5) Buy as little furniture as possible for your new apartment until you get there.

6) Comparision-shop online for apartments.

Hope this helps!!