Alabama ranks among the states college grads are most likely to leave

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What to do after college can be a daunting challenge for many graduates. Grads are faced with many major life decisions, like where they will land a job and what city they want to live in.

In a recent study, The New York Times found many young people with college degrees — are leaving struggling regions of America for cities, specifically for cities in Southern and coastal states. And despite fitting both of those attributes, Alabama is actually losing college-educated workers to other nearby states.

According to the Times, there are clear economic reasons for their choice. “Dense metro areas tend to produce more jobs and make workers more productive. Wages, for all kinds of workers, are also higher.”

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The map shows the total net migration figures for those with a college degree under 40 between 2000 and 2015. (People who grew up in one state, went to college in another and then moved somewhere else are counted as migrating from the state where they attended college.) [Photo Credit: NYTimes.com]

In the regional competition for the most skilled and most mobile workers in America, Alabama appears to be at a disadvantage leaving the local economy struggling to find skilled workers. Which is precisely why the state recently launched AlabamaWorks — an effort to transform the state’s workforce development efforts into one unified system, seamlessly linking employers looking for skilled workers with Alabamians seeking jobs or job training.

“Keeping young college graduates would help alleviate the effects of globalization and technological change on these local economies,” said the Times.

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