Gee & Ursula: Seattle is a good place for young adults, recent graduates

Despite some bad recent headlines, a new survey indicates Seattle is still remarkably popular among young people.

A new Axios index survey says young adults want to move to Seattle after they graduate more than any other major city in the United States.

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Is this a great place for college graduates and young folks?

“Absolutely. Yes, it is,” KIRO Newsradio host Gee Scott answered. “And here’s why: This place, living here, will challenge you. It is not easy. As someone who moved here in my early 20s, I have never been able to get comfortable because here in Seattle, there’s so much opportunity, but at the same time, it’s also not easy.”

“I’ve met a lot of smart people here, in this town. And I’m talking about smart in different ways — not just intellectually. I’ve never lived in a place where I can say that I learned so much from being in this town,” he added.

He says if someone graduating college were to ask him if they should move to the Seattle area, he’d ask: “How motivated are you?”

“If you are someone that is not motivated, don’t move to Seattle,” Gee said. “Go somewhere else where it’s easier. It’s hard in Seattle — you’re going to have to get up, and go, and move. And that still doesn’t guarantee you anything because there are a lot of people working hard and still struggling,” he said.

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Host Ursula Reutin said she read the study, and then looked at the comments, where a lot of people were saying that college students don’t listen to the news and don’t know what’s going on.

“Actually, college students are much more plugged in than you give them credit for — that’s the first thing. The second thing is, what they’re looking for is so much of what Seattle has: superstar tech hub status, … a great music and art scene, a cool climate, support for green energy. These are actually things that young people believe in, want,” she said.

“There are many people who are coming out of college now that they’re making big bucks,” she continued. “They’ve figured out that there are a group of people — obviously, if you go into tech, and this is a tech hub, you’re going to paid six figures right out of college, easy. But you’re going to need those six figures because it is really expensive.”

Listen to the full conversation:

Listen to Gee Scott and Ursula Reutin weekday mornings from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. on KIRO Newsradio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.