Best Colleges in Minneapolis

Questions About Going to College in Minneapolis

How are the career opportunities for college graduates in Minneapolis?

Minneapolis is speckled with more than just lakes — it also has a large number of job opportunities for recent graduates. The low 3.3% unemployment rate* speaks to the current economy. Minneapolis workers bring in a median income of $46,000, and their rent to percentage of income is only 20%,** so you won’t be spending all your hard-earned money just to pay for a roof over your head. But twenty-year-olds have flocked to the city, and just because the jobs are there doesn’t mean it’s always easy to land them. Minneapolis employers are looking for the hard-working Midwest attitude and faces they know. Good thing the city also hosts many professional networking events like MnSearch Summit, young professional happy hours, and after work get-togethers.

What major companies/industries are hiring what type of graduates/skills in Minneapolis? Growing industries?

Back in the day, Minneapolis was a flour milling capital of America and a hub for timber. Sticking to its roots, Minneapolis still is big in manufacturing of electronics, machinery, medical products and food. Corporations like General Mills, Hormel Foods, Land O’Lakes help feed the world from the Mini Apple. Other industries have found home in the west twin of the Twin Cities. Financial services are big on the list, with companies like Fortune 500 Ameriprise Financial and even the Ninth Federal Reserve District Bank. Technology also makes the roster, with companies like Best Buy. Biomedical and biosciences comes next, with St. Jude Medical, Ecolab, and UnitedHealth Group. And then, not surprising since the city is home to the Mall of America and the headquarters of Target, comes retail. If your degree is more along the line of arts and humanities and doesn’t fall into the business, project management, medical, financial arena, Minneapolis could still be the scene for you: The city is also considered the capital for the arts in the upper Midwest.

Is Minneapolis more of a college town or a great place to start a career and family? What communities are best?

College students will feel at home in the University community, next to the University of Minnesota, with the Dinkytown and Marcy-Holmes neighborhoods heavily populated by students and fraternity houses. But unlike most other cities, Minneapolis is starting to experience an influx of young families sticking to urban living and leaving the suburbs for the older generations.

The city, voted No. 3 for families by Child magazine, has green where others sport gray. It’s home to more lakes and parks than skyscrapers, and offers hundreds of miles of trails. Families find affordable living in Longfellow neighborhood, calling bungalows and craftsman cottages with ample back yards home rather than the expected high-rise apartment buildings. Families in this neighborhood can enjoy the Mississippi River and its walking trails. You can be sure to spend time at Minnehaha Falls, a waterfall smack-dab in the middle of the city, and Lake Street with all its shops and restaurants. More-established families opt for Lynnhurst neighborhood in the Southwest community, where they can enjoy Lake Harriet, Minnehaha Creek, tree-lined streets, and handsome homes. No matter where families live, parents can keep themselves and their children entertained with a number of activities. Try watersports on one of the many lakes. Take a walk through the Sculpture Gardens and snap a family portrait with the famous Spoon and Cherry sculpture. Visit Heartfelt Crafts to keep kids creating. Pop into the Wild Rumpus bookstore, where there are nearly as many live animals to see as there are books.

What do the locals in Minneapolis like to do for fun?

These hardworking, good citizens of the North enjoy the usual, like lawn bowling on the rooftop of Brit’s Pub in downtown. Or how about trying to win the Friday meat raffle at the 1029 Bar? Yep, meat raffle. Minneapolitans love food (a little more than others). This city is home to the Juicy Lucy, a burger with built-in cheese; hot dishes, which are casseroles topped with heavy helpings of cheese and tater tots; food on sticks, like fried mac ’n’ cheese and salads; and this strange thing called pop (hint, it’s just soda; it won’t hurt you).

Aside from food enjoyed year-round, Minneapolis residents have to make the most of the weather. In the summer months, lakes fill with friends and families tubing, water skiing, swimming, and wake boarding. The Grand Rounds Scenic Byway sees runners and bikers replace their boots with sneakers and take a jaunt past the Stone Arch Bridge, St. Anthony Falls, and alongside the Mississippi River once the temperature surpasses fifty degrees. Sports fans line up at Target Field to see a Twins game. And Instagram fills with selfies next to the Peanuts statues that are sprinkled around the city to commemorate native Charles Schulz.

The dreaded snow and ice comes again every year, though, driving people inside. Instead of the outdoor strolls, locals escape into the expansive skyway system or catch a ride on the light rail train to the Mall of America. And you can find the next good book to read in the bursting aisles of the James and Mary Laurie Book Sellers store for the sure-to-come snowstorm that’ll trap everybody indoors.

What’s the dating scene like in Minneapolis? Will I meet my perfect mate?

There’s this thing called Midwest nice, and Minneapolis locals are lousy with it. About the only thing you’ll find a Minneapolis resident complaining about is the weather — because either it’s too hot part of the year or too cold the other part. For dating, this means about the only way you’ll get stood up is if it goes from “Baby It’s Cold Outside” to “baby, there’s two feet of snow blocking my door.” But when the weather does allow for outings, Minneapolis residents treat their dates to boat outings, bar crawls, biking expeditions to ooh and ahh over the city skyline, and four-star meals. Throw on your flip flops or Uggs, depending on the weather or your cold tolerance, and don your North Face for your next date— you may be spending the winter hibernating and binging Netflix with a guy or gal you wouldn’t mind freezing next to.