Pros and Cons about US and Canada Cities

[notyoueither]

Until you have to pay for healthcare.

[Ben Kenobi]

What is the general emplyoment situation in Canada?

Cities are good, Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver and Montreal have plenty of employment opportunities. Ottawa as well, though less than the bigger centres.

Since you are in comp sci, I'll let Asher and them go over the options, since that's not my field, and I don't know the employment patterns for programmers.

Is there a future in Canada?

Sure there are opportunities here. Canadians work fewer hours than the Americans, but we don't make quite as much as they do, but we make more than the Europeans.

What kind of taxation there is in Canada compared to the US?

Canada's brackets are quite a bit higher federally than the US. I don't know how that would compare on the level of states, as certain provinces like Alberta are very competitive, and other provinces are not, while some states have higher brackets than others.

BC used to have higher rates, but they are starting to come down now that the budget here is balanced. We're still behind Alberta.

What about the level of salary compared to the US?

You'll make more in the US, than you will here.

[Ben Kenobi]

Vancouver's biggest drawback is the cost to living being much higher, with respect to housing.

[Imran Siddiqui]

If ya like how Vancouver sounds yet want to be paid more ( ), you can go south from there about a couple of hours or so to Seattle.

Unfortunetly I can't recommend much to you because I like it warm and hate the cold .

Until you have to pay for healthcare.

Not if you got a job .

[Fake Boris]

Originally posted by Spiffor

That's carrying the French schtick a bit far isn't it, Lancer?

Nah, it just shows those Montrealians are americanized.

In France, we crap on each other to cover the stench

[Asher]

A study last year showed that IT workers make 40% more in the US for an equivalent job in Canada.

Not only this, but you'll likely pay less taxes. Further still, healthcare isn't an issue because the vast majority of IT jobs come with healthcare coverage.

However, most of the IT jobs in the US are in very expensive areas (like Austin and Silicon Valley), which can cost a fortune to live in. That said, Toronto's not cheap. (Markham is).

[St Leo]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui

Until you have to pay for healthcare.

Not if you got a job .

Unless your company is evil.

[notyoueither]

Originally posted by St Leo

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui

Until you have to pay for healthcare.

Not if you got a job .

Unless your company is evil.

Or you pause to think that someone is still paying for it.

I was a bit surprised when I looked at tax rates and many provinces compared favourably with most states. Our healthcare is covered in that bill. Yanks are still paying more. Somewhere, someone is paying for it.

[Geronimo]

Well nobody ever seems to leave the minneapolis/saint paul region except to get away from cold winters and it matches up with all your listed criteria.

[cinch]

Asher:

What's the skinny on CompSci at the U of A? I know we have the buildings, but it never seems to get mentioned in your appraisals. Does the quality of instruction just suck or what?

Ah well, at least we have the new Nanotechnology centre (much to the chagrin of the campus even-lefter-than-me-s).

[Pekka]

Lonestar, Collegestation?

Lancer, @ montreal remark. Priceless

cinch, Hey I KNOW Jari Kurri .. well not personally.. but I've been to his hockey school every summer when I was a kid, plus my grandpa knows him somehow as well, not very well but almost personally, engouh to say 'Hi Jari'. So damn well I know him. How they like Esa Tikkanen? I know Tiki a lot better, not personally but.. anyway .. it's so easdy to get close to these stars here in Finland, because we are only 5 million, so, the odds are you're bumping into them all the time.

-40C is kind of cold already though.. Experienced it before, it's kind of _TOO_ cold. As in you need to stay inside or your face drops off .

Imran, Well... Seattle is like the capital of Hippie. I might get tempted to join the police force!

Nice information everyone. I think it's safe to say my location would/will be either northern US or southern Canada.. Isn't Detroit pretty crime ridden though? I always thought it was a place like that.

It will be combination of things how I will then run each city and decide where I live. Most likely I don't want to live in the heart of the city anyway, but a drive away somewhere more peaceful and nice. Except if the city is REALLY nice.

But as far as my transfer year goes, I need to be in high ranked Uni.. no point going to Uni that doesn't rank anywhere in programming related studies, as well, I could just as well go to one that ranks high in that and benefit from it.

I guess I would first relocate to finish my studies in there, and then hopefully get the opportunity to stay and work and live. For that, I can relocate again though. So the Uni won't be deciding factor for the later relocation. Job markets and future job markets are however important and ranks high how I rank the places. Then outdoor activity possibilities, and I do take the local sports team into consideration. I'd like to cheer for pro team, as well as follow fanatically local college team and cheer for them too.

[Ben Kenobi]

AFAIK, UBC would qualify for what you want.

[OzzyKP]

Is the climate of Vancouver like Seattle? If so, then you probably won't get much snow there Pekka, just rain.

And Ann Arbor is far enough away from Detroit to suffer no related crime problems. All the good of Detroit, and none of the bad.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Well... Seattle is like the capital of Hippie.

Dude, what do you think Vancouver is?

no point going to Uni that doesn't rank anywhere in programming related studies

Boston is considered pretty good for computer stuff. Though Taxachusetts has comparable tax rates to Canada and is full of M*******s .

[Asher]

Originally posted by cinch
Asher:

What's the skinny on CompSci at the U of A? I know we have the buildings, but it never seems to get mentioned in your appraisals. Does the quality of instruction just suck or what?

The UofA is good, too. They just haven't done much with research and specialization like the UofC has done, so while the UofC has world-class facilities in a couple fields, the UofA compsci is more...generic I guess? They do have some cool things with AI going on though.

I'm sure the quality of instruction is fine. I was fortunate enough to have a UofA prof named Dr. Jonathan Shaeffer for a week-long course the other week, and he was the best prof I've ever had. He only teaches two upper-level graduate courses though...