Overview of the Job Market in Austin, Texas

Concordia University Texas is located in the northwest hills of Austin, Texas, and provides students the best of both worlds — a small school in a big city. Students receive individualized attention and support at CTX while enjoying the incredible resources of one of the fastest-growing cities in the United States.

Greater Austin (the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos metropolitan area) offers abundant career opportunities, whether you're seeking an internship, your first job out of college or to advance in your current role. In this post, we provide you with an overview of the job market and the life-changing opportunities available in the capital city.

Capital of Texas & Capital of Many Organizations

As the capital of Texas, all of the state government agencies operate out of Austin, including the following:

• Railroad Commission of Texas
• Texas Department of Transportation
• Texas Education Agency
• Texas Historical Commission
• Texas Parks & Wildlife Department
• Texas State Library & Archives Commission
• Texas Workforce Commission

Additionally, many corporations and other organizations have headquarters here, some of which include the following:

• Balfour
• Dell Technologies
• Indeed
• Kendra Scott
• Lower Colorado River Authority
• National Instruments
• Vrbo
• Whole Foods
• Yeti

Austin offers a variety of career opportunities in the non-profit, public and private sectors.

Silicon Hills Tech Hub

"Silicon Hills" refers to the cluster of high-tech companies in Greater Austin. In addition to large corporations, such as Adobe Inc., Amazon, Apple, IBM, Oracle, Roku and Samsung Austin Semiconductor, many startups and small tech organizations are located in Austin.

The tech industry requires more than computer science professionals; tech organizations need an array of professionals, from software engineers to accountants and marketers.

Check out an interactive map of major tech companies in Austin.

Best Performing City Among Metros

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) ranked the Austin Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) as the best-performing metro among the top 50 metros for jobs. In August 2020, Austin recorded a year-over-year decline of 2.7% in jobs (29,800 jobs), which is the lowest percent change recorded compared to the other metros. Dallas and San Antonio ranked third and eighth, respectively.

Growing Industries

The Texas Workforce Commission recently released the industry growth report for September 2020. Four industries have experienced positive growth over the past year:

• Financial Activities (12.4%)
• Professional and Business Services (4.8%)
• Manufacturing (3.8%)
• Mining, Logging and Construction (1.1%)

Professional and Business Services, which include tech, accounting, advertising, legal and other services, employs the largest number of people in Greater Austin.

Industry	% of Total Employment
Professional and Business Services	19.3%
Trade, Transportation and Utilities	16.9%
Government	16.3%
Education and Health Services	11.1%
Leisure and Hospitality	9.5%
Financial Activities	6.9%
Mining, Logging and Construction	6.5%
Manufacturing	6.0%
Other Services	4.3%
Information	3.1%

 

Vocation & Professional Development

Concordia's career center, Career Services, offers all CTX students and alumni a full range of free career services and advising. Through VPD, you can explore careers, receive help with your resume and interviewing skills, and search for internships and jobs. Additionally, through Handshake (job search site), employers can find and hire qualified CTX students.