The Geography of Jobs: How Proximity to a Prestige Labor Market Shapes Opportunity for Computer Science Degree Holders

A computer science degree is seen as a good investment, given the lucrative calling of Silicon Valley and ever-growing demand for software engineers. Yet, it unclear whether all holders fare equally well on job market. This study explores how routing (CS) students to specific educational geographies plays major role in determining their career trajectories post-graduation. Using new survey recent graduates three public universities Texas, I measure labor market outcomes CS along metrics: salary, location, title. Results from 157 respondents show that alumni near tech hub are more likely earn higher wages desirable markets compared with university located far dense hub. Although most previous studies have focused gender racial disparities within high-tech industry, provide lens understand inequality manifests through geographic segregation leaves even high-skilled seekers vulnerable spatial mismatch between place residence proximity desirable, elite jobs.