You’re not alone if you can’t get enough of Virginia Beach’s iconic boardwalk, scenic shores, and diverse entertainment scenes. The city holds nearly 500,000 residents, many of whom started as vacationers. Virginia Beach’s economy and real estate market is thriving, meaning many people relocate to this city to find steady careers and beautiful homes. If that sounds like the perfect life for you, it’s a great start to learning what careers are the most popular due to recent trends and economic success. This guide will feature the top five of these career choices.
1. Tourism and Hospitality
Virginia Beach is a trendy tourist destination with plenty of entertainment, arts, beaches, and even a three-mile boardwalk. Since restaurants, attractions, hotels, bars, and other amenities are plentiful, there are many career opportunities within this sector. The tourism industry includes attractions, hotels, travel agencies, tour guides, and more to help visitors enjoy this great city.
Tourism is a part of the hospitality industry, which ensures people feel cared for and at home. Hospitality includes food and drink, tourism, leisure, and lodging. From bartenders to hotel managers, a wide variety of popular careers in this sector can accommodate many different types of people, preferences, and work histories. Many roles, such as servers or hotel receptionists, don’t require formal education. Others, such as managers or head chefs, may require formal education for optimal career success. Research the roles that sound best to you to determine what is required to get started.
2. Real Estate
Real estate involves buying, selling, or managing property, land, and construction projects. Virginia Beach is a trendy city for businesses, homeowners, and vacationers, making the real estate market hot. Careers in real estate involve guiding real estate buyers, sellers, or owners. Real estate agents, for example, help property buyers and sellers through the buying and selling journey. Property managers, as their title implies, help maintain rental properties for real estate investors to maximize their investment returns. Mortgage processors, lenders, appraisers, and inspectors are more examples of rewarding and popular real estate careers. Real estate career requirements vary, but many involve formal schooling and licensing (especially for agents).
3. Construction
Due to the city’s popularity, more homes and businesses are needed to meet demand. Construction workers are highly sought out for these purposes. The construction industry is continuously growing, including in Virginia Beach. There is also a lot of career diversity in the construction field, from plumbers to supervising contractors.
While trade school is a benefit, it isn’t required—you can also learn on the job via an apprenticeship, making it a good match for all learners. Most contractors, including tradespeople like electricians and plumbers, require a state-issued contracting license. To get a license, applicants must fill out an application, pay a fee, and take a Virginia contractors’ pre-licensing course. Requirements may vary depending on specific careers, however.
4. Information Technology
Like most cities, information technology (IT) is a highly popular, lucrative, and in-demand career choice in Virginia Beach. This industry involves creating, using, and managing software and hardware to manage and distribute information, typically for commercial purposes. Since practically every company and industry uses technology, IT roles are consistently needed. IT is a vast field that can be divided into many technology-oriented paths. Cybersecurity is a typical example of an information technology career. Cybersecurity involves protecting technology from external threats like viruses or private data breaches. To take on these jobs, you’ll need schooling to develop hardware, software, programming language, and cybersecurity skills. You can learn these skills via individual courses or college programs.
5. Military and Defense
Virginia Beach is home to nearly 100,000 active duty military service members, making the military and defense industry a surprisingly popular career choice for many residents. Virginia hosts the Pentagon, FBI headquarters, and CIA training facilities. Virginia Beach has several military bases, including a naval air station. Aside from joining the military, however, many defense careers are available in Virginia Beach, such as aerospace engineering or managing defense contracts. Many FBI and CIA workers also find much value in Virginia Beach, as Arlington is just a few hours away. Joining the military does not require a college education, but engineering and other similar defense roles do.
Conclusion
Virginia Beach is a beautiful beach city on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean and Chesapeake Bay. Due to its rich scenery and entertainment districts, it’s a prevalent location for tourists, residents, and military service members. The real estate, defense, and hospitality industries thrive here. There are many lucrative and rewarding career choices in these sectors, as well as information technology and construction. No matter what type of career you choose in ‘Neptune City,’ you’ll see a thriving job market and economy.
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