I am graduating with my Ph.D. in biochemistry in the next few weeks and leaving Aggieland for the Washington DC metro area. Just wondering if anyone else in the sciences and living/working in the DC would be willing to share any advice, suggestions, or contacts to help out in my job hunt?

I've been here for the last three weeks, and have one more week before returning home to Dallas. I'm living near the Chinatown metro station, which seems to be right in the center of everything. The public transit is phenomenal, probably the best system I've used in the US. I don't know if you plan on having a car, but it seems like it would be a pain in the ass to drive many places in town. If you are working in the burbs, I would try to live near work, traffic is a beast.

Everything is expensive, and coming from College Station, there will be sticker shock when going out to have a beer ($5-$6 typically) and dinner ($10-$15 minimum). Dunkin Donuts is greatness. Overall, the city seems to be a great place to live, but it will be much more expensive than anything in Texas. Also, everyone up here is in the government "industry" and it's annoying to hear everyone talk about who they work for and how important that person is.

If I had to live in a big city in the US, DC would be at the top of my list. Hope you enjoy your time up here.

NoVA has a heavier concentration of the defense industry and computer-centric tech. Most of the biotech industry is centered on the I-270 corridor in Bethesda, Rockville, and all the way up to Gaithersburg.

There are plenty of smaller, private bio-tech start-ups if that is your desired path, and of course there are a ton of government based jobs between the NIH, WRAIR, and the chem-bio facility at Fort Detrick. The U of MD is also an option but most of those jobs are post-graduate fellowships I'm sure.

Bethesda is as expensive as any other tony part of the D.C. area. I'd try and live in Rockville somewhere for the best combination of price, ability to have a car, nad access to metro/downtown.

My job is peripherally involved with biotech, so I have no contacts.

You never mentioned what kind of job, not that I can be of any help. Are you looking to post-doc? Industry? FDA? Hand?

my family of aggies all moved up to dc after graduating from a&m. my brother and i live in different part of the city and my sister and her family live up near rockville. let me know if you have any questions. lots of ags up this way.