Ames Makes Business Insider Top 10 for Cities with Low Unemployment Rates

Iowa City and Ames share a friendly rivalry when it comes to sports, but they are tied for an even more important statistic.

An analysis by the Business Insider of American metros with the lowest employment rate found Iowa City and Ames tied at number six in the country.

Is it a coincidence that both schools have large state run universities? Hardly:

Higher education and industries that support it are the reason these metropolitan areas are doing well. College towns across America tend to have lower unemployment rates than the population as a whole, Martin Kohli, Chief Regional Economist for the Bureau of Labor Statistics, explained in an interview. Universities often provide relatively stable jobs compared to employment in cyclical industries such as construction. The University of Iowa is located in Iowa City, Iowa State University is located in Ames, and the University of Nebraska is located in Lincoln — all three metro areas are on our list.

“These [metro areas] would be dominated by major industries such as the state university,” Kohli said. “The major jobs associated with major universities are teaching and administration, though there would be some research jobs.”

The Midwest in general also appears to be doing better than the rest of the country, despite, or perhaps because, it only has modest population growth.

You can read what Business Insider has to say Ames employment at the link.