<p>In context, ND has 640k people. That’s all. The 3rd smallest state by population after Wyoming and Vermont. (Tiny Rhode Island has over a million people.) There are about 54k non-whites total. About 34k of those are Native-American. </p>
<p>There are under 500k jobs total in ND & half of those are rural, so an unemployment rate of 5% would be under 25k jobs. The biggest employment sector is - surprise! - health care, followed by retail. </p>
<p>ND did not have a housing boom. Most of the country is not saddled with weirdly over-valued loans, including some areas that are suffering a lot. The housing bubble was not general. ND’s economy is relatively diversified, with mining, agriculture, etc.</p>
<p>If you live in a state like North Dakota or Wyoming–you better like driving long distances. When a high school has an away football game, it could be 300 miles to get to the town. We’ve got a neighbor who used to live in Sheridan, Wyoming. He had a Mercedes that he would only get oil changes at a Mercedes dealership. He had to drive to Denver, Colorado to get his oil changes…over 400 miles one way. By the time he got down there and back, he needed another oil change! Too, this guy when he moved to Florida and people asked him where he moved from–he would tell them Montana because when he said Wyoming nobody had heard of it!</p>
<p>Some of the North Dakota state universities are actively trying to lure out of state and international students too. Minot State University presently offers attractive in-state tuition rates to out of state and international students. Bring a sweater!</p>
<p>If you are looking for inexpensive out of state/international tuition, check Bemidji State in Minnesota. As cold as Minot but lower tuition and the campus, on Lake Bemidji, is beautiful; the countryside is features gorgeous lakes and woods.
[Tuition</a> & Fees - Undergraduate Admissions - Bemidji State University](<a href=“http://www.bemidjistate.edu/admissions/undergrad/explore/costs/tuition/]Tuition”>Tuition & Aid | Admissions | Bemidji State University)
A sweater isn’t really enough up north. You might want a snowmobile suit. </p>
<p>(If you don’t want to go outside, I guess you don’t have to; Bemidji State has tunnels and walkways connecting the dorms and classrooms.)</p>
<p>My mom’s senior group is taking a tour to Fargo this fall. Must be something up there.</p>
<p>About living there - I imagine it is very family friendly. Kids playing outside, barbecues with the neighbors, cheap housing, not much of a rat race. And last but not least - Geographic diversity points when little Sven and Siri apply to college back east.</p>
<p>Ohhh, c’mon. Canada’s not a real state!
And I married a Packers fan, so I had to renounce all acknowledgement of my Minnesotan heritage, and all things Minnesotan. Sorry.</p>
<p>Oh, c’mon. There are lots of Packers fans in the Twin Cities. Half the East Metro—largely transplanted Cheeseheads—are Packers fans. Heck, I’m a Packers fan. It’s part of what makes life fun here in the Twin Cities: there are truly divided loyalties. Minneapolis & St. Paul are a magnet for people arriving from the collapsing rural economies of western & northern Wisconsin, “greater Minnesota”, the Dakotas, and much of Iowa. That’s not likely to change anytime soon, notwithstanding North Dakota’s newfound prosperity.</p>
<p>Four kids from one of the high schools in my area of Florida are beginning college on athletic scholarships at one of the North Dakota state universities this fall. One of them is originally from Puerto Rico. I know a lot of folks from Puerto Rico won’t even visit “up north” in Florida during winter months because it is too cold! I wish them all well, but it is going to be a big adjustment for them when winter rolls in.</p>
