Looking for great places doing great things in New Jersey

February 19, 2012 7:43 PM

Move to New Jersey in the future (Princeton), I am looking for jobs but I have some specific interests. I know almost nothing about the area and what is based there. I am aware of its proximity to major cities but I would like to start with recommendations near Princeton and then outward. I really want to work in technology/creative groups.

Some organizations that I think are extremely interesting would be Data Without Borders, Random Hacks of Kindness, or Sunlight Foundation. The common them for me is that they span disciplines, are socially-driven, and utilize my skill set in databases and geographic information science. Any suggestions are great but the closer to New Jersey, the better. Anonymous as I am gainfully employed and do not want my current employer to find out that I am moving just yet.

posted by anonymous to Work & Money (3 answers total)

Mathematica Policy Research is a data-driven policy shop in Princeton which might be ideally suited for you. They do a ton of work on issues relevant to social justice (education, labor economics, poverty, etc.) Of course, another big employer in Princeton which uses people with data skills is ETS, the folks who build the SAT and try to make it as fair as possible.
posted by escabeche at 9:09 PM on February 19, 2012

I don't know whether they have anything that would be exactly up your alley but Sarnoff Corporation (formerly RCA Labs) is in the Princeton area, and I would expect they could use GIS skills, plus they spin projects off occasionally. My husband worked there when we lived in Princeton from 2005-2007. Best of luck finding a job!
posted by immlass at 8:40 AM on February 20, 2012

I moved to Princeton last fall - I was looking specifically for programming work, not DB/GIS, but I suspect my search covered some of the same areas you'd be interested in.

A lot of the tech industry in/near Princeton is in pharma/healthcare - Bristol Myers-Squibb, GE Healthcare, Novo Nordisk and the like. Sarnoff (SRI) is huge, and probably has GIS work available, but it may be things like "air and ground video surveillance exploitation by utilizing real-time video from a variety of manned, unmanned, and ground sensors including Battle Command and Intelligence data." That might not match what you're looking for. Also, these offices tend to be very large, and from your examples it seems like you may want something smaller.

If you don't find good options in/near Princeton, maybe consider adding NY to your search. There are a lot of people doing the train commute from Princeton Junction -> NY Penn (~1hr each way). I think you'll find plenty of work available in either location, but NY may have more that appeals to you.
posted by ethand at 9:27 AM on February 20, 2012