This document summarizes several cities in the Southeast US that provide opportunities for security-cleared professionals. It finds that Tampa, FL and Huntsville, AL have strong aerospace and defense industries due to military bases and major contractors. Tampa benefits from MacDill Air Force Base and NASA, supporting jobs in engineering, IT, and program management earning average salaries of $81,000-$105,000. Huntsville has Redstone Arsenal and NASA, with over 90 aerospace companies employing over 11,000 in engineering, IT, and project management roles earning average salaries of $66,000. Both cities have lower costs of living than the national average.

1. Best Southeast Cities for Defense
By Tranette Ledford and ClearanceJobs
Average Security-Cleared Earnings
Location Salary
Alabama $79,990
Florida $81,034
Source: 2010 ClearanceJobs Compensation Survey
Tampa, FL
It isn’t just the tourists flocking to the nation’s southeastern region.
Several Florida cities are consistently pulling in defense and high-tech
businesses, while in Alabama, Huntsville is following suit. Aerospace
in Florida represents a $4.5 billion industry and employs some 23,000
workers. But the high-tech industry throughout the southeast keeps
expanding, offering good job prospects in computers, semiconductor
technologies, biotechnologies and research associated with universities.
All this frames up a healthy job market for security-cleared
professionals and healthy salaries. According to the ClearanceJobs 2010
Compensation Survey, 17 percent of security-cleared professionals
working in Florida have a current polygraph and earned $81,034, just
ahead of Alabama, another top southeastern defense state.
Tampa/St. Petersburg
The Tampa region serves as the on-ramp for Florida’s high-tech corridor. It runs
from Tampa through Orlando and on to the state’s space coast, in all, passing
through 23 counties. Military activity is strong here, as Tampa hosts MacDill
Air Force Base, home to U.S. Special Operations Command and U.S. Central
Command. Together, the defense and high-tech industries converge to form a
robust job market.

2. NASA serves as the region’s aerospace centerpiece. Orbiting around it are
companies like Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Eaton, Raytheon and Aerosonic, all
bringing in major contracts and great positions. Their activities continue to
drive the demand for security-cleared professionals in aerospace engineering,
systems engineering, intelligence analysis, Web and software development and
program management.
Key Opportunities in Florida
The Florida Research and Economic Database reports that physicists and
computer and information systems managers are now the region’s highest-paid • Contract Administrator
workers. They earn annual incomes of around $115,000, while engineering
• Intelligence Analyst
managers and aerospace engineers generally earn between $97,000 and
$105,000. • Software Engineer
• Operations Support
Tampa’s aerospace industry is heavily linked to IT, which employs an estimated
57,000 people earning an average of $60,000 per year. This sector is seeing • Mechanical Engineer
new growth, not only in computer technologies but also in the emerging • Project Manager
fields of micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) and nanotechnology.
The University of South Florida, which generates more than $500 million in • Operations Research Analyst
contracts each year, houses the largest MEMS facility in the southeast, as well • Program Analyst
as the Nanomaterials and Nanomanufacturing Research Center.
Other opportunities for security-cleared job seekers include the Tampa Port,
the closest major U.S. port to the Panama Canal and one of the largest ports
in the nation. It serves as a major ship-building and repair center, employing
22,000 workers and impacting 100,000 jobs throughout the region. TECO
Energy and Tech Data Corp are headquartered here, while Verizon, Honeywell
and AT&T Global are among the area’s largest employers.
As for quality of life, Tampa and St. Petersburg rank third in the nation for low
business costs, with a lower-than-average cost of living and a median home
price of $222,000. The region also has one of the largest communities of
veterans in the nation, with hospitals and services to match the population.
Orlando
While it isn’t home to any major military installations, Orlando’s draw is the sky
above it. Virtually all of the major defense firms do business here, connected
for the most part, to the aerospace industry and the technology shift to
modeling and simulation.
Major employers include the Kennedy Space Center, Northrop Grumman,
General Dynamics, SAIC and Raytheon. But security-cleared workers also have
a competitive edge in companies like EG&G Technical Services, which provides
systems engineering and technical assistance in the development of weapons
systems, military vehicles and aircraft, and security systems.
Recent salary reports from Florida’s Department of Labor indicate that those
in engineering and scientific management positions are currently earning an
average of $116,000, while computer and information systems managers earn
just slightly less. Hot jobs in Orlando continue to center on technical skills.
Software engineers, systems engineers and IT managers commonly earn around
$85,000, while those in non-management positions with mid-level IT skills such
as programmers, earn between $60,000 and $70,000.

3. Proximity to Disney World and other attractions have always made Orlando a “Without a doubt, Huntsville is a
great place to visit. But for those who want to live there, the housing market is
defense industry city with plenty
extremely good. Prospective buyers can expect to find homes in the $170,000
range. of opportunity.”
—Evan Lesser
Huntsville Founder and Director of ClearanceJobs
Here, it’s all about rocket science. The military and defense community in
Huntsville includes the U.S. Army Redstone Arsenal, the city’s top employer,
with more than 25,000 workers, and NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, the
second-largest employer with more than 7,000 workers.
Security-cleared job seekers won’t need to ask which major defense
contractors do business here. Virtually all of the familiar names are present
– Boeing, SAIC, Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, Booz Allen Hamilton,
Raytheon, BAE Systems and Honeywell.
Key Opportunities in Huntsville
• Flight Test Engineer
• GIS Analyst
• Systems Engineer
• Electrical Engineer
• Model & Simulation Engineer
• Program Manager
• Safety Engineer
Huntsville, AL • Structural Engineer
The Huntsville Chamber of Commerce reports that the aerospace industry is • Unmanned Aerial Systems Lead
made up of more than 90 companies employing more than 11,000 workers,
with security-cleared personnel at a premium. Those interested in taking off • Facility Security Officer
for Alabama will find Huntsville rich in technology, research and development
opportunities. Redstone Arsenal handles the majority of the Army’s foreign
weapons sales, while more than 300 firms have business interests in the global
and domestic markets for electronics and computer technologies. Huntsville
is also home to Cummings Research Park, a conglomerate of 225 firms doing
business in technology, research and development, in what is now the nation’s
second-largest research and technology center.
When compared to the economic struggles faced by some cities, Huntsville
has had a Teflon coating. Just as in the previous year, Huntsville continues
to receive accolades for job growth and opportunity. Money Magazine ranks
Huntsville sixth in the nation for jobs, while Forbes ranks it among the top five
cities for defense jobs. The city itself employs some 8,000 people throughout
its various agencies, and actively advertises Huntsville as a place with more
available jobs than people to fill them.
“Without a doubt, Huntsville is a defense industry city with plenty of
opportunity,” says Evan Lesser, founder and director of ClearanceJobs. “While

4. systems and aerospace engineers are the most common open positions in
Highest Cleared Earnings By
northern Alabama, there’s also a range of support roles including network
and security administration, finance and budget gurus, and seasoned contract Job Category Nationwide
managers for new business development. Best of all, the majority of jobs in ’10 Earnings
Huntsville only require a Secret clearance, opening the door for many more Program, Project Manager – $125,784
cleared workers.” Engineering
IT Databases – Admin, Architect, $118,482
Huntsville’s population is still relatively small, with just over 395,000 residents or Data
enjoying a cost of living that’s lower than the nation’s average. As of October IT Program/Project Management $111,642
2009, the median home price was $132,000, with the average income IT Software Programming $106,766
at $66,000. Huntsville is legendary for its friendliness, both socially and Telecommunications Engineering $105,139
environmentally. If there is a drawback, it’s the airport. Huntsville still holds
Electrical Engineering $104,982
the rank of a small town and has a limited number of direct flights to major
Aerospace/Aviation Engineering $103,733
cities. But that may be by design. Given the job market and the economy, few
residents are looking to go anywhere. ★ ★ ★ Program/Project Manager $103,444
IT Network/Systems Security $99,158
Intelligence Analyst, Linguist, or $90,222
Interrogator
Human Resources Generalist/ $87,311
Recruiter
IT Hardware – Admin, Architect, $85,994
or Support
IT – Testing/QA $85,733
IT – Telecommunications $85,661
Logistics – Supply, Procurement, $85,545
Acquisition
Law Enforcement $76,626
Facility/Personnel Security $68,289
Administrative – Clerical or $65,612
Secretarial
Source: 2010 ClearanceJobs Compensation Survey
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