by Shalina Chatlani, Education Dive
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has already received 238 applications from the nation’s higher ed institutions as of last month to host the company’s new $5 billion corporate headquarters, which Bezos proposes will create 50,000 new jobs with average salaries of $100,000 for the areas graduates, reports The Chronicle of Higher Education. The move is similar to when Amazon counterpart Microsoft invested more than $1 billion in the University of Washington, creating a pipeline from the institution and others in the city into the company. Bezos’ plans are similar as eligibility for the headquarters requires the institution to be in a city with a population of at least 1 million and a strong pool of talented students that are likely to go into a technical field. Experts predict that the city will be one which already has a superior reserve of computer science graduates and programs. Though it’s likely the move will enhance local economies, many still caution that the influx of Amazon’s business could have the negative consequence of raising the city’s housing prices, making competition even more difficult for the city’s highly skilled laborers, and changing the identity of the city.
Share on Facebook