There's plenty of opportunities around that pay enough to afford real estate. They won't be as sexy, pay as well as the coasts (the lower COL helps to offset th

There's plenty of opportunities around that pay enough to afford real estate. They won't be as sexy, pay as well as the coasts (the lower COL helps to offset this), or likely to be working on cutting edge problems, so if you're looking for that kind of work you're not gonna have much luck. To say there's nothing anywhere outside of major cities at all is misinformed.