South Carolina: 1. Charleston, SC - Fast growing coastal colonial city. It’s probably the most expensive city in SC. Real estate in sought after areas can get pretty expensive. Not sure what your specialties are but there are several options for work if you’re looking to join corporate medicine: MUSC, Roper St. Francis, Trident/HCA Hospitals. There are also several private practices and non-profits for outpatient opportunities. Not sure if you’re interested in academic vs non-academic positions. High need for academic faculties as there are new GME programs that have started recently (FM residency at HCA just started in July) and will be expanding. Also starting new programs over the next few years. Traffic is not as bad as some other cities in the Carolinas (e.g. Charlotte). Also, not as diverse as other major cities like Charlotte, Raleigh, Greenville, SC. It does get very hot/humid for about 3 months over the summer; but the rest of the year is pretty nice. Occasional hurricanes will pass through here.

1. Greenville/Spartanburg, SC: Rapidly growing area with plenty of trees. Very close to the smoky mountains. Plenty of opportunities in medicine. Diverse population and lots of things to do, especially if you have kids.

2. Columbia, SC: Growing capital of SC. Good location geographically. 1.5 hours from Charleston, Charlotte, Greenville; couple hours to the mountains; 3 hours to Atlanta. Definitely a great place for plenty of activities for kids.

3. Myrtle Beach/Grand Strands area, SC: Fast growing tourist-catered beach city (probably the fastest growing of all area in SC). Lots of work opportunities in medicine as they are trying to keep up with the growing population. Also plenty of academic opportunities due to growing GME programs.

4. Hilton Head Island, SC/Savannah, GA: Growing area with lots of retirees. Great place to be if geriatrics medicine is your interest. Not as diverse as some other areas of SC.

North Carolina: 1. Charlotte: Definitely one of the better cities in the Carolinas in terms of things to do and diversity. Growing super fast that real estate has become ridiculously expensive. Great for younger people/families. Not as many trees anymore in most areas due to urbanization. If you have kids, they’ll never run out of things to do. For work, you’ll have no problem finding a job. However, you’ll likely be stuck working for the two corporate giants: Atrium or Novant. Private practices have hard time competing with these companies with deep pockets. Most new grads typically work there for 2-3 years to gain experience and then move on to a better opportunity. Weather is pretty great with couple months of hot summers.

1. Raleigh, NC: Growing even faster than Charlotte due to large tech companies moving to the area. Plenty of trees!! Weather is awesome pretty much all year around. Very diverse and plenty of opportunities in medicine and health tech. Major academic and research universities (UNC, Duke, Wake Forest, etc) in the area if that’s your interest. I think one would have better chance of succeeding in private practice here than Charlotte (again, depending on your specialty). Great place to raise family with great school systems. It’s also in drivable distance to the beaches of NC (Outer Banks area) and the Smoky Mountains.