Attending a new, unranked PhD Program

[stats_2015]

There have been a few new statistics PhD programs created in recent years (University of Texas Austin, UC-Santa Cruz, UC-Irvine).  Many of these programs seem to have very productive researchers, some of whom came from jobs at more established programs.  Is there any way to know what the academic job outcomes for these programs will be like?  Would turning down a top 20 program for one of these new programs make sense if the research fit is better?  What other factors should we consider when evaluating these programs?

[rising_star]

How new are the programs? If anyone has graduated, you should be able to find out where they are working now. In addition, you might want to look at where people are publishing in the program (as in, the current grad students) to get a sense of whether they'll be competitive once they go on the market. For me (and I'm in a different field), it's all about the advisor. Some advisors have great placement records, others not so much. You have to do some digging either way, since some of that could be student's choice (as in, student doesn't want a R1 job or wants a government job or is stuck in the region for family reasons) affecting the placement record. If the faculty have come from other great programs, check to see what their former students are doing now.