Choosing an English PhD program based upon location

[Romanista]

I'm an undergraduate student who is interested in pursuing a PhD in English Literature and hopefully then attaining a tenure track position to teach that discipline. My question is, generally speaking, whether it is worthwhile to choose a school that is not in the very highest regard in my specialty (20th century British or Medieval, I haven't yet decided which) solely based on where the school is located? In my case, I would like to live in Florida so I am considering the University of Florida and the University of Miami. Their respective English departments do not appear on the rankings of the top twenty programs in my specialties. I have a feeling that I would stand a better chance at getting a job in Florida (with my prospective PhD from UF or UM) as compared to a similarly well-rounded applicant from another state school. Obviously, I will not be applying only to those aforementioned schools but also to some of the very best in my fields, but I would quite appreciate whether anyone can share their experience with making such a choice as I am considering: choosing a school because it is in the state in which I would like to eventually get a tenure track position. Thank you for your time.

[Minnesotan]

Remember that most departments don't hire their own PhDs (except the inbred Ivies).

[jasper.milvain]

Having an in-state degree will not help you at all in a job search, sorry to say. Minnesotan is right that if you really want to work in Florida, you should get your PhD elsewhere since schools rarely hire their own.

If you want to live in Florida for your PhD for other reasons, however, that's another story. I'd suggest putting in a few applications in locations where you wouldn't mind living, and a few in far-flung locations with excellent programs. Once you see which admits you get, you can decide how much you're willing to trade location for other factors.

[joeygiraldo]

I'd like to voice my opinion here (especially considering I applied to UMiami for the PhD, and got in)!

To begin, I want to agree with what everyone has stated regarding location for the PhD vs. location later on. If you want to do your PhD at a Florida school, definitely go for it (UMiami in particular, isn't high on the rankings, but they have a pretty good record of job placement which is why I considered them). That's four, to six years of living in the beautiful state (my homestate!), in great weather, and you have a couple of options--UF and UM obviously, but also look at University of South Florida in Tampa. Tampa is great, and they have a PhD program in both Literature and Writing/Rhetoric, the latter of which opens up a lot more jobs than the former, regardless of the institution's prestige (i.e. there's more rhetoric jobs out there).

Now the bad news: staying in Florida to teach. Unfortunately, newly minted PhDs have greater success of securing jobs if they have flexibility and mobility in terms of location. Even if your PhD is from, say, Harvard, the market is so bad that you'd need to apply to other schools/universities outside of Massachusetts. Which is why being accepted at a PhD program in the state of Florida is tough, finishing well in the program is tougher, and staying in Florida with your Florida PhD seems to me to be the toughest hurdle of them all...

[intextrovert]

my specialty (20th century British or Medieval, I haven't yet decided which)

Oh good lord, do Medieval! You'll increase your chances tenfold (which is still very tough!). Tailor your app to that while there's still time!