MOVING OUT TO MOVE UP: DUAL‐CAREER MIGRATION AND WORK–FAMILY TRADEOFFS

Using data from a survey of new entrants to the junior PhD job market in economics, this paper shows that dual‐career location problems compromise the personal and professional lives of early‐career PhDs. Contrary to the common assumption that couples who do not live together break up, we find that living apart is a viable solution to location problems in the first year after graduate school. Surprisingly, PhDs facing moderate location problems are more likely than those facing severe location problems to make career sacrifices on behalf of their relationship; PhDs facing severe location problems are more likely to live apart. (JEL, J12, J44, A11)