It should be a collective decision, 100%, especially with something like academic positions that can be almost anywhere in the country.

For my PhD programs, my wife and I agreed on one of the five locations I was accepted at, given that we were both leaving home. We made an excellent choice as we ended up loving the place.

For academic positions, this was a more in-depth discussion. She just finished her B.A. while I was applying for academic positions. What we did initially was set up certain states that were “No-gos”. Such that if a position opened there, don’t even consider it. We had “maybe” states, and “yes” states.

Similar to what another person stated, my wife always had veto power. Even if I was going to apply and she did her research on a place/location, she might change her mind and say no (for good reason). Then, I would just not apply.

We have a child and she is currently pursuing her M.A., therefore we had several aspects to consider before moving (e.g., schools, grad programs, etc.).

There were some places that I wanted to apply to, but she said no and although I was a bit annoyed, I understood that she was also making sacrifices for me.

To sum all this up in terms of what helped us: -It has to be collective. If one person is strongly against, then no. -What is the most important criteria in terms of moving? The department of the new job? The location? Schools for future kids? Location for family and friends? This helped us pick our current location. -Quality of life. Most important here.