I think you just really need to weigh the pros and cons of both options. As far as library school rankings go, they generally do not matter much in the job hunt (with one caveat). In fact, it’s quite UNLIKE grad school rankings for other programs. For example, teaching faculty positions where a degree from “Ivy League U.” is much more impressive than “Podunk State U.” (my apologies to Podunk State U.!).

Here’s the one caveat: Since you’re interested in an arts/museum specialization, then you probably should factor that into your decision if that’s the area of library work that you want to go in to. Having a breadth of education & experience in this area will help you in the job hunt.

Of course, you’ll also want to weigh the financial and moving options too. Will it *really* be worth it? And how is the job market for arts/museum librarian openings? Another possibility: think about whether you might be able to do some internships, paid work in arts/museum librarianship, or an independent study via the in-state/online program.

As for ageism: I would like to think it doesn’t exist, but unfortunately that’s not true. For example, some advice says leaving off the graduation year(s) of your degrees on your resume…but I’m not so sure about that.

For getting a foot in the door for interviews, it all boils down to a well-written cover letter & resume–answering the stated needs of the library and demonstrating your applicable experience. At least for most academic libraries, we want to interview the applicants who have addressed this the best (regardless of age, geography, etc…).

Kind of a rambling response…and it probably gave you more questions than answers! Let me know if you need more help.