A background in history provides a foundation for navigating the modern job market, offering paths outside of traditional academia. A history degree is intensive training in analytical rigor and deep contextual understanding, skills highly valued across industries. This education equips individuals for professional success in government, business, media, and specialized non-profit sectors. This article explores ten diverse career options that leverage historical training.
The Core Skillset of a Historian
Studying history cultivates cognitive abilities essential for professional success. Historians are trained in sophisticated research methodology, involving identifying, locating, and organizing disparate sources efficiently. This expertise includes the systematic evaluation of source reliability, requiring the ability to discern bias, verify facts, and assess the authenticity of materials.
Historical inquiry demands synthesizing complex and often contradictory information into a coherent framework. Graduates learn to manage vast amounts of data and construct meaningful narratives. This skill translates into strong written and oral communication, enabling them to present arguments clearly and persuasively.
10 Diverse Career Paths for History Majors
Archivist
Archivists specialize in managing and preserving historical records, documents, and digital assets to ensure long-term accessibility. Their work involves appraising records for significance, organizing complex collections, and developing systems for retrieval and storage. Historical training allows archivists to understand the context of materials, which is necessary for creating accurate finding aids and ensuring proper conservation techniques are applied.
Museum Curator or Collections Manager
These roles involve the interpretation, acquisition, display, and physical care of artifacts and exhibits within cultural institutions. Curators use historical knowledge to develop exhibition themes, write interpretive labels, and conduct original research. Collections managers focus on the documentation, storage, and physical environment of artifacts, ensuring objects are preserved according to professional standards.
Historical Consultant and Researcher
Historical consultants provide specialized contract work for clients, including film production companies, media outlets, legal firms, and businesses. Their function is to conduct deep research to ensure historical accuracy, provide expert verification, or offer contextual analysis for a project. For example, in a legal setting, a consultant might research historical land use or corporate history to support a case, requiring rapid deployment of advanced research skills.
Cultural Resource Manager
Cultural Resource Managers (CRMs) ensure compliance with preservation laws, such as the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), by assessing the historical impact of proposed development projects. They conduct surveys and evaluations of historical sites, buildings, and archaeological resources before construction can begin. Working for government agencies or consulting firms, CRMs utilize historical context and regulatory frameworks to mitigate adverse effects on significant properties.
Policy Analyst and Legislative Staffer
In government and non-profit policy organizations, analysts and staffers use historical precedent and context to inform current decision-making and draft effective legislation. They research how similar issues were handled in the past, analyzing the long-term successes or failures of previous policies. This historical perspective allows them to anticipate potential unintended consequences and provide recommendations grounded in evidence of past societal responses.
Preservationist and Conservationist
Preservationists and conservationists focus on the physical restoration and maintenance of historical buildings, sites, and landscapes. Their work involves detailed historical research to understand the original materials, construction methods, and architectural evolution of a property. This research guides the selection of appropriate conservation treatments and restoration techniques that maintain the site’s historical integrity. They often collaborate with architects, engineers, and local governments to ensure physical interventions are historically accurate and structurally sound.
Librarian of Special Collections
Librarians managing special collections are responsible for unique and rare materials, including manuscripts, archival records, rare books, and institutional archives. This role requires specialized historical knowledge to properly catalog, interpret, and provide access to materials that are often fragile. They use their understanding of historical periods, writing styles, and provenance to describe collections accurately for researchers.
Intelligence and Market Analyst
Analysts in intelligence agencies or corporate market research firms apply historical trend analysis and geopolitical context to predict future outcomes. They examine organizational history, past market cycles, or regional conflicts to identify recurring patterns and potential risks. For a corporation, this might involve analyzing the history of consumer behavior or competitor strategies to inform future business decisions.
Historical Journalist and Documentary Writer
This career path centers on research-intensive storytelling for non-fiction books, media outlets, and film or television production. Historical journalists conduct extensive primary source research, interview experts, and synthesize findings into engaging and accessible narratives. The work demands the historian’s rigor in fact-checking and source verification, combined with the communication skills required to structure a compelling non-fiction account.
Genealogist and Family History Specialist
Professional genealogists provide research services for individuals seeking to trace their ancestry and construct detailed family histories. This work requires specialized knowledge of historical records, such as census data, probate records, military files, and immigration documents, and knowing how to access them in various archives and databases. The genealogist applies historical methodology to evaluate sources, cross-reference information, and authenticate lineage claims.
Alternative Education and Certification Pathways
A bachelor’s degree in history serves as a strong foundation, but many specialized careers require further credentialing for entry-level employment. Archivists and special collections librarians often need a Master of Library Science (MLS) or a Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS), often with a concentration in archives management. These graduate programs provide the technical skills necessary for collection care and information organization.
For careers in cultural resource management, preservation, and museum work, a Master of Arts (MA) in Public History is a widely accepted standard, focusing on the practical application of historical skills. Individuals pursuing roles as market or policy analysts may benefit from a specialized master’s degree, such as an MBA or a Master of Public Policy, to layer quantitative skills onto their historical background. Certifications, such as those offered by the Academy of Certified Archivists, can also enhance professional standing. Internships within specialized organizations are important, providing the necessary hands-on experience and professional network required before securing a full-time position.
Maximizing Your History Degree for Career Advancement
Strategic planning during and after the undergraduate experience accelerates career advancement in historically-informed fields. Building a strong professional portfolio is key, showcasing the practical application of historical skills. This portfolio should include diverse writing samples, such as policy briefs, project reports, grant proposals, or successful interpretive texts from an internship.
Effective networking within specialized historical organizations, such as the Society of American Archivists or the National Council on Public History, provides access to job opportunities and mentorship. Attending professional conferences allows graduates to meet practicing professionals and learn about current industry standards. When applying for positions, tailor the resume to highlight transferable skills, using action verbs that emphasize research, analysis, synthesis, and communication.