Careers For History Students
A degree in History prepares you to understand the past and present and to acquire valuable skills that are applicable to many careers. Our graduates—majors and minors—also report that studying history taught them how to learn throughout their lives. But how does studying history prepare you, the student, for a life of personal and professional growth?
Can you see yourself in a career where someone—possibly you—says, “Find out why that happened?” Or perhaps: “Gather the information we have going back 15 years and write a report on why these trends are continuing?” In order to complete those tasks, you will practice history. You’ll collect data and other forms of evidence and use your training to decide what information will help you make sense of the problem. You’ll sort through the evidence to piece together exactly how something happened. Finally, you’ll need to write down your findings, supported by your evidence, in a way that is easy to understand and convincing.
Perhaps you’re interested in law. In many ways, attorneys are historians. As an attorney, you’ll need to gather evidence, analyze it, and make a case for how or why something happened in the past. You may also use your research about past legal cases to argue for why a judge should decide a future case in your favor.
Read on to find out more about how history prepares you for a successful career and a more fulfilling life.
What Can I Do with a History Degree?
The outlook for jobs in applied and public history, particularly archivists, curators, and museum workers, is for 10% annual growth, “much faster than average.”
- Museum curator
- Historic Preservation
- Historic Site Administrator
- National Park Historian or Ranger
- Archivist
- Public History
- Historical Society
One of the top two most popular career categories for History majors, education and related fields are expected to maintain steady job growth in the next decade.
- Teaching, K-12
- Professor, Post-Secondary Education
- Library Science
- Media Specialist
History has long been a popular major for prospective law students, yet it is also one of the most effective majors for preparing undergraduates to apply to law school. History majors have one of the highest average LSAT scores of any major and the highest average law school acceptance rate. Job growth in law-related fields is expected to be faster than average over the next ten years.
- Attorney
- Arbitrator
- Mediator
- Judge
- Paralegal
- Politician
- Political Analyst
- Political Consultant
- Speechwriter
- Diplomat
- Foreign Service
- International Relations
- Military Officer
- Intelligence Analyst
- CIA/FBI agent
- Historian
- Urban Planning
- Consular Service
History majors are well represented in business, management, and financial occupations, categories which are expected to grow faster than average. These careers often require workers who can collect and analyze data to determine what happened and why and to convince others that this interpretation is correct.
- Business Manager
- Business Consulting
- Market Research and Analysis
- Advertising Specialist
- Company Historian
- Economic Development
- Financial Manager
- Financial Analyst
- Banking
- Investment
- Financial Services
- Economic Development
- Community Outreach
- Caseworker
- Clergy Member
- Youth Ministry
- Chaplain
- Editor
- Journalist
- Author
- Filmmaking
- Historical Consultant
- Media/Communications
- Public Relations Specialist
- Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
- Sean Astin
- Chris Berman
- Pres. Joe Biden
- Wolf Blitzer
- Jimmy Buffett
- Pres. George W. Bush
- Sec. Pete Buttigieg
- Steve Carell
- Julia Child
- Sacha Baron Cohen
- Larry David
- Will Forte
- Katherine Hepburn
- Grant Hill (NBA)
- Eric Holder
- Justice Elena Kagan
- Justice Brett Kavanaugh
- Nick Kroll
- John Lithgow
- Christopher Meloni
- Pres. Richard Nixon
- Edward Norton
- Conan O'Brien
- Ed O'Neill
- Alexis Ohanian
- Michael Palin
- Vice Pres. Michael Pence
- Annie Proulx
- Chief Justice John Roberts
- Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Pres. Theodore Roosevelt
- Justice Antonin Scalia
- Justice Sonia Sotomayor
- Martha Stewart
Student Resources
Contact Us
T: (330) 972-7006
F: (330) 972-5840
The University of Akron
Department of History
Arts and Sciences 216
Akron, Ohio 44325-1902
