Hi there!

It depends a bit on what you want to do with your degree. The phd in history is usually aimed at people who want to go on to a professorship at a university - in other words Research and Teaching, with varying degrees of intensity on either depending on where you go. This path basically requires a Phd.

If you want to go into a Museum curator or similar position, you probably want to look for a degree in Public History (often times you can get a MA in this). For more about Public History: http://www.publichistory.org/index.asp If you want to work in history OUTSIDE of academia, this is probably the path you want to look into.

If you have follow up questions I'll do my best. I'm sure some others will weigh in as well.

Here are a couple of sites that are worth browsing as you think about the direction you want to take with your education: here and here.

Whatever you decide to do, I can't recommend enough getting an internship (ideally more than one internship during your undergraduate/graduate career) in the historical field. If you can't get an internship, volunteer! It is worth the effort. (And it's nerdy fun!) You will meet people who are experienced historians who can teach you, give you advice, introduce you to other historians, write letters of recommendation for when you apply to graduate school, etc. Through hands-on experience you will learn what you like (and what you don't like) and those experiences may even point you in a completely new direction in your studies.

For nearly any job in history if you want to advance beyond entry-level work, you will need a master's degree at minimum. If you love teaching history, a master's degree is enough for many community colleges, and I believe an undergraduate degree is enough to teach at a high-school level in most places.

Graduate work in history will require learning a foreign language. I also highly recommend studying a language as an undergraduate instead of trying to fit it in with your graduate studies. Ideally, you'll learn a language pertinent to your research interests.

I have a graduate degree in history and trying to explain to people what you can do with this degree can be tiresome. History is important for critical thinking and many other skills that are necessary across the job market. You have to work harder to pitch this on your resume and in the job hunt, but as others have stated if you have work experience in a field that you are interested in it helps. I am currently working in legislation.