Hi, I am a historian who isn’t a university professor so I thought I’d share a bit about what I do.

First I’ll state my academic background, I have a BA in history from Towson University and about to be finished with my MA in Historical Studies from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (I’ll be defending my thesis in a few weeks and then be finished). My concentration is public history (working in museums, archives, etc) and my time period I focused on was the American Revolutionary Era (1754 - 1804) but my thesis focuses specifically on religion during this period.

Professionally, I am a public librarian in Maryland who is the collection coordinator for my branch, meaning that I am responsible for all the physical items in the branch. We also have a history center at my branch that has a small archive and museum-like room for people to see and engage with our county’s local history. Places like this are often called “special collections” and often employ many people with history degrees.

I oversee all displays, signage, and content that we display to the public. I also supervise the volunteers we have to help run the room. I also act as a liaison for people who need help digging into our history, typically it’s people doing genealogy research or find8nh out the history of their property, but not always. In my year and a half doing this job, I’ve helped multiple authors come in needed documents, especially photographs and even helped locate photos for a documentary that a professor was making from a college here in my state.

For the last year I have also been a consulting historian for the state archives regarding a project they are doing on revolutionary soldiers from Maryland. For that position, it’s mostly helping lend some feedback and expertise around parts of the project since it’s a large project that needs the perspective from people outside the organization.

One thing you’ll notice really fast is that history jobs are hard to come by and are usually very competitive. I’m fortunate to have a job where I deal with history matters on a daily basis even if it isn’t my particular area of expertise. I may look to getting another position once I finish my MA, but for now, I have fun helping others do research.

Please let me know if you have any other questions.

You will find people with history degrees in many jobs. Teaching, of course is the most obvious. However the skills taught are sought by many employers. Ability to research is a big one. Writing skills is another major one. Critical thinking is a major theme and comes in use for many jobs. On top of all of it. A degree requires a lot of work. Having one proves that you are a dedicated worker.

You're smart for asking that question. I would encourage you to research careers you are interested in, then choose a major that will help you get there.

That being said, the work you do as a history major will transfer to a broad range of careers. For example, as an attorney, I use the researching, writing, and analytical skills I gained as a history major every day. Just remember, it can be hard to find a job outside of the history field with a history degree.

I'm a PhD student in a top history of science program. My answers are going to be limited to what PhDs from my program have done, but it varies.

1. Museums always want history PhDs, especially if they've had experience in curatorial work or in public history.

2. Archivists, history PhDs are often uniquely suited to work as archivists on the basis that they'll know original languages and major/minor works in the field.

3. Government work, some history PhDs do very well in the public sector and make a lot of money. I know a woman working for the Smithsonian right now, and she makes about 3 times what a TT assistant professor would make.

4. Private sector. There are history PhDs on Wall Street. History gives you a huge range of analytical skills.

5. Law/Medicine. My program has at least one MD/PhD and possibly a JD/PhD as well.

6. Professor. The academic job market is terrible and you're not likely to get an academic job, even out of a top program. Those who do are among the select/elite few.

7. Publishing, there are many history PhDs who go into academic publishing. My good friend (and ex-professor) has had a very successful career in academic publishing.

I have a PhD and work as an academic in History. Jobs in academia are really, really rare. Mine is ending soon, I'm highly awarded, and there's nothing out there for me unless I move to the other side of the world. Teaching, curating, library work are all more common but still competitive. My honest advice would be to combine history with something in high demand like business or teaching.

Better question - what job can a fan of history, who doesn't have a degree, get that relates to history?