Careers in History

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​Your decision to major or minor in History at the University of Delaware will help you become an inventive and capable thinker, researcher, writer, and communicator. The very skills that employers want!

Based on data compled by the American Historical Association, the top 10 skills employers seek in college graduates are:

1. Communication
2. Teamwork
3. Making decisions and solving problems
4. Planning, organizing, and prioritizing
5. Obtaining and processing information
6. Analyzing quantitative data
7. Technical skills related to the job
8. Using computer software
9. Creating and editing written reports
10. Selling and influencing others

Source: Brookins, Julia and Sarah Fenton. Careers for History Majors. American Historical Association, 2018, p. 16.

See where recent UD History Graduates are employed by visiting the UD Career Outcomes​ page.

​At the most fundamental level, history majors are taught to ask broad questions, search for specific answers, and craft narratives to make those answers clear and compelling to readers and listeners. In formulating the right questions and hunting for answers—pursuing leads into places both predictable and surprising—a history major finds, reads, and critiques a tremendous amount of material.

History majors must learn to recognize reliable sources, to move beyond established sources for elusive information, and to gather evidence systematically, comprehensively, and carefully. Reading this way is good training for handling dense information in any job, and is also a way to hear many and differing voices on a particular question. It encourages students to consider multiple perspectives, opinions, approaches, and arguments, and to weigh and challenge what they learn.

Historical research requires an apt use of primary sources, secondary sources, and an array of technology- and web-based resources—building a skill set that makes history graduates valuable assets to a variety of organizations.

Few disciplines come close to demanding the kind of writing and effective argumentation that a History degree requires.

Historical research requires an apt use of primary sources, secondary sources, and an array of technology- and web-based resources—building a skill set that makes history graduates valuable assets to a variety of organizations.

Reading and analyzing information. A method of reading to acquire facts and analyze content.

Effective writing. The ability to communicate ideas successfully in written form.

Critical thinking. The ability to consider information in a variety of ways and across disciplines.

Research. Methods of finding and evaluating information are key skills learned.

See the many career paths chosen by history majors