Curious about our data? Learn more about our methodology .
College Majors
Showing data from the American Community Survey for the following US Census occupation categories. Bachelor's degree majors are shown.
Miscellaneous social scientists, including survey researchers and sociologists
Curious about our data? Learn more about our methodology .
What Historians Do
Historians research, analyze, interpret, and present the past by studying historical documents and sources.
Work Environment
Historians work in government agencies, museums, archives, historical societies, research organizations, nonprofits, and consulting firms. Some must travel to carry out research. Most work full time.
How to Become a Historian
Although most historian positions require a master’s degree, some research positions require a doctoral degree. Candidates with a bachelor’s degree may qualify for some entry-level positions, but most will find jobs in different fields.
Job Outlook
Employment of historians is projected to grow 2 percent from 2014 to 2024, slower than the average for all occupations. Competition for jobs may be very strong because there are a small number of positions relative to the number of people seeking jobs in the field.
Job Trends for Historians
Curious about our data? Learn more about our methodology .
This occupation supported 3,800 jobs in 2012 and 3,500 jobs in 2014, reflecting a decline of 7.9%. In 2012, this occupation was projected to increase by 5.3% in 2022 to 4,000 jobs. As of 2014, to keep pace with prediction, the expected number of jobs was 3,800, compared with an observed value of 3,500, 7.9% lower than expected. This indicates current employment trends are much worse than the 2012 trend within this occupation. In 2014, this occupation was projected to decrease by 0.0% in 2024 to 3,500 jobs. Linear extrapolation of the 2012 projection for 2022 results in an expected number of 4,000 jobs for 2024, 14.3% higher than the 2014 projection for 2024. This indicates expectations for future employment trends are much worse than the 2012 trend within this occupation.