History majors learn skills that make them highly competitive in today’s job market. They locate, collect, analyze, and synthesize data, arguments, and information. Historians can take the general and make it specific, and provide convincing and compelling arguments that influence future decisions. Students have the option to concentrate in cultural history or contemporary history.
History majors find careers in the fields of education, government, politics, law, and the private sector. In other words, history majors are not pigeonholed into any single career path. In a rapidly changing market, they have the skill-set to adapt and pursue a number of career options. Being able to communicate effectively, write persuasively, analyze information and argue convincingly, are all crucial traits that employers look for.
Primarily, historians analyze artifacts from the past to derive lessons about the present. This process, however, is far more interesting than memorizing dates, names, and facts. These skills can be applied to academics, education, government and law, but they are equally sought after in the private sector. The skill-set of a historian – which includes outstanding written and verbal communication skills, information analysis, argumentation and persuasion – prepares students to be successful in today’s competitive marketplace.
According to the journal Foreign Policy, the number one field of study for people pursuing careers in international affairs is history. According to the University of Michigan Law School, history is one of the primary majors for future Law students. Job sites such as Monster.com show that history majors begin careers with salaries comparable to other popular university majors such as English or Psychology. According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, employers favor graduates with skills learned in history, not technical education.
History doesn’t have any marketability.
Not true! Training for one specific career might help you in the short term, but if the market changes, you may be forced to move long distances, take a pay cut, or find yourself unemployed. A broader educational skill-set, like the kind history provides, prepares you to adapt to any number of employment situations, making you marketable to more than just one field.
History degrees don’t have “real-world application.”
Yes they do! In fact, they open up many doors instead of one. Tech training in one specific skill set (welding, a computer programming language, etc., all of which are important) might pigeonhole you in long run if the market changes. A history degree makes you adaptable to an ever changing market.
A History background shouldn’t lead to questions like “What can I do?” Instead, it should make you ponder “What can’t I do?”
November 24, 2020
Suomi College of Arts & Sciences adjunct professor Dr. Marlene Broemer received her doctorate from the University of Helsinki in Comparative Literature and will return to her alma mater virtually for the biennial Maple Leaf and Eagle Conference in North American Studies. Dr. Broemer’s doctoral studies were on the works of the modernist Finnish poet, Edith Södergran and the Russian, Anna Akhmatova, at the time of the Finnish Civil War […] Read More
November 20, 2020
We know you won’t want to miss out on this “epic” deal to read and analyze the Kalevala, with Assistant Professor, Dr. Hilary-Joy Virtanen.
For the first time ever, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Virtanen will offer her spring 2021 Kalevala class online, opening the door to anyone in the world who is interested in taking the course, either as an audit student or for-credit. Dr. Virtanen joined Finlandia Fridays host, Olivia Myers, this week to discuss the […] Read More
November 09, 2020
Daisia Knowles is a Junior Psychology major from Broomfield, Colo. She is also a soccer player on Finlandia’s women’s soccer team. Communications work-study, Amanda Staege, recently interviewed Knowles to learn more about her time at FinnU.
Tell me a bit about yourself. Where are you from, what are your hobbies, etc?
I am proudly from Broomfield, Colo., and graduated in 2018 from Broomfield High. At the age of eight, I started playing soccer! My mom played as well and […] Read More
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Associate Professor of Biology & Dean of Suomi College of Arts and Sciences
jason.oyadomari@finlandia.eduAssistant Professor, Finnish & Nordic Studies; Chair, Institutional Review Board
hilary.virtanen@finlandia.edu