Is A History Degree worth it?
(Currently at college/ electively home- educated . 15)
I’ve always had an interest in history, almost every area I’ve studied so far. I’ve gravitated around the English Lit/ fine art/ history area.
My mother doesn’t want me to study history as she doesn’t believe there are enough careers in it, and that I won’t be happy.
TL;DR
Can anyone who’s studied history give me advice, is it a competitive area?
I’ve always had an interest in history, almost every area I’ve studied so far. I’ve gravitated around the English Lit/ fine art/ history area.
My mother doesn’t want me to study history as she doesn’t believe there are enough careers in it, and that I won’t be happy.
TL;DR
Can anyone who’s studied history give me advice, is it a competitive area?
Study something you like not something you think will get you a job in the future. There’s no point doing something like computer science just because you think it will lead to a lucrative career because 9 times out of 10, you’ll end up with a bad degree and struggle to get employed. If you choose a subject that you like you’re more likely to end up with a good degree which will make you a more competitive candidate when applying for jobs.
No degree is useless, especially history which is considered desirable to many employers do to the multiple transferable skills you gain from doing the degree. There are many lucrative careers associated with history such as law, politics, journalism and academics, and with the right experience people with history degrees have gotten into careers such as investment banking and finance.
As long as get into a good university and work hard, you should be successful. Don’t sacrifice your future and happiness following a career that isn’t suited to you and your talents. Good luck!
No degree is useless, especially history which is considered desirable to many employers do to the multiple transferable skills you gain from doing the degree. There are many lucrative careers associated with history such as law, politics, journalism and academics, and with the right experience people with history degrees have gotten into careers such as investment banking and finance.
As long as get into a good university and work hard, you should be successful. Don’t sacrifice your future and happiness following a career that isn’t suited to you and your talents. Good luck!
Original post by Diarnireads
(Currently at college/ electively home- educated . 15)
I’ve always had an interest in history, almost every area I’ve studied so far. I’ve gravitated around the English Lit/ fine art/ history area.
My mother doesn’t want me to study history as she doesn’t believe there are enough careers in it, and that I won’t be happy.
TL;DR
Can anyone who’s studied history give me advice, is it a competitive area?
I’ve always had an interest in history, almost every area I’ve studied so far. I’ve gravitated around the English Lit/ fine art/ history area.
My mother doesn’t want me to study history as she doesn’t believe there are enough careers in it, and that I won’t be happy.
TL;DR
Can anyone who’s studied history give me advice, is it a competitive area?
A degree in History can be a really inspiring way to spend your time at university. A history degree gives you a wide range of useful transferable skills, you will learn how to analyse and communicate, put together convincing arguments and gain self-discipline to work on your own and others to assess challenges and solve them. This is why it opens up to a wide range of varied and interesting posts. If it is something you enjoy then you are more likely to excel throughout your time at university.
If you are also interested in English Lit you may want to consider a combined History and Eng Lit courses such as the one we offer at Huddersfield, visit here for more details - https://courses.hud.ac.uk/2019-20/full-time/undergraduate/english-literature-and-history-ba-hons.
If I can help answer any queries about any of our History courses just let me know.
Rachel
School of Music, Humanities and Media
Original post by Diarnireads
(Currently at college/ electively home- educated . 15)
I’ve always had an interest in history, almost every area I’ve studied so far. I’ve gravitated around the English Lit/ fine art/ history area.
My mother doesn’t want me to study history as she doesn’t believe there are enough careers in it, and that I won’t be happy.
TL;DR
Can anyone who’s studied history give me advice, is it a competitive area?
I’ve always had an interest in history, almost every area I’ve studied so far. I’ve gravitated around the English Lit/ fine art/ history area.
My mother doesn’t want me to study history as she doesn’t believe there are enough careers in it, and that I won’t be happy.
TL;DR
Can anyone who’s studied history give me advice, is it a competitive area?
Original post by Korina24
Study something you like not something you think will get you a job in the future. There’s no point doing something like computer science just because you think it will lead to a lucrative career because 9 times out of 10, you’ll end up with a bad degree and struggle to get employed. If you choose a subject that you like you’re more likely to end up with a good degree which will make you a more competitive candidate when applying for jobs.
No degree is useless, especially history which is considered desirable to many employers do to the multiple transferable skills you gain from doing the degree. There are many lucrative careers associated with history such as law, politics, journalism and academics, and with the right experience people with history degrees have gotten into careers such as investment banking and finance.
As long as get into a good university and work hard, you should be successful. Don’t sacrifice your future and happiness following a career that isn’t suited to you and your talents. Good luck!
No degree is useless, especially history which is considered desirable to many employers do to the multiple transferable skills you gain from doing the degree. There are many lucrative careers associated with history such as law, politics, journalism and academics, and with the right experience people with history degrees have gotten into careers such as investment banking and finance.
As long as get into a good university and work hard, you should be successful. Don’t sacrifice your future and happiness following a career that isn’t suited to you and your talents. Good luck!
I agree with the above.
I was considering changing my degree to something that may be more lucrative career wise and would lead me down a straightforward career path but no matter what, I always come back to psychology because it's the only subject I was ever truly interested in. Any other degree would be even harder for me to complete because there would be zero interest. Don't get me wrong, some things I study aren't at all interesting to me, but I think that's the same for everyone. Some parts you'll love and find fascinating, others you'll be thankful to finish! The proof is in the pudding - I got a distinction (like a 1st) in the module I found most interesting and a pass 2 (like a 2:1) in the one I absolutely hated. I was shocked to have even got a pass 2! You would not get good grades in a three year long degree in a subject you didn't like.
Do you have any idea what career you'd be interested in? I think you know more than myself of what possible job opportunities are out there for a history graduate. However, I think any degree is desirable to employers because you develop skills outside of the subject area that can be applied to work.
History students progress into a huge range of different careers. A history degree allows you to develop skills that are useful in the workplace and whist at university you will have opportunities to partake in extracurricular activities to support theses skills on your CV.
Here at Swansea Uni we have introduced employability modules into our courses. This is one of the reasons why our History Department is ranked 2nd in the UK for graduate prospects (tied with the University of Cambridge) by the Guardian University Guide 2020.
The scary thing about a history degree is that it does not lead to a specific career, BUT that is also the beauty of it! You'll have the choice of entering a wide range of careers without having to settle on one now
You can check out our history courses here: https://www.swansea.ac.uk/history/undergraduate-study/
- Josh
Here at Swansea Uni we have introduced employability modules into our courses. This is one of the reasons why our History Department is ranked 2nd in the UK for graduate prospects (tied with the University of Cambridge) by the Guardian University Guide 2020.
The scary thing about a history degree is that it does not lead to a specific career, BUT that is also the beauty of it! You'll have the choice of entering a wide range of careers without having to settle on one now
You can check out our history courses here: https://www.swansea.ac.uk/history/undergraduate-study/
- Josh
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