Online History Degrees 2020

History may be seen by some as “stuff that’s already happened,” but make no mistake–the study of history is an incredibly important field.

Studying history helps us understand how our ancestors lived and we can use what we learn from them to help us avoid making the same mistakes. While earning a history degree, you’ll study various topics, from American history to ancient civilizations, and gain a firm understanding of how different cultures survived in the past.

While a history degree may not prepare you for a specific job, the skills you acquire in this liberal arts field can be used to pursue a vast range of different career paths. You could become a historian, historiographer, genealogist or even an archivist.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median pay for a historian in 2019 was $63,680 and jobs in the field are expected to grow at a rate of six percent by 2028. After all, we’ll always need people to study our past.

In this article, we’re going to break down the top five online history degree programs. We’ll discuss the background of these programs, their cost and what you can expect to learn in each program.

Online History Degree Rankings in 2020

So, you’re interested in studying history but you’re not sure what options are right for you? With so many online degree programs available today, it can be difficult to figure out which one meets your needs, so you’re definitely not alone.

To help you decide which online history degree you should pursue, we’ve prepared a list of the top online history degree programs. Here are our rankings:

#1: Arizona State University

• Degree: Online Bachelor of Arts in History
• Tuition: $607.81 / credit
• Duration: 4 years
• Credit Requirement: 120 credits

Arizona State University offers a Bachelor of Arts in History degree. This degree explores topics such as European history, United States history and methods of historical inquiry.

This course will help you refine your critical thinking skills through the study of historical texts and artifacts. You’ll also learn how to use digital media to enhance your historical studies and present your findings effectively.

Faculty at Arizona State University include Guggenheim Fellows, Nobel laureates, MacArthur Fellows and Fulbright American Scholars. This program is also transfer-friendly, so if you already have credits and are looking to complete your history degree, you can attend Arizona State University.

#2: University of Illinois Springfield

• Degree: Online Bachelor of Arts in History
• Tuition: $304.50 / credit (in-state)
• Duration: 4 years

The University of Illinois offers an Online History Degree program that is identical to their on-campus program, except for admission requirements.

The history curriculum at the University of Illinois covers a wide range of courses. You’ll study topics such as America from the colonial era to the present, women’s history, European history, Roman history and more. You’ll also learn about how historic forces are shaping the contemporary world.

The Department of History strongly encourages students to study abroad for part of their program. The school offers internships that can be incorporated into your course of study and a teacher certification for students who want to teach social studies.

#3: Florida International University

• Degree: Bachelor of Arts in History
• Tuition: $228.81 / credit (in-state) or $347.87 / credit (out-of-state)
• Duration: 4 years
• Credit Requirement: 120 credits

Florida International University offers an online BA in History. This program is designed to give you a well-rounded view of the world’s most dynamic areas. You’ll learn about different cultures and historical events, and also gain the skills you need to analyze the world around you.

As part of your studies, you’ll cover topics such as abuse of power in colonial Latin America, the Black Death, Greek history and East Asian civilization.

At Florida International University, 99 percent of tenured faculty hold doctoral degrees or the highest degrees attainable in their fields. That’s not all: the school ranks #14 among US public universities in terms of patent production.

#4: Washington State University

• Degree: Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Science in History
• Tuition: $518 / credit (in-state) or $578 / credit (out-of-state)
• Duration: 4 years
• Credit Requirement: 120 credits

Washington State University offers an online Bachelor of Arts in History degree. This course covers many areas of historical research such as the American west, diplomatic history and environmental history.

In this course, you’ll learn the skills you need to prepare for a job as a historian, archivist, librarian, teacher or researcher, among other positions.

As an online student, you’ll be able to benefit from the school’s virtual mentoring services and virtual career counseling. This will help you stay on track as you go through your program and give you the resources you need to think about your next steps after graduation.

#5: Oregon State University

• Degree: Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Science in History
• Tuition: $318 / credit
• Duration: 4 years
• Credit Requirement: 180 credits

Oregon State University offers a BA or BS in History through its online eCampus. This program will help you gain a firm understanding of contemporary global issues by researching history. You’ll also build career skills such as writing, documentation and critical thinking.

During your studies, you’ll cover topics such as western civilization, the history of medicine since 1800 and religion in the United States. As a student at Oregon State University, you’ll have access to the Public History Internship Program. This is a for-credit internship that will help you learn about working in a range of historical occupations and prepare you for a long career in history.

Online History Degree Offerings

A history degree has a lot to offer. Not only will you develop a strong set of liberal arts skills, but you’ll also be given the opportunity to refine your critical and analytical skills. These will prepare you for a wide range of careers.

Online degrees are a great option if you’re interested in studying history. These programs offer the same education as a traditional in-person program, but with more flexibility. Because so many online courses involve pre-written material, you can usually create your own schedule based on your commitments and time availability.

There are two main types of online history degrees you can earn:

• Bachelor’s Degree
• Master’s Degree

Online History Bachelor’s Degree

An online bachelor’s degree in history will introduce you to major historical events and themes in the development of the human species. You’ll cover historical events from the ancient times all the way to the last few decades.

Alongside learning history, you’ll also be able to cultivate your critical and analytical thinking skills. This is because earning a history degree involves researching and evaluating the usefulness of data and historical accounts.

Online History Bachelor’s Degree Entry Requirements

You’ll need a high school diploma or GED in order to apply for an online history degree. Most online schools will ask you to submit your standardized test scores and your high school transcripts. If you have attended college to pursue an associate’s degree, you may also be asked to submit your college transcripts.

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Online History Bachelor’s Degree Curriculum

With so much history to cover, you can expect that no two programs will be the same. Every college studies different points in history, from ancient history to modern history.

No matter what program you attend, you’ll study topics like research methods and the evaluation of data. The core history classes you’ll take will vary. Here are a few of the core history classes you may take as part of your degree:

• Political Parties: This course will cover a comprehensive history of the US government and politics. You will likely focus on a specific political movement in history, such as a specific election, or the New Deal era.

• American Women’s History: In this course, you’ll learn about how women have influenced American history. You’ll discuss the shifting perception of women in society, and how the legal status and rights of women have evolved.

• US Civil War: In this course, you’ll learn the causes behind the US Civil War, the main events of the war and how the war changed the trajectory of the United States.

• Global History in the 20th Century: In this course, you’ll learn about 20th-century history in Europe. You may cover topics like World War I and World War II, and discuss how those events affected both European nations and the rest of the world.

• The Middle Ages: This course will cover a major historical event in the Middle Ages. This could range from anything from the Black Death to the Renaissance.

Most bachelor’s degree programs culminate in a capstone project or a thesis. This is where you’ll write a research paper on an area you have studied as part of your bachelor’s degree.

Online History Bachelor’s Degree Progression

After graduating from an online bachelor’s degree in history, you’ll be prepared for a range of careers. While it may seem like the only career path available for a history graduate is to become a historian, that’s a myth.

Some graduates pursue a career as a historian, but the skills you learn can also set you up for success in other jobs. You could use your history degree to enter a career as a human resource manager, a marketing analyst, a research assistant, an archivist or as a teacher.

Online History Master’s Degree

An online master’s degree in history will give you the opportunity to study history on a deeper level. You’ll spend the first part of your course researching a range of different historical events, then later you will specialize and focus on one or two time periods or events.

Online History Master’s Degree Entry Requirements

You’ll need to have a bachelor’s degree in history or a related field to apply for an online master’s degree in history program. You will also need to submit transcripts from your undergraduate studies.

Some schools ask their master’s applicants to submit a personal statement which outlines their main accomplishments, as well as letters of recommendation from past teachers or professors.

Online History Master’s Degree Curriculum

The curriculum in a master’s degree program will vary heavily depending on the area in which you specialize. With that said, there are a few core classes you can expect. These include:

• Research methods in history
• Slavery
• Women’s suffrage
• Race and class history
• Colonialism
• Historiography
• Early American history

You’ll be given an opportunity to specialize in a particular area of history for your degree, which may be one of the fields listed above or something else you find interesting.

Toward the end of your master’s degree, you’ll be asked to prepare a thesis or a research project on a topic you have studied.

Online History Master’s Degree Progression

Like bachelor’s degree graduates, master’s degree graduates have no shortage of career options.

Some master’s graduates use their degree to begin a career as a historian, but there are other options out there. Many graduates become archivists, librarians, writers, teachers or museum curators. If you’re interested in becoming a scholar in the field of history, you may even want to consider studying toward a doctoral degree.

What Can You Do With a History Degree?

History degree graduates have a wide range of career options. A degree in history prepares you best for a job as a historian, but your career options do not end there.

Because history degrees require learning and practicing critical and analytical thinking skills, problem solving skills and research skills, you’ll find that many different career paths are possible. Many of these paths are not even directly related to history. That’s because skills like research and a liberal arts education can go a long way in any career. 

Here are a few of the jobs you could get with your history degree:

• Historian: Historians gather and analyze historical data from sources like books and artifacts, and write about the past based on their findings. They may also engage with the public about a certain period of history and provide guidance on historical topics and preservation.

• Archivist: Archivists are responsible for preserving historical information and making it available for research. Archivists evaluate records for preservation, index those records, manage record-keeping systems and provide guidance on how people should use and access an archive.

• High School Teacher: A history degree prepares you to teach a wide range of subjects in secondary school, from social science to history. You’ll be responsible for educating students on a subject, tracking their progress, developing learning resources and ensuring students are meeting certain academic standards.

• Librarian: As a librarian, you’ll be responsible for the day-to-day running of a library, ranging from managing new books to cataloging existing ones. You could work for a public library or a library in an organization like a university or government building.

• Museum Curator: Museum curators manage collections of artefacts or works of art. They deal with acquiring historical artifacts, caring for them and ensuring they are displayed in the best way to the public.

• Marketing Executive: Marketing executives contribute to and develop marketing campaigns to promote a product or service. They’ll plan new campaigns, coordinate sponsorships, conduct product research and create a brand for clients.

• Editorial Assistant: Editorial assistants support senior editorial staff in administering, planning, commissioning and writing content for a publication. This could involve working on a book or for a journal, magazine or website.

Career Prospects for History Degree Graduates

History degree graduates have excellent job prospects.

Given how varied the roles are for history graduates to pursue, the salaries that you can expect to earn will likewise vary. For instance, a historian working for the government may not earn as much as a curator at a world-renowned museum. But, most of the job paths available to history degree graduates pay well.

To help you get a better idea of what salaries a history degree can help you unlock, consider these median salaries from 2019 collected from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics:

• Historian: $63,680
• Archivist, Curators, and Museum Workers: $49,850
• High School Teacher: $61,660
• Librarian: $59,050
• Advertising, Promotions, and Marketing Manager: $135,900
• Editor: $61,370

Do I Need a History Degree?

Earning a degree is a big investment of both time and money. So, it’s natural to wonder: do I really need to earn a history degree? There is no right answer to this question. Whether or not you need a history degree depends on your career ambitions.

If you’re interested in working as a historian, then you’ll almost certainly need a history degree. That’s because jobs as a historian are competitive and are often only given to people with advanced degrees in the field. 

But history degrees are also useful if you are looking for a liberal arts education because you are unsure of your career path. Because history degrees can be applied to so many different jobs, you should have no trouble finding one with a history degree.

With that said, if you want to pursue another career like becoming a geographer or a marketing executive, it may be best to study those areas specifically. A degree in marketing, for instance, will better prepare you for careers in marketing than a history degree would.

Conclusion

An online history degree is an excellent investment if you’re thinking about a career in history or if you’re looking for a liberal arts education.

History programs will teach you about a range of different historical events, from the Renaissance to the US Civil War. This will give you more insight into the world in which we live and what events shaped our society. At the same time, you’ll also refine your soft skills like research and critical thinking.

Online programs provide an added benefit: flexibility. You can usually study toward an online history degree from anywhere, without having to attend classes on campus. You should therefore have more control over your schedule.