What Can I Do with A Military History Degree?
Military historians research the past, focusing on military conflicts and their effects. Keep reading to learn about the suggested key skills you need for such a job and what salary you could earn as a historian.
Become a Historian With a Military History Degree
One career path to consider with a military history degree is to become a historian. You could work for museums, historical societies and even for colleges and universities. Historians research and document the past. You could research and educate others on the history of war and weapons, and the role that politics plays in both.
<h3 id="section---ImportantFactsAboutThisOccupationAndFieldOfStudy">Important Facts About This Occupation and Field of Study</h3><p></p><table border="1"><tr><td> Concentrations</td><td> American, European, Global</td></tr>
<tr><td>Online Availability</td><td> Master's degrees offered online</td></tr>
<tr><td>Key Skills</td><td> Historical methodology, understanding context, research, analysis, oral and written communication</td></tr>
<tr><td>Similar Occupations</td><td> Archivist, political scientist, teacher</td></tr>
<tr><td>Mean Salary (2021)</td><td>$72,130 <i>(historians)</i>*</td></tr>
<tr><td>Job Outlook (2021-2031)</td><td>4% <i>(historians)</i>*</td></tr>
</table><p><i>Source: *U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics</i>
</p><h3 id="section---OtherCareerOptions">Other Career Options</h3><p>As a military historian, your knowledge of how the military impacts society, together with your writing and research skills, could prepare you to work in governmental positions. You might work for the U.S. Departments of Defense, Homeland Security or State; for the military; or for U.S. embassies. Other career possibilities include information analysis in a corporate setting, teaching and law practice, although some of these career options require significant education beyond a degree in military history.
</p><h3 id="section---DegreeOptions">Degree Options</h3><p>If you have an interest in military history and want to pursue a degree, consider beginning your career with a Bachelor of Arts degree in military history. A bachelor's degree in this major can help prepare you for entry-level work supporting historians and can also prepare you for a military career. You can expect to take courses that focus on the study and history of specific wars and conflicts, leadership, research methods, world geography and even a history of the armed forces.
</p><p>Continuing your education with a master's degree may help you obtain positions in postsecondary education or in museums, nonprofit firms or historical societies. In a master's degree program focused on military history, you will dive further into research methods, theories and history. For research-oriented jobs and tenure-track postsecondary education positions, you will likely need a doctorate.
</p><h3 id="section---SalaryAndJobOutlook">Salary and Job Outlook</h3><p>As a military historian, you can capture the past and use it to educate and enrich the future. You'll face strong competition for military history jobs at colleges and universities. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates that the number of historians was expected to increase by 4% from 2021-2031, which is as fast as the average for all occupations. According to the BLS, in May 2021 the mean annual wage for all historians was $72,130.</p>