Historians: Salary, Job Description, How To Become One, and Quiz

Stan T.Career, Overview

Historians

Historians research, analyze, record, and interpret the past as recorded in sources, such as government and institutional records, newspapers and other periodicals, photographs, interviews, films, electronic media, and unpublished manuscripts, such as personal diaries and letters.

Salary
$68400
Becoming One
Very Hard
Education
Master's degree
Job Satisfaction
Job Growth

Personality
Interest Match



Job description

Historians research, analyze, record, and interpret the past as recorded in sources, such as government and institutional records, newspapers and other periodicals, photographs, interviews, films, electronic media, and unpublished manuscripts, such as personal diaries and letters.

  • Conserve and preserve manuscripts, records, and other artifacts.
  • Gather historical data from sources such as archives, court records, diaries, news files, and photographs, as well as collect data sources such as books, pamphlets, and periodicals.
  • Conduct historical research as a basis for the identification, conservation, and reconstruction of historic places and materials.
  • Research and prepare manuscripts in support of public programming and the development of exhibits at historic sites, museums, libraries, and archives.
Read more about what does a Historian really do at work and what is it like being and working as one.



Salary

Average salary
$66380 per year

Average hourly wage
$32 per hour


Historians with little to no experience tend to make between $29270 and $40670 while the more experienced ones can earn over $85700 per year.

Top 5 paying states Hourly Annual
DC $52 $107,440
CA $43 $88,770
VA $39 $80,480
CO $38 $79,100
NJ $37 $76,320

One of the easiest ways to increase your salary as a Historian is to move to a higher paying state like DC. Right now, the highest paying states for Historians are DC, CA, VA, CO and NJ.

However, a higher pay at DC doesn’t guarantee that you will make more because the living expenses at DC might be twice as high than where you are currently at now.

Three other factors that can increase your salary as a Historian is the degree you hold, the industry you work in, and lastly the company you work for.


Requirements

Recommended degree level
Master’s degree

We asked other Historians what degree they had when they got the job and most of them said they had a Master’s Degree followed by a Bachelor’s Degree.

Other than that, we also asked them what did they major in and here are the most popular majors that came up.

Architectural History and Criticism, General
Historic Preservation and Conservation
Cultural Resource Management and Policy Analysis
Historic Preservation and Conservation, Other
Medieval and Renaissance Studies
Read more about how to become a Historian and the degree, training and education you need.

Pros and Cons

Here are some of the pros and cons of being a Historian.

PROS
Suitable for people who likes to solve problems mentally
Suitable for people who values achievements and are results-oriented
This career is perfect for people who love to work indoors.
Very good salary
Normal working hours (40 hours per week)
CONS
Not suitable for people who likes practical and hands-on work
It is very hard to get into this career. Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience is required for this career.

What is the job like

Job satisfaction
77%

Is this job meaningful
63%


77% of Historians said they were satisfied with their job and 63% said they feel like their job is making other people’s lives better.


Is this right for me

Best personality for this career
The Thinkers and The Organizers

You can read more about these career personality types here.

People who are suitable for this job tends to like working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. They like searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally..

They also like following set procedures and routines. They like working with data and details more than with ideas.



Learn more about Historians

Summary (You are here)
Job Description
Salary
Requirements
Quiz

Related career information

Historians job description, Historians salary, Historians information, what is the job of a Historian like, pros and cons about Historians, colleges and universities for Historians, is Historians the right career for me, careers in Social Science and Humanities

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