Key Takeaways:
- Master’s programs in history emphasize critical research and analytical skills, making you adept at handling large amounts of data, identifying trends, and drawing conclusions.
- With a master’s degree, you can qualify for teaching positions at community colleges or for roles in secondary education, often leading to higher salaries than those with just a bachelor’s degree.
- Historians with advanced degrees can work in various government roles, such as policy advisors, researchers, or cultural resource managers, which often offer competitive salaries.
- Combining history with digital tools can lead to lucrative positions in digital archiving, data analysis, and online education. They often work in legal research, legislative support, and policy analysis, where their skills in research and documentation are highly valued.
- Being part of professional organizations, attending conferences, and publishing research can enhance your reputation and lead to better job opportunities.
Students who have just finished their undergrad likely want to know how does a Master’s in History increase your earning power. It does so in a number of ways. However, master’s degrees are expensive and students need to weigh whether the costs of getting one will ultimately benefit them over the course of their career. A Master’s Degree in History will often affect the career path and salary potential of those who earn one. History also combines well with many other areas of study, so you might consider an online dual degree program. Many master’s degree programs are expensive. But that doesn’t mean you can’t find affordable masters degrees online. These programs are well below the average cost of a masters degree.
The General Effect Of Graduate Degrees on Salary
Graduate degrees in general command a higher salary on average than bachelor’s degrees. Some have higher pay boosts than others, but nearly all provide an average increase in expected lifetime salary. This, of course, is relative to the expected starting salary with a bachelor’s degree in a particular subject. Some subjects might have lower average starting salaries and thus see a bigger increase once obtaining a master’s degree. Some subjects have higher starting salaries but a master’s degree doesn’t offer much of an increase. But almost no college degrees are worth less as a master’s degree than they are as a bachelor’s degree.
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Why History Majors Might Want to Get A Master’s in History
It isn’t just about the money with history majors. In fact, history is one of the few fields where most people entering it need to get an advanced degree – either a master’s or a PhD – to be considered for most jobs. Most historians are affiliated with universities, and an advanced degree is needed to become a professor or researcher. Many museums and historical sites require master’s degrees of their applicants as well. How does a Master’s in History increase your earning power? It’s not just in money. Students need a master’s degree or higher to get many jobs in this field.
The Monetary Benefits
According to Business Insider, holders of a master’s in the humanities, which includes history, see a salary increase of only about 2 percent. However, it should be noted, again, that this is relative and these statistics include history degrees in with other humanities subjects such as theology and political science. Many other subjects that have greater increases also have much lower starting salaries with only a bachelor’s degree. In addition to this, as previously mentioned, many jobs in the history field require a master’s degree anyway, so these factors combined all make obtaining a history master’s a good move.
Which Master’s Program Is Chosen
The prestige and quality of the program where a student earns their Master’s of History is also likely to influence salary expectations upon graduation. For example, a history master’s from an Ivy League school with a well-regarded history graduate program is likely going to help a student land a more high-paying job than from a program that is lesser-known and of lesser quality. This can make it worth the extra effort it takes to get into an ivy league school. This is often simply because of the prestigious research opportunities and professional networks grad students have access to in these programs, as well as specializations that help students land good positions. It is important for all history majors looking to attend grad school to choose carefully.
Getting a Master’s in History is almost certain to increase a student’s lifelong earning potential for a number of different reasons. Any student wanting to become a historian needs to understand how does a Master’s in History increase your earning power.