History provides a springboard to a number of career options.
There is, of course, a profession of history, composed largely, but not exclusively, of historians who teach and conduct research in colleges and universities. The normal way to enter that profession is to complete a Ph.D. in the History department of a major university, and several undergraduate History majors go on to do just that. Most History majors, however, do not become professional historians in the sense that this term is normally used. History as a major is often chosen by students who plan to enter a profession which will require training in a post-baccalaureate professional school, such as law, business administration, public policy, urban planning, journalism, education, librarianship, the ministry, public health, or social work. Most schools in these fields prefer students who have used their undergraduate years to acquire a strong liberal education and a broad perspective on human problems such as one gains by majoring in History, rather than students with narrowly specialized programs and skills.