Careers & Alumni in History
What can history majors do after graduation? Find out from a few of our alums.
History Careers
Deeper understanding of worldwide historical events prepares you to become both an engaged citizen and a competitive member of an increasingly global work force. History majors develop a systematic understanding of social structures and institutions, strong analytical skills, a capacity for problem solving and thinking creatively, exceptional oral and written communication skills, and an ability to meet deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
Our graduates establish such a wide range of careers and become leaders of their organizations because of the core set of skills at the heart of our liberal arts education.
A liberal arts education at UM will empower and prepare students to deal with complexity, diversity, and change through a broad knowledge of the world. Liberal Arts is everything you care about most:
- Writing and speaking with confidence and skill
- Critical thinking
- Quantitative skills and data analysis
- Celebrating human expression through the arts
- Navigating complex moral and ethical situations
- Engaging the power of your citizenship
- Discovering solutions to the pressing issues facing our world
From the Chair
Studying history enhances a student’s ability to think and reason, to communicate effectively, and to organize systematically, evaluate, and interpret information. These are essential skills demanded of today’s young professionals and graduate students.
History is one of the most popular majors for students who expect to pursue a professional education. Law students find a history degree especially attractive and helpful. Throughout their careers, journalism students rely heavily on the information and skills they acquire in history courses. Moreover, students who enter the business world directly upon completion of their undergraduate degrees have found that a major in history, particularly when it is accompanied by a minor in business or accounting, has enhanced their attractiveness considerably in today’s job market.
National, state, and local governments all seek employees with backgrounds in the study of history or with the skills which history majors have acquired. For example, the departments of State, Defense, and Education, as well as federal intelligence agencies, all employ significant numbers of historians. Federal and state legislative research groups also make extensive use of historians.
Undergraduates who seek careers in the professional study of history have a number of attractive options. Students who plan to teach at the college or junior college level should major in history as undergraduates. Anticipated increases in the number of college-age students is increasing the demand for college and junior college teachers. Comparable increases in the demand for good history teachers at the secondary level have been felt since 1990. Additionally, museums, archives, national and state park services, and historical societies throughout the nation require management and staff with historical training. In short, a history major prepares a student for a wide range of career opportunities.
Noell Wilson, Ph.D., Chair
Department of History
662-915-7148 | nrwilson@olemiss.edu
Our graduates...
... are working in many different sectors of the economy, with the largest percentages working in healthcare, education, business and finance, STEM, and government.
- Many K-12 teachers, librarians, and coaches, including:
- Andrew’s Episcopal
- Cleveland High School
- Jackson Prep
- Lewisburg High School
- South Panola High School
- Horn Lake Middle School
- Mountain brook Schools
- Marshall County Schools
- Christian Brothers High School
- Calhoun County Schools
- Tupelo Christian Prep School
- Water Valley High School
- Leflore County School District
- Jackson Academy
- Tupelo High School
- West Point High School
- Briar Crest
- DeSoto County Schools
- Coahoma County Schools
- Memphis City Schools
- Lafayette High School
- Virginia Beach Schools
- Shelby County Schools
- Starkville High School
- New Albany Middle School
- Pass Christian High School
- Admissions Counselor, Jackson Academy
- Superintendent, Oxford School System
- Assistant Principal, Tupelo HS
Higher Education
- Academic Outreach, OK State
- Vice President Student Affairs, Marquette Univ
- Counsel, Texas Christian U
- Law Faculty, Wake Forest
- Museum Educator, Kennesaw State
- Alaska State Archivist
- of Library, Pearl River County Library
- Librarian, University of Southern Miss
- Faculty, University of North Carolina
- Faculty, Purdue University
- Faculty, California State Univ-Los Angeles
- Faculty, Johns Hopkins University
- Faculty, Mississippi State University
- Faculty, Northwest MS Community College
- Faculty, Northeast MS Community College
- Faculty, Itawamba Community College
- Faculty, Meridian Community College
- Faculty, Mississippi College
- Faculty, University of Missouri
- Faculty, Purdue
- Faculty, University of Houston
- Faculty, Rutgers University
- Faculty, Tennessee Tech University
- Reference Librarian, University of Southern Miss
- Museum Educator, Kennesaw State
- Assistant Director of Football Player Development, Vanderbilt University
- Naval ROTC Instructor, University of Pennsylvania
- Development Specialist, University of Southern Alabama
- Career Coordinator, Pennsylvania State University
- VP of Admissions and Recruitment, Southwest MS Community College
- General Counsel, Texas Christian University
- Police Chief, University of Northern Iowa
- Coordinator of Academic Outreach, Oklahoma State University
- Director of Economic and Business Development, University of North Carolina
- Deputy Athletics Director, Colgate University
- Director of Disability Services, Western Carolina University
- Senior Consultant, Deloitte Consulting
- Regional Pres, Hibernia National Bank
- Owner, Jimmy Carr State Farm
- Vice President, Credit Suisse/First Boston
- Government and External Affairs, Amazon
- CEO, Shine Ventures
- Owner, William Yoste Comm. Real Estate
- Corporate Counsel, Amazon
- Campus Recruiting Associate, Pricewaterhousecoopers
- Senior Claims Representative, Liberty Mutual Insurance
- Attorney, Morgan Keegan
- VP-Equity Trading, Credit Suisse/First Boston
- Vice President and Banking Center Liaison, BankPlus
- Accounting and Finance, Merrill Lynch
- General Counsel, Citigroup
- Trade Networks, Fed Ex
- Fundraising Assistant, Fraioli and Associates
- Recruiter, Aerotek
- Industrial Sales Representative, Carhartt
- Healthcare Management, Cook Medical Consulting
- Advertising Specialist, Barnes & Noble
- Realtor, Rogers Healy and Associates
- Historian, National Eligibility Express
- Manager, Bath and Body Works
- Commercial Real Estate, Bluff Creek Partners
- Director of Franchise Development, Dobbs Brothers Management Service
- President/CEO, Quivus Systems
- Sales, Critz Mercedes Benz
- Flight Officer, Fed Ex
- Executive Project Manager, Fed Ex
- Hundreds of self-employed lawyers
- Hundreds of lawyers at law firms across Mississippi, the South, and the nation
- Adams and Reese LLP
- Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC
- Balch & Bingham LLP
- Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP
- Butler Snow
- Copeland Cook Taylor & Bush PA
- Jones Walker LLP
- Phelps Dunbar LLP
- Watkins & Eager PLLC
- Wise Carter Child & Caraway, P.A.
- Partner, Jones Walker
- Partner, K&L Gates
- Attorney, Winston & Strawn
- Attorney, Alston & Bird
- Associate, King and Spalding
- MS 17th District Court Judge
- Attorney, North MS Rural Legal Services
- Attorney, MS Attorney General’s Office
- US Magistrate
- Attorney, Public Defender Arlington Cty
- Assistant US Attorney, Florida
- State Representative, House District 90
- S. Ambassador (retired)
- Benelux Desk Officer, US State Dept
- of Planning & Dev, Southaven
- of Veterans Affairs, MS State
- Budget and Management Analyst, Town of Fairview
- Lead Systems Administrator, MS Dept of Human Services
- Signals Intelligence Analyst, US Dept of Defense
- Attorney, MS Dept. of Public Welfare
- Attorney, US Dept. of Labor OSHA
- Park Ranger/Historian, National Park Service
- Attorney, City of Clarksdale
- Director of Resource Development, Memphis Chamber of Commerce
- Planning Director, City of Oxford
- Chief Compliance Officer, MS Dev Authority
- Mayor, Town of Prentiss
- Analyst, Natl Geospatial-Intel. Agency
- Anti-Trafficking Advisor, US AID
- of Legislative Affairs, MS Lt. Governor
- Intel/Security, Dept of Defense
- Attorney, US Dept of Labor-OSHA
- Museum Curator, City of Baldwyn
- Director of Planning and Development, City of Southaven
- Deputy Dir. Public Engagement, US EPA
- Advisor, U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Comm
- Member Initiatives, Natl. Republican Congressional Comm
- Special Agent, FBI
- Attorney, Kennedy Space Center
- Exec Vice President, Electric Power Assoc of MS
- President, Waring Oil
- Owner, Moran Resources
- Global Account Manager, Forum Energy Technologies
- Senior Attorney, Encana Corporation
- President, Tango Lima LLC
- Attorney, XTO Energy
- Vice President, Sanders Oil Company
- Vice President and General Counsel, Southern Star Central Gas Pipeline
- Counsel, Exxon
- Executive/Vice President, Electrical Power Assoc of Mississippi
- Sr. Tech Editor, Raytheon
- Account Manager, Dell EMC
- Sr. Software Developer, mTrade
- System Analyst, Verizon
- Shipping Manager, Atlantic Metrocast
- Sales, Carhartt
- Program Lead, Austal US Ship Building
- Safety Management, Toyota Boshoku
- Diabetes Sales Specialist, AstraZeneca
- Sr. Contract Dev Specialist, Oracle
- National Account Manager, Edgenet
- Director Business Dev, Johnson Controls
- President, Meridian Coca-Cola Bottling
- Finance Manager, Nissan
- Mgr Policy & Government Relations, Alkermes
- Engineer, Boeing
- Director of IT, Northrop Grumman
- Pharmacy Technician, Eli Lilly & Co
- Inspector, Coors Brewing Co.
- Associate Legal Researcher, Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium
Meet a Few Alumni
See real world examples of where a History degree can take you.
Elise Carroll
How, when, and why did you decide to study history?
See Elise’s Answer
Marshall Bennett
Tell us a bit about yourself.
See Marshall’s Answer
Laura Houston Santhanam
Talk about your path since graduation and your career goals.
See Laura ’s Answer
David Freeman
What has been your educational/career path since graduation?
See David’s Answer
Kathryn Leann Harris
Why did you decide to study history?
See Kathryn Leann’s Answer
Jordan Cavanaugh
What was your favorite history class?
See Jordan’s Answer
Joyce Ramay
Tell us about the educational/career path since UM.
See Joyce’s Answer
Thomas Burke
What is the value of studying history education in today’s world?
See Thomas’s Answer
Mathew Powell
What was a significant accomplishment from your time at UM?
See Mathew’s Answer