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history and language/literature

Instructional content is defined in code 30.4501.

Types of Degrees history and language/literature Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing history and language/literature can earn degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Associate’s Degree	315
Bachelor’s Degree	2

What history and language/literature Majors Need to Know

Coursework for history and language/literature develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that history and language/literature graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in history and language/literature emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• English Language — Importance 4.4 / 5; level 5.3 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 5.2 / 7.
• Law and Government — Importance 3.2 / 5; level 3.2 / 7.
• History and Archeology — Importance 3.2 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.
• Computers and Electronics — Importance 3.2 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

The skill set developed in a history and language/literature program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.

Abilities

The cognitive and physical abilities most relevant to history and language/literature careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, history and language/literature graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Getting Information	4.4 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.3 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.2 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	4.1 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.1 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.1 / 7
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others	4.1 / 7
Working with Computers	4.0 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.0 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	4.0 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by history and language/literature professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Sakai CLE	Computer based training software	—
Calendar and scheduling software	Calendar and scheduling software	—
iParadigms Turnitin	Information retrieval or search software	—
Course management system software	Computer based training software	—
Desire2Learn LMS software	Computer based training software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for history and language/literature graduates include:

• College Faculty Member
• Professor
• Lecturer
• Associate Professor
• Assistant Professor
• University Faculty Member
• College Professor
• Adjunct Instructor
• Instructor
• World History Teacher
• History Teacher
• South Asian History Professor
• Jewish History Professor
• Economic History Teacher
• African History Professor

What Can You Do With a history and language/literature Degree?

Graduates with a degree in history and language/literature commonly enter the following occupations:

Occupation	Job Growth	Median Salary	25th–75th Pctile
Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education	1.8%	$77,927	$66,306–$89,549

^{Job-growth = projected employment change for the parent occupation. Source: ONET / BLS Employment Projections.*}

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to history and language/literature graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Doctoral degree	37.0%
Bachelor’s degree	30.1%
Master’s degree	20.5%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	3.2%
High school diploma or equivalent	2.5%
Post-master’s certificate	1.9%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	1.7%
Postsecondary certificate	1.2%
Some college courses	1.0%
Post-doctoral training	0.6%
First professional degree	0.2%
Less than a high school diploma	0.1%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in history and language/literature?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 62.8% of history and language/literature degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	199	62.8%
Men	118	37.2%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of history and language/literature graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	111	35.0%
Asian	9	2.8%
Hispanic or Latino	176	55.5%
Black or African American	18	5.7%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander	1	0.3%
Two or More Races	1	0.3%
International Students	1	0.3%

^{See minority definition below.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	Annual Degrees Awarded
Multi Interdisciplinary Studies	134,694
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other	30,141
Biological and Physical Sciences	28,033
Data Analytics	12,891
Data Science	7,716
International/Globalization Studies	5,740
Nutrition Sciences	5,456
Behavioral Sciences	5,391
Sustainability Studies	4,374
Cognitive Science	3,121
Natural Sciences	2,648
Computational Science	2,395

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.