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and institutional records, newspapers and other periodicals, photographs, interviews, films, electronic media, and unpublished manuscripts, such as personal diaries and letters.
Also called: Collections Specialist · County Historian · Historian · Historic Architectural Resources Curator · Historic Interpreter · Historic Preservation Coordinator
Median pay (national)
$74,050
$38,630–$128,500 (10th–90th)
Employed (US)
3,140
BLS OEWS, May 2024
Outlook 2024–34
+2.2%
~300 openings/yr
Typical entry
Master's degree
What the numbers say
Refit analysis ·Pay for historians shows an unusually wide range: the top 10% earn $128,500 versus $38,630 at the bottom 10% — 3.3x. The median of $74,050 leaves roughly 74% of headroom to the 90th percentile, which is where seniority, specialization, and the skills below tend to pay off.
Refit analysis ·Employment is projected to change +2.2% from 2024 to 2034 — about as fast as the 3% all-occupation average. Even so, BLS projects about 300 openings a year, mostly to replace workers who retire or change careers.
Refit analysis ·Where you work moves the number a lot. Across the 29 states with released data, District of Columbia pays the most for this role (median $117,960, +59% vs the national median), while Utah sits lowest at $32,000 — a 269% spread for the same job title.
Refit analysis ·O*NET rates Reading Comprehension, Writing, Critical Thinking as the highest-importance skills here — so a resume aimed at this role should lead with evidence of those, not a generic skills list. On the tools side, O*NET flags Adobe Acrobat, ESRI ArcGIS software, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software as in-demand technologies for this role.
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Top skills employers ask for
Ranked by O*NET importance for this occupation.
- Reading Comprehension
- Writing
- Critical Thinking
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Active Learning
- Learning Strategies
- Monitoring
- Science
- Mathematics
What they actually do
Core O*NET tasks for this role.
- Gather historical data from sources such as archives, court records, diaries, news files, and photographs, as well as from books, pamphlets, and periodicals.
- Prepare publications and exhibits, or review those prepared by others, to ensure their historical accuracy.
- Speak to various groups, organizations, and clubs to promote the aims and activities of historical societies.
- Organize data, and analyze and interpret its authenticity and relative significance.
- Organize information for publication and for other means of dissemination, such as via storage media or the Internet.
- Conduct historical research as a basis for the identification, conservation, and reconstruction of historic places and materials.
- Research the history of a particular country or region, or of a specific time period.
- Conduct historical research, and publish or present findings and theories.
- Recommend actions related to historical art, such as which items to add to a collection or which items to display in an exhibit.
- Research and prepare manuscripts in support of public programming and the development of exhibits at historic sites, museums, libraries, and archives.
Tools & technology
- Adobe Acrobat
- ESRI ArcGIS software
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Office software
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- Microsoft Word
- Adobe InDesign
- Adobe Photoshop
- Extensible markup language XML
- IBM SPSS Statistics
- Microsoft Active Server Pages ASP
- Structured query language SQL
- Adobe Dreamweaver
- Archival databases
- ArchiveGrid
- Archives Wiki
Knowledge areas
- History and Archeology
- English Language
- Sociology and Anthropology
- Geography
- Administrative
- Education and Training
- Communications and Media
- Fine Arts