Historians are often asked: “what can you do with a degree in history?” Whether it’s an undergraduate major, an MA or a PhD, the diversity of careers that people who study history go on to pursue might surprise you.
Here is one great example, from TIME magazine:
“Meet the Historians Who Track Down War Criminals”
“Historians have the background in the culture, language and politics of particular regions of the world; they know where to look for the sources that might prove who was responsible for particular crimes. This kind of research relies on personal testimony, written records, photographs — and today, social media.
An important part of their work is creating the narrative, the story that the U.S. Attorney can present in court. This means putting together the threads that link pieces of evidence, building a full picture of a person’s role in human rights abuses. A particular challenge is state-sponsored abuses, where historians must contend with (in some cases) decades of cover-ups and silencing.”
