History: Further study

A 2011 HESA survey of 2010 graduates indicates that six months after graduation 22% of history graduates had gone on to full-time further study. Some chose to specialise at Masters or PhD level in an area of history that interested them during their undergraduate degree course. Others chose to gain an essential qualification for a specific career area.

Many postgraduate courses accept graduates from any subject, and this allows history graduates to choose subjects as diverse as accountancy, journalism, law, museum studies, teaching and librarianship. These courses provide you with vocational training skills in discrete occupational areas.

Popular areas for further study include the Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) in primary and secondary teaching, Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL), Masters courses in information management, and certificates in corporate finance and personnel practice.

For more information on postgraduate study, training courses and funding opportunties see:

• Institute of Historical Research (IHR)  
• Royal Historical Society  
• Higher Education Academy - Subject Centre for History, Classics and Archaeology  

These trends show only what previous graduates in your subject did immediately upon graduating. Over the course of their career - the first few years in particular - many others will opt for some form of further study, either part time or full time. If further study interests you, start by thinking about postgraduate study in the UK and search courses and research to identify your options.

For details relating to finance and the application process, look at funding my further study.