How Much Does History School Cost?
The value of looking into the past to understand the present and even potentially predict future events is part of what historians do. They undertake research and analysis of various historical records to get the historical developments of a certain activity or location and provide contextual analysis of events happening at present. They work in a variety of settings—from businesses to governments to historical associations to universities.
If being a historian sounds like a career for you then you need to prepare yourself for the costs associated with going to history school. The educational preparation needed for this career is quite lengthy since postgraduate studies are needed to get historian jobs. At the least, you will need to complete a master’s degree to work as a historian although a doctoral degree is required if you want to do your own research or teach in universities.
How much you pay for tuition, fees, books, supplies, housing and food while you’re still working towards getting your bachelor’s and master’s degrees in history will depend greatly on whether you will be attending a public or private school. You are bound to save more if you attend a public school in your state of residence because they give in-state tuition discounts to residents.
For a four-year bachelor’s degree in history, you can expect to shell out a little over $36,000 a year if you’re attending as an out-of-state student in a public institution to cover the cost of tuition, fees, books, supplies, room and board. However, in some public schools, these expenses can go as low as $10,000 annually while in private institutions, these can go as high as more than $60,000 a year. After obtaining your bachelor’s degree, you will need to get a master’s degree in history which takes around two years to complete. Depending on which school you go to, the cost can vary from $15,000 to $60,000 a year. Doctoral degrees which take an average of five years to finish are also an added cost if you wish to pursue further studies in the field. Tuition and living costs can vary since you’ll have to factor in the expenses associated with your dissertation—a main requirement to graduate in doctoral programs. The best way to get a sense of how much you’ll be spending will be to ask the school where you intend to enroll in for a breakdown of your expected expenses as a PhD in history student.
Another strategy to lower your overall college costs is to get your postgraduate degree from an online school. Doing so will enable you to work while you’re obtaining your master’s degree so you can pay for your tuition and other expenses and lessen your dependence on student loans. It will also do away with the necessity of having to stay in an apartment close to the school where you are enrolled in since the requirements can be completed online.
Just to give you an example of how much an online master’s degree in history would cost, let’s look at a couple of programs. The MA in History at Arizona State University has a per credit cost of $482. At Sam Houston State University, the cost of an online MA in History is $1,368 for three credit hours.
Seek out options for financial aid if you want to bring down your tuition costs further by talking with the financial aid advisor of your school. Both traditional and online classes have scholarship and grant opportunities that you might be eligible for. Some schools usually offer doctoral candidates with fellowship opportunities which will not only clear students of their tuition but also provide them with a stipend or monthly allowance in exchange for teaching some subjects.
Career Spotlight: Historian
A historian collects historical data from books, artifacts and other sources and analyze them. You will get the chance to find out if the historical information you obtain is authentic. You will be gi[...]
