If I wanted to be a history major and plan to go to law school or go to grad school in something within the category of public policy/public affairs, does it really matter where I go to undergrad? I was told that history is a “bread and butter major”; pretty much any good college also has a good history department. Can anyone testify to the extent that this is true?
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Beyond large differences in the range of their course content, history programs vary in the methods they instill, their expectations for the clear conveyance of ideas (e.g., organization and writing), the extent to which they draw from other disciplines and their research opportunities.
If you would like suggestions for specific schools, you would benefit from saying more about your general preferences and academic background.
Based on your interests, you also may want to consider an undergraduate major in public policy, which tends toward a practical orientation, and which relies on courses in government, economics and philosophy for its foundation.
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William & Mary (the second-oldest university in the US and located on the edge of Colonial Williamsburg) is an excellent place to study history. I believe it is considered to have the top graduate program in US colonial history. W&M also has a public policy program and a well-regarded law school. I’m sure, however, there are many schools with strong history departments that would suit your purposes. What else are you looking for in a college/university?
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If you list your gpa, test scores, state of residence, whether you need financial aid and your budget, people here can do a better job at suggesting schools.
William&Mary is very good but it also is hard to get into and expensive if you don’t live in Virginia. I don’t believe they give financial aid to out of state students.
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The answer varies a bit, depending on whether you are a real history buff who doesn’t plan on becoming an historian or a pragmatist who figures that history is a subject you are good at and is seen as a typical UG major for people who go into law/public policy, but they both start at the same place: if grad school in law or public policy is your longer term goal, can and will your family pay for both UG & G w/o debt to you?
If the answer is yes- happy days! we can get on to the more nuanced conversation. If the answer is no- then your college search is grounded in what you can afford without debt: both a JD & and MPP are ferociously expensive. Note that the top programs in both cases increasingly want 1-3 years work experience before you start- and that the ones who come through without that experience are almost always truly dazzlingly able people who have already achieved a remarkable amount even as an UG.
If history as a major is more of a pragmatic choice, then be aware that the coin of the realm for getting legal/public policy-type jobs is internships- which are typically effectively unpaid (you may get college credit or a stipend, but they rarely pay enough to cover the cost of doing it).
If history is a real love, then look at the history departments of your favorite affordable colleges- look at the professors, what their students (UG & G) are doing, where the areas of interest are.
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What areas of interest do you have within the broader area of “history”? For instance, I am less interested in political, economic and military history and more interested in the history of ordinary life, which leads to an interest in material culture and preservation etc. At some schools, American Studies may also be of interest.
Another thing to think about is, whose history? I am older and grew up with the history of white men. I was so bored 
Some schools have made a greater effort at diversifying content of courses, and some are more traditional. Look at curricula and faculty research and publications to get a feel for this.
There ARE jobs in history, especially museum and preservation work. William and Mary, mentioned above, has a good program in historic preservation- I forget if it is undergrad or grad.
Regardless of what you study and where, I agree with @collegemom3717 that internships, volunteering and maybe working in jobs related to what you want to do, will be important. I am an older person but even in my 50’s I did internships or volunteered, with a national historic museum organization, and also with a large project to restore a steeple in an historic meeting house in Boston. As a result I had access to jobs educating children, or giving tours, or doing fundraising- a variety of paths. And you may not want to intern in that direction, rather, if you still want law, you can try to get experience with that path.
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I’ll be honest. I just like history and see it as a very versatile subject, but I’m not too sure of my career plans. I like the idea of William & Mary, but I’m not in state and I don’t think I can afford OOS public. All I’m gonna say is I live in a state with a mediocre flagship university, but I qualify for a lot of financial aid at most private universities. My GPA is 4.5 weighted, 3.95 unweighted. Don’t have test scores yet, but PSAT was 1370. I prefer somewhere warm and in a city, but with an enclosed campus. I don’t want somewhere too conservative or too “preppy”. My parents want me to go to a top prestigious university. I’m just wondering whether going to somewhere like Rice, JHU, Emory, or Vanderbilt would be a good idea even if those schools aren’t particularly known for history.
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Also – my interests lie mostly in the history of culture and religion, but I also like history of politics too. I find American history kind of boring actually. I’m more interested in international history.
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Tulane.
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I had the impression that Tulane was mostly a party school? I might be wrong about that though.
Pretty much. Most good colleges have solid programs in the most popular liberal arts disciplines like history, English, and biology.
That said, anyone interested in the history of other parts of the world should check out offerings in the area studies departments as well. For instance, a student interested in Asian history may prefer to attend a college that offers Chinese, Japanese, and Korean (e.g. Wellesley) instead of a college with relatively limited offerings in Asian languages (e.g. Reed).
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If you are lower income, Questbridge may be a possibility.
Questbridge is a program that selects top lower income stusents for top colleges and offers them the equivalent of 12 ED chances and a full ride.
If your family’s income is under 65k with no significant assets, you may qualify. Look into it.
St Olaf and its Conversation programs may interest you.
Tufts also, due to its international focus, could be of interest.
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As an alternative suggestion, look into Georgetown.
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I don’t think I’d qualify for that. I’m nervous about Tufts since it’s so cold in Boston and it seems to be need aware (w/ bad financial aid), but I’ll look into it.
I think most schools have pretty good history programs. Again, look at curricula, courses and faculty. Would you also be interested in international relations? (I second Tufts…). I also like Clark University, which has a lot of international students and some interesting courses.
Check out the Colleges that Change Lives website. Also google “little Ivies” for some top liberal arts schools.
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Most top colleges will be in the cold because that’s where the first colleges were started (W&M notwithstanding).
Tufts doesn’t have bad financial aid that I know of, however they are need-aware indeed and if the NPC tells you it’s bad financially for your family then no need to include it on your list.
Does your family make more than 65K? I figured that if you qualify for “a lot of financial aid” at private universities, you’d be within that bracket, unless you’re in the 125k and under bracket?
125K and under bracket but more than 65K. Net cost at a few privates looked to be potentially less than state school.
I looked at net cost for Tufts on Naviance and it seemed to be significantly more than a few other top privates like Rice, Vanderbilt, and Emory + liberal arts colleges like Pomona.
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Sorry yes Tufts’ financial aid is not up there with some other schools. Amherst would be a good possibility, maybe Williams. You can try with an Ivy with excellent aid too. Other privates may sometimes surprise you.
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Rice, JHU, Emory, or Vanderbilt? Great idea. Humanities at JHU are very underrated because of their reputation as a science school. Same with Rice because their engineering profile also overshadows their humanities. And Rice is very generous with financial aid.
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If you want to go to grad school for law or public policy/public affairs, why not start on those topics as an undergrad? Why History?