What should I major in to be a History Teacher?

All year, I’ve been planning on majoring in History and minoring in something else I haven’t decided on. However, my history teacher recently told me that it would be a good idea to either double major in History and Education, or major in Education and minor in History. I then talked to my counselor, and she told me that I should get a degree in History Education, which I didn’t know was even a thing, which is, apparently, a combination of a History major and an Education major. What course should I follow?

Also, been thinking about minoring in International Studies. Think it would be a very interesting field of study and might expand my job opportunities of being a teacher doesn’t fall through. Any thoughts?

Are you open to getting a masters in education? That could open up your options a lot for undergrad.

I think the more compelling approach would be for you to plan on a history major with an education studies minor. Paths that emphasize education at too early a stage might leave you relatively deficient with respect to your core interest in history.

Double major in history & secondary education.

Look up the teacher credential requirements in the state or region you want to teach in.

History major and minor: another language (Spanish recommended) + either another minor or a selection of courses in social sciences (geography, economics, political science).
History teacher often don’t just teach history, but various social sciences.
In addition, there’s an oversupply of social studies teachers, which means that being able to teach history in Spanish will be a big distinguishing factor.
As to how you become a teacher, states have two systems

  • either full major (ie., history) with volunteering etc + Master’s degree in teaching/education
    or
  • education degree with a concentration in history/social science ← not all states offer this nowadays

You can also do Teach for America: top university (flagship or top private), history major (+ ^) with top grades + Teac for America.

With a history degree, you learn how to read and synthesize quickly, which is also useful in business. In that case, your selection of courses would lead to a business certificate and you’d need to look for internships where your reading/writing skills are used.

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