Why Study History at Keele? - Keele University
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History

Why Study History at Keele?

Studying History is intellectually stimulating, morally challenging and culturally satisfying, and contrary to current myth is also an effective passport to the "real world" of work.

What do Keele historians do when they leave us? Nationally, universities rely on first destination records to monitor employability. Within six months of leaving, 96% of Keele University History graduates are in full time employment or further study - well above the national average.

Recent career choices have included sports writer with the Daily Star, environmental activism, accelerated graduate management programmes with major multi-nationals and the police service.

Viewed over the longer term, the evidence shows that studying history opens a surprising number of doors. Amongst our History alumni we have the Director General of Oftel, an Assistant Director of the British Council, a Permanent Secretary in the Civil Service, Chairman of a brewery, many barristers, Secretary General of a Trade Union, a Director of Education, Head of the Press Office at ITN, merchant bankers, a Prison Governor, accountants, publishers, journalists, industrialists, playwrights, a minister in the government of Gibraltar, head of a Cambridge College and our first female Vice-Chancellor.

But studying history doesn't just offer interesting careers: it also offers real flexibility in people's working lives. A random sample of 21 students who entered Keele between 1968 and 1988 (mean average 1973) reveals that only three had remained in the same career throughout the period studied. Most Keele historians have more than one career. Some of the career changes were fairly obvious progressions, for example from language tutor to teacher, from social worker to government advisor, from librarian to publisher. Some were more surprising, for example from farm worker to social worker, from lecturer to psychotherapist, from teacher to solicitor, from manager to director of a charity, from barrister to civil servant, from P.A. to teacher.

The evidence is that Keele historians are well adapted to meet the changing challenges of the employment market and this almost certainly reflects the advantages of having read dual honours at a well-reputed institution of higher education.

That said Keele also produces professional historians. As of 2001 there were 40 Keele graduates listed as teaching history in twenty different UK universities and seven of these graduates are professors. Other Keele historians are to be found as archivists and museum curators. We not only prepare people for the professions, public service, teaching and business but also as professional historians.

History opens many doors.