Historians are an integral part of society. The past is why things are the way they are, whether one year ago or 200 years ago. An undergraduate degree in history is beneficial, but a master's will bring you from scrambling to find a job to becoming a coveted part of your field. An online master's degree will set you apart from other historians with bachelor's degrees.
If you have an interest in history and/or writing, teaching, culture and people, a history degree may be the best field of study for you. Getting your master's degree in history online--whatever the concentration--will prepare you to effectively teach in whatever capacity you choose. If you aren't interested in teaching in the classroom setting, your master's degree will be useful in helping you guide the curriculum of a high school, university or museum. You may even be interested in becoming a curator at a museum. The possibilities are endless.
An online history degree can be earned as quickly or slowly as you choose. That's the great thing about it. The flexibility makes it a great option for someone with a full-time job or a family. An online master's degree in history can take as short as 18 months or as long as two years, according to Norwich University's online degrees page. Before you start your program, map out your study schedule so you can set goals and stick to your plan along the way.
A misconception about online master's degrees is that they isolate the student and keep him from human interaction. However, with the technology available at many of the online institutions, students interact via online forums, chat rooms and video chats. This makes it difficult to cheat because you have to be fully engaged in the discussions and reading to succeed in the program.
With dozens of online master's degrees in history available to you, you can earn a degree from an accredited university online. Some of the major online universities you can choose from include Norwich University, which offers a popular military history degree; Walden University, which offers an American history master's degree online; Liberty University, which offers multiple education and history degrees; and Ashford University, which offers an Asian history online master's degree. There are many more online institutions to choose from, but this is a good starting point.