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Best History Bachelor's Degree Schools

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2023 Best History Bachelor's Degree Schools

418 Colleges
$29,648 Avg Salary
$23,614 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best History Bachelor's Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, 32,731 people earned a degree or certificate in history, making the major the #31 most popular in the United States.

When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

The Best History Bachelor's Degree Schools ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 418 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best bachelor's degree programs for students. The factors used to develop this ranking include those related to how in-demand the school is, the overall quality of the school, and post-graduation wages, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best History Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the United States

Check out the history bachelor's degree programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.

Top 25 Top Schools for a Bachelor's in History

#1

Princeton University

Princeton, NJ

Our analysis found Princeton University to be the best school for history students who want to pursue a bachelor’s degree in the United States. Princeton is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Princeton.

Read full report on History at Princeton University

#2

University of Notre Dame

Notre Dame, IN

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Notre Dame. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best History Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the suburb of Notre Dame, Notre Dame is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

Full History at University of Notre Dame Report

#3

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

Out of the 418 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Pennsylvania landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the large city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Read More…

#4

Duke University

Durham, NC

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Duke University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best History Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large city of Durham, Duke is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

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#5

Yale University

New Haven, CT

The excellent bachelor’s degree programs at Yale University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best history schools in the United States. Located in the midsize city of New Haven, Yale is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on History at Yale University

#6

Brown University

Providence, RI

Brown University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for history students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #6 on the list. Brown is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Providence.

After completing their Bachelor's Degree, history graduates from Brown carry an average student debtload of $13,308.

Full History at Brown University Report

With a ranking of #7, American Public University System did quite well on this year’s best schools for history students working on their bachelor’s degree. American Military University is a fairly large private for-profit school located in the fringe town of Charles Town.

The average amount in student loans that history majors at American Military University take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $27,770.

Full History at American Public University System Report

#8

Williams College

Williamstown, MA

With a ranking of #8, Williams College did quite well on this year’s best schools for history students working on their bachelor’s degree. Williams is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Williamstown.

After completing their Bachelor's Degree, history graduates from Williams carry an average student debtload of $13,193.

Read full report on History at Williams College

#9

Harvard University

Cambridge, MA

Harvard University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for history students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #9 on the list. Located in the city of Cambridge, Harvard is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

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#10

Dartmouth College

Hanover, NH

With a ranking of #10, Dartmouth College did quite well on this year’s best schools for history students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the remote town of Hanover, Dartmouth is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.

History majors at Dartmouth take out an average of $17,074 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.

Full History at Dartmouth College Report

#11

Amherst College

Amherst, MA

Amherst College ranked #11 on this year’s Best History Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Amherst is a small private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Amherst.

After completing their Bachelor's Degree, history graduates from Amherst carry an average student debtload of $13,568.

Full History at Amherst College Report

#12

Georgetown University

Washington, DC

With a ranking of #12, Georgetown University did quite well on this year’s best schools for history students working on their bachelor’s degree. Georgetown is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Washington.

Full History at Georgetown University Report

#13

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

Northwestern University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for history students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #13 on the list. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Full History at Northwestern University Report

#14

College of the Holy Cross

Worcester, MA

College of the Holy Cross did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for history students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #14 on the list. Holy Cross is a small private not-for-profit school located in the medium-sized city of Worcester.

Full History at College of the Holy Cross Report

#15

Wake Forest University

Winston-Salem, NC

With a ranking of #15, Wake Forest University did quite well on this year’s best schools for history students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the midsize city of Winston-Salem, Wake Forest University is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population.

Read More…

#16

University of Chicago

Chicago, IL

University of Chicago ranked #16 on this year’s Best History Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. UChicago is a large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Chicago.

Full History at University of Chicago Report

#17

Tufts University

Medford, MA

Tufts University ranked #17 on this year’s Best History Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Tufts is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Medford.

After completing their Bachelor's Degree, history graduates from Tufts carry an average student debtload of $16,654.

Read More…

#18

Virginia Military Institute

Lexington, VA

Virginia Military Institute landed the #18 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree history programs. VMI is a small public school located in the town of Lexington.

Read full report on History at Virginia Military Institute

#19

Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN

Vanderbilt University ranked #19 on this year’s Best History Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

The average amount in student loans that history majors at Vanderbilt take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $19,646.

Full History at Vanderbilt University Report

#20

University of Virginia - Main Campus

Charlottesville, VA

With a ranking of #20, University of Virginia - Main Campus did quite well on this year’s best schools for history students working on their bachelor’s degree. University of Virginia is a very large public school located in the small suburb of Charlottesville.

While working on their Bachelor's Degree, history majors at University of Virginia accumulate an average of around $18,713 in student debt. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $227.

Read full report on History at University of Virginia - Main Campus

#21

Centre College

Danville, KY

Centre College landed the #21 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree history programs. Centre College of Kentucky is a small private not-for-profit school located in the distant town of Danville.

Read More…

#22

Boston College

Chestnut Hill, MA

With a ranking of #22, Boston College did quite well on this year’s best schools for history students working on their bachelor’s degree. Boston College is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chestnut Hill.

While working on their Bachelor's Degree, history majors at Boston College accumulate an average of around $16,488 in student debt.

Read More…

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign landed the #23 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree history programs. Located in the small city of Champaign, UIUC is a public college with a fairly large student population.

This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $434, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on History at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

#24

New York University

New York, NY

With a ranking of #24, New York University did quite well on this year’s best schools for history students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the large city of New York, NYU is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

The average amount in student loans that history majors at NYU take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $19,599. For students who choose a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly student loan payment is $732.

Read full report on History at New York University

#25

Kenyon College

Gambier, OH

Kenyon College landed the #25 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best bachelor’s degree history programs. Kenyon is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Gambier.

Read full report on History at Kenyon College

Rest of the Top Best History Bachelor's Degree Schools

#26

Salisbury University

Salisbury, MD
#27

Gonzaga University

Spokane, WA
#29

Emory University

Atlanta, GA
#30

George Washington University

Washington, DC
#31

National University

La Jolla, CA
#32

Monmouth University

West Long Branch, NJ
#34

Virginia Tech

Blacksburg, VA
#35

Ashland University

Ashland, OH
#40

Barnard College

New York, NY
#41

The College of Wooster

Wooster, OH
#42

SUNY Cortland

Cortland, NY
#46

University of Northern Iowa

Cedar Falls, IA
#48

Gettysburg College

Gettysburg, PA
#49

Nevada State College

Henderson, NV

Remaining Award Winners

This section shows the remainder of the colleges awarded a Best History Bachelor's Degree Schools badge. Showing in this list means the college was ranked in the top 15% of the 418 different United States history schools we analyzed.

Rank College Location
51 Cornell University Ithaca, NY
52 University of Scranton Scranton, PA
53 Millersville University of Pennsylvania Millersville, PA
54 University of California - Berkeley Berkeley, CA
55 Sam Houston State University Huntsville, TX
56 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC
57 Columbia College Columbia, MO
58 University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh Oshkosh, WI
59 Texas A&M University - College Station College Station, TX
60 University of California - Davis Davis, CA
61 Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania Slippery Rock, PA
62 University of Wisconsin - Madison Madison, WI

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are some additional great schools for History students that almost earned our Best History Bachelor's Degree Schools award.

Rank College Location
63 Towson University Towson, MD
64 University of Maryland - College Park College Park, MD
65 Middlebury College Middlebury, VT
66 Boston University Boston, MA
67 Stephen F Austin State University Nacogdoches, TX
68 Smith College Northampton, MA
69 University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT
70 University of Mary Washington Fredericksburg, VA
71 Wabash College Crawfordsville, IN
72 Iowa State University Ames, IA
73 Minnesota State University - Mankato Mankato, MN
74 University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA
75 William & Mary Williamsburg, VA
76 University of Houston - Clear Lake Houston, TX
77 Kean University Union, NJ
78 Wellesley College Wellesley, MA
79 University of Nebraska - Lincoln Lincoln, NE
80 University of California - Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA
81 Utah State University Logan, UT
82 Oakland University Rochester Hills, MI
83 North Carolina State University Raleigh, NC

History by Region

View the Best History Bachelor's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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