If you’re thinking about studying for a humanities degree, you may also be considering the career prospects for your chosen qualification. You may have heard conflicting advice on what a humanities degree can offer from an employment perspective. We’re here to clear up the misconceptions and guide you through some of the career options that humanities graduates enjoy. We’ll also look at different types of humanities degrees, the skills you gain and areas of specialisation you can pursue.
What types of humanities degrees are there?
It’s important to remember that humanities is a broad term referring to subjects that focus on human society and culture, including the arts. This may include some social sciences as well. Humanities subjects encourage critical study and analysis of the human experience.
Humanities degrees are offered at the diploma, undergraduate, and postgraduate level, with the highest level of academic study being a PhD. You’re likely familiar with some of the more popular subject specialisations for humanities, including:
- Law
- Journalism
- History
- Philosophy
- Geography
- Sociology
- Anthropology
- Education
- Languages
Humanities degree classification may differ between study destinations. For example, psychology may be classed as a science in some contexts, while in others as a social science. Always check with your prospective university or look at the institution’s prospectus.
What skills do you learn in a humanities degree?
One of the major benefits of a degree in humanities is the transferable skill set that you gain. These can be very valuable both personally and professionally. While humanities qualifications are often academic degrees, rather than professional degrees, this does not mean you won’t be prepared to enter the workplace and make a valuable contribution.
Some of the essential skills and abilities you can develop by studying for a humanities degree are:
- Communication skills
- Research skills
- Creativity and lateral thinking
- Information synthesis and analysis
- Argumentation
- Interpersonal skills
You will also gain insight and knowledge in a particular field that can help you confidently enter a professional environment, for example in law or journalism.
What are humanities graduate employment rates like?
Understandably, you are probably interested in what humanities graduates do when they finish their degrees. We explore some of the data available in the UK to give you a better sense of the graduate outcomes and career prospects. This covers the social sciences, the creative arts and additional humanities subjects.
For creative arts graduates in the UK over 50 per cent were in full-time work and just under 30 per cent in part-time work (Prospects: What do Graduates do? 23/24). Unemployment for graduates in the field was about five per cent. The average starting salary was approximately GBP 23,000. This is slightly below the average graduate salary of GBP 27,000. Graduate Outcomes for specialisations in the creative arts in the UK include:
|
Subject |
Working Full-Time |
Working Part-Time |
Further Study |
|
Art |
37.7% |
28.5% |
6.3% |
|
Design |
59.4% |
20.2% |
2.9% |
|
Media Studies |
55.6% |
18% |
5.1% |
|
Performing Arts |
46.3% |
24.9% |
6.5% |
|
Cinema & Photography |
52.3% |
25.2% |
2.9% |
We now turn our attention to the graduate outcomes for students in the UK for some other popular humanities subjects:
|
Subject |
Working Full-Time |
Working Part-Time |
Further Study |
|
English |
48.4% |
12.7% |
12.2% |
|
English Literature |
47.9% |
13% |
11.9% |
|
History |
47.9% |
9.3% |
15% |
|
Philosophy |
46.4% |
9.8% |
13.2% |
|
Languages |
55.2% |
10.3% |
10.6% |
You may also be wondering about subjects that are classified as both humanities and social sciences. We have you covered with some information on UK graduate outcomes for some specialisations:
|
Subject |
Working Full-Time |
Working Part-Time |
Further Study |
|
Education |
56.9% |
11.8% |
7.9% |
|
Geography |
58.2% |
6.9% |
11.9% |
|
Law |
53.3% |
8.1% |
9.8% |
|
Psychology |
48.7% |
11.9% |
10.4% |
|
Sociology |
57% |
10.8% |
8.1% |
|
Politics |
55.4% |
7.7% |
12.2% |
What sort of careers are there for humanities graduates?
As previously mentioned, a degree in humanities provides you with several transferable skills. This will open up many career opportunities in different sectors and industries. However, some roles have proved particularly popular for humanities graduates.
Teaching
Pursuing a career in education as a teacher is a well-known and often popular route for humanities graduates. The skills developed during your degree are very transferable into an educational setting, from debate to presentation. Teaching and lecturing can be extremely rewarding careers, with the opportunity to empower and help others explore ideas.
If you have not studied education as a major in your undergraduate degree, you can still become a teacher after you graduate by obtaining a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE). In addition, there can be additional ways of qualifying to teach, including professional development programmes and work experience. Remember that in many countries you must be an accredited and registered teacher with a professional body to teach.
Marketing and Public Relations
With the acquisition of communication, creativity and critical thinking skills, humanities graduates are often well-suited to roles in marketing and public relations. These roles require strategic thinking, advanced interpersonal skills, and an understanding of what motivates people. In addition, writing skills form a very important part of these roles, an additional skill that a humanities degree teaches.
Law
Becoming a lawyer is another popular route for humanities graduates. This may be via a professional law degree or, in some cases, studying a law conversion course if your undergraduate degree was not in the subject. A graduate diploma or pre-master’s programme are examples of qualifications you can pursue. You will already have foundational knowledge and skills from your humanities degree, and often LLB degrees will incorporate other humanities subjects.
Some of the essential skills that you’ll gain from a humanities degree that is advantageous as a lawyer include communication, critical thinking, information synthesis, presentation, and argumentation. Your analytical abilities are also very important when reviewing data and information related to legal matters. Lateral thinking is another plus point, as you can approach a challenge or problem from multiple angles searching for the most appropriate solution.
Writing and Editing
Humanities graduates are often well-suited to roles involving copywriting and editing. This is especially true for those who have studied languages, English, and creative arts subjects. These degrees often involve attention to detail, accuracy and quality writing. You’ll be well prepared for working in environments that focus on using language to communicate as effectively as possible. Writing and editing roles also require creativity and excellent time-management skills. You might spend your days composing newsletters, writing manuals, generating product descriptions, and managing a company’s social media accounts.
Public sector
Another popular career destination for humanities graduates is within the public, charity and non-governmental organisation sector. A humanities degree allows you to understand society, culture and the human experience, encouraging you to think of effective ways to address some of the challenges facing communities. Communication, interpersonal skills and advanced reasoning and writing skills are essential to successfully taking on these roles. Remember that you can gain experience in this sector through work experience, internships and volunteering while studying.
Now that you have a better sense of your career options after studying a humanities degree, you may want to explore further. Make sure to read our guide to the top skills for 2024, the best jobs for graduate students, and how to find a graduate job.
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