History Apprenticeships
What are the best apprenticeships for budding historians?
Does the past fascinate you? Are you eager to learn about the people who lived before and the events that took place?
You should consider taking a history-based apprenticeship.
Why History is useful for apprenticeships
While English, Maths and Science are the core subjects, history applies to several industries and offers up some interesting and unusual career prospects.
From preserving artefacts to forecasting the future based on historical precedence, history is woven through our everyday lives.
Several UK history and heritage apprenticeships are available to help you take a step back in time and a step forward in your chosen career.
Transferable skills
Much of being a good historian lies in your ability to research. Historical documents and artefacts are often incomplete, so you must be curious and have the imagination to ‘fill in the blanks’.
Fact-checking and using more than one source when possible is crucial. Restoration, whether of a tangible object or an abstract concept, takes time, so you must be patient.
There are many calculations and estimates involved in history, plus detective work. You are trying to piece together what happened, and sometimes, there is no way of knowing how accurate you are, so you need to be ok with ambiguity.
These skills lend themselves to various careers, including journalists, lawyers, and analysts.
Intermediate roles
The first level of UK apprenticeship is slightly confusingly called level two or intermediate apprenticeship. These entry-level programmes were created for young people to follow their passions into gainful employment while closing the skills gap in the UK workforce. They are also suitable for older people who wish to change careers.
Entry Requirements
To be eligible for a UK apprenticeship, you :
- Must be 16 or older
- Must not be in full-time education
- Must have the right to live and work in the UK
Each apprenticeship may have specific stipulations determined by the provider and the job role. For a history-based apprenticeship, you will usually need at least five strong GCSEs, including English, maths and a related subject such as literature, humanities, or politics, depending on the type of apprenticeship you apply for.
Don’t worry if you don’t quite meet the basic requirements. Some entry-level apprenticeships enable students to complete the missing qualifications during the first year of the apprenticeship. It never hurts to ask!
Qualifications gained
Graduating from an entry-level apprenticeship grants you the equivalent of 5 good GCSE passes.
Level 2 history apprenticeships are available at:
- Historic England – curates and displays heritage and historical apprenticeships at Level 2 and beyond.
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Advanced/Higher/Degree targeted at A-Level
The next level up (Level 3) apprenticeships are also called advanced apprenticeships. Higher, apprenticeships are levels 4 and 5, while levels 6 and 7 are degree apprenticeships.
Entry Requirements
The basic entry requirements for a history-based advanced apprenticeship are often the same as intermediate – five or more GCSEs of C or above (or equivalent). One in English and at least one in a subject related to the apprenticeship, eg science, economics or media.
Higher and degree apprenticeships typically need good A-level passes in the same subjects.
Qualifications gained
You will graduate from an advanced apprenticeship with the equivalent of 2 A-Level passes.
A higher apprenticeship will earn you the equivalent of a foundation degree, and a degree apprenticeship is equivalent to a full Bachelor’s or Master’s degree, depending on your level of study.
Advanced, higher and degree history apprenticeships include:
Museum Association offers many apprenticeships from level 2 to degree level in subjects, including:
The Chartered Institute for Archaeologists offers level 3 to 7 degree apprenticeships from Archaeological Technician to Archaeological Specialist.
Industry Focus
History is the backbone of our heritage and tourism industry, overlapping into arts, media, education, and civil service, to name just a few. Let’s break that down a little further with some of the most popular sectors related to history.
Arts and heritage is a wide umbrella term encompassing a multitude of careers, from antiques dealers, museum curators and tour guides, to restoration experts, heritage managers and archaeologists.
There are hands-on jobs and advisory jobs, with the opportunity to travel in some cases.
You can use your knowledge of history to restore, recount or even replicate history, bringing bygone ages and events to life for new audiences.
Jobs include:
- Archaeologist
- Curator
- Tour guide
- Museum and gallery technician
The National Trust offers a variety of apprenticeships in subjects including Heritage Crafts, Business Administration, and Project Management.
Your knowledge of history could also be put to good use within the Government or civil services.
Having a good knowledge of the history of a particular town or city could land you a job on the heritage side of a local government or public sector management.
Jobs such as registrar involve cataloguing, preparing historical items for display, arranging exhibitions and more. Similarly, archivists appraise and preserve items of historic interest that they have sourced and collected, usually for museums, galleries and occasionally private collections.
Librarians don’t just make sure the library runs smoothly day-to-day, they also review books, documents and historical documents to determine their suitability and worth to the library.
Strode College offers a Level 4 Historic Environment Advice Assistant apprenticeship, and you can find apprenticeships at the British Library.
Alternatively, you could pass on your love of history by teaching or publishing research. History teachers in schools tend to have a wide knowledge base to fit with the national curriculum. Professors and lecturers may specialise in one narrower field – such as World War I or the reign of a particular monarch.
If teaching isn’t your thing, historians usually work alone, researching and honing their knowledge of a particular historical period or event, such as a significant battle or epidemic. Historians may work as lecturers, tour guides, and archivists, as well as writers and authors.
You may work in a school or university, in an office as part of a team, or from home, depending on your role and specialist subject.
The Institute of Historical Research offers several paid internships each year.
Other Opportunities
There are many other careers related to history, including:
- Park ranger
- Paralegal
- Journalist
- Researcher
- History writer
- Documentary filmmaker
- Librarian
- Genealogist
- Anthropologist
- Sociologist
- Political Scientist
- Geographer
- Lawyer
Conclusion
The UK has such a rich history, and there are several industries dedicated to preserving and amplifying the voices of those long gone.
With so many wonderful apprenticeship opportunities surrounding history, the past could be your future. To find out more about history apprenticeships near you, please search our website using the location and subject filters.
We hope this quick guide has been helpful. We’d love to hear from you, so if you have any questions, please, don’t hesitate to get in touch!
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