2024 Best History Doctor's Degree Schools
When it comes to popularity, a doctor's degree in
history sits in the middle of the road, ranking #19 out of 36 majors in the country. As such, the degree program isn't offered at every college in the United States, but there are schools that do have a program in the field that are top-notch when it comes to quality.
In 2024, College Factual analyzed 103 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best History Doctor's Degree Schools ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 721 doctor's degrees in history during the 2020-2021 academic year.
Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology
Choosing a Great History School for Your Doctor's Degree
The history doctor's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. Important measures of a quality history program can vary widely even among the top schools. When choosing a school we recommend considering some of the following factors:
Quality Overall Is Important
The overall quality of a doctor's degree school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges for a Doctor's Degree ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.
Average Earnings
To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their doctor's degree from the school. After all, your doctor's degree won't mean much if it doesn't help you find a job that will help you earn a living.
Other Factors We Consider
In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:
- Major Focus - How much a school focuses on history students vs. other majors.
- Major Demand - The number of history students who choose to seek a doctor's degree at the school.
- Educational Resources - The amount of money and other resources allocated to students while they are pursuing their degree. These resources include such things as number of students per instructor and education expenditures per student.
- Student Debt - How much debt history students go into to obtain their doctor's degree and how well they are able to pay back that debt.
- Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized history related body.
Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for history students working on their doctor's degree.
One Size Does Not Fit All
Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best History Doctor's Degree Schools list, to help you choose the best school for you.
Best Schools for Doctorate Students to Study History in the United States
Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a doctor's degree in history. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
15 Top Schools for a Doctorate in History
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type
11
Annual Graduates
It's difficult to beat University of Pennsylvania if you wish to pursue a doctor's degree in history. Located in the large city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a doctorate in history from University of Pennsylvania
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type
8
Annual Graduates
It is hard to beat Princeton University if you want to pursue a doctor's degree in history. Princeton is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the small city of Princeton.More information about a doctorate in history from Princeton University
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type
10
Annual Graduates
It's difficult to beat Yale University if you wish to pursue a doctor's degree in history. Located in the city of New Haven, Yale is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.More information about a doctorate in history from Yale University
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type
18
Annual Graduates
Harvard University is one of the best schools in the country for getting a doctor's degree in history. Harvard is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Cambridge.More information about a doctorate in history from Harvard University
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type
11
Annual Graduates
Located in the city of Chicago, UChicago is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.More information about a doctorate in history from University of Chicago