History and Business

History and business might seem an unlikely pairing at first glance, but the combination has real intellectual coherence. History trains you to understand how organisations, economies, and institutions change over time, to evaluate evidence critically, and to construct persuasive arguments from complex material. Business studies develop your understanding of management, strategy, finance, marketing, and how organisations operate in competitive environments.

Together they produce graduates who can bring historical perspective to commercial problems and apply analytical rigour to strategic questions.

At the University of Exeter, this three-year full-time programme draws on Exeter's strengths in both disciplines. You will study historical periods, themes, and methods alongside core business disciplines, developing the capacity to think both analytically and contextually. The programme includes a sandwich year, a year abroad, and a work placement, providing an exceptional range of professional and international experience before you graduate.

This combination of academic breadth and practical engagement is one of the programme's most distinctive features, and it means you leave Exeter not only with a degree but with real evidence of what you can do in professional and international settings.

The joint degree reflects Exeter's commitment to education that is both intellectually serious and practically relevant, and the business and history departments each bring research-active staff whose expertise enriches the curriculum.

History and business graduates are well placed for careers in management, strategy, consultancy, finance, the civil service, policy, journalism, education, and the heritage sector. The combination of critical thinking, communication, and commercial awareness is valued across a wide range of graduate employers, and the programme also provides a strong foundation for postgraduate study in business, history, or management.