History
History is the discipline through which we understand how the world became what it is. It is the study of change and continuity in human society across time, examining not just events and individuals but the structures, forces, and ideas that shape how people live. Done well, history teaches you to handle complex evidence carefully, to construct arguments from incomplete information, to understand perspectives very different from your own, and to think critically about how the past is used and misused in the present.
At the University of Glasgow, this four-year full-time degree offers a wide-ranging programme that spans medieval to modern times and reaches across the globe. Glasgow's research expertise spans Scottish, British, European, American, and global history, and includes specialisms in slavery studies, gender history, and the history of war, intelligence, and genocide. You will study across this breadth during your degree, drawing on the insights of scholars whose work is shaping the field, while developing the research, analytical, and writing skills that are the discipline's core outputs.
A year abroad is built into the programme, giving you the chance to study history at an international institution and to develop a comparative perspective on the past that enriches your understanding of every topic you encounter.
Glasgow is one of the UK's leading research universities, and its history department's range of expertise means you can pursue the periods and themes that genuinely interest you while building a coherent degree programme.
Graduates of history go on to careers in an extraordinarily wide range of fields. Common destinations include law, journalism, broadcasting, politics, the civil service, diplomacy, heritage and archives, museum work, publishing, and education. The analytical rigour and communication skills the degree builds are valued by employers across the public, private, and voluntary sectors, and many graduates continue to postgraduate study in history, law, or related disciplines.