Content-type: text/html Downes.ca ~ Stephen's Web ~ The humanities keep declining: the case of history

Stephen Downes

Knowledge, Learning, Community

Bryan Alexander summarizes a report from the American Historical Association showing that the number of history majors in U.S. universities has dropped significantly over the last decade. The xplanations offered don't seem very plausible - the lack of jobs for history majors is one factor, but this has always been true. Also, "women, once restricted to the humanities, increasingly have other options for study," would be more plausible if the study started in the 1950s, not 2008. The explanation that "history is losing out to interdisciplinary and area studies" is a bit more plausible, and also " the collapse of law school enrollment, as history has long been a reliable prelaw major." More coverage by Inside Higher Ed.

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