Getting hired as a historian takes more than just a strong academic background You need to demonstrate to potential employers that you have the skills and temperament to take on the challenging work of uncovering and interpreting the past That’s why historian job interviews tend to be rigorous, with questions designed to assess your research abilities, analytical thinking, communication skills, and more.
In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore some of the most common and critical interview questions for historian positions so you can prepare winning responses. Whether you’re fresh out of graduate school or a seasoned professional, being ready to discuss your experiences, knowledge, work style, and passions in a clear and compelling way is key to landing your dream role
Walking the Interviewers Through Your Research Process
Employers want to understand how you approach the core work of a historian. You can expect a number of questions that will try to get to the bottom of how you did your research and how you thought about things.
How do you typically connect to the past when starting a new project?
This open-ended question allows you to walk through your initial research steps. You’ll want to demonstrate a methodical approach, such as:
- Identifying the time period, location, and key events/figures related to your topic
- Consulting secondary sources like history books and journal articles to gain background context
- Tracking down and analyzing relevant primary sources, whether documents, images, artifacts, or first-hand accounts
- Considering the historical, social, political, and cultural settings that shaped the people and events you’re studying
Show that you’re excited about learning about the past from a variety of sources. Give a few examples of how getting more involved in history can spark your interest and help you plan your research.
Can you describe a time when you had to get creative in finding historical sources?
Not all research projects come neatly packaged with a full set of sources. Demonstrate your resourcefulness and flexibility here. If written records weren’t enough for you, you may have turned to other sources like genealogical records, material culture, or oral histories. Or maybe you saw well-known texts in a new way by working with people from different fields. Share how taking an enterprising approach led to a breakthrough.
Walk me through how you analyze and validate the credibility of sources.
This question tests your critical thinking skills. Discuss how you cross-reference documents and accounts to corroborate facts. Explain how you determine the biases, agendas, or perspectives that may color a source’s reliability. Share how placing sources in their proper historical context also aids analysis. Convey an understanding of how to separate factual evidence from assumptions or interpretations.
How do you pull together all your research elements into a coherent narrative?
Now’s the time to demonstrate how you synthesize facts and sources into meaningful historical storytelling. Share your outlining, organizing, and writing methods. Discuss how you structure accounts chronologically while also delving into causes and effects, social contexts, and individual experiences. Convey how peer review and feedback helps strengthen your narratives. Ultimately, you want to show that you can convert raw research into engaging yet academically rigorous history.
Providing Glimpses into Your Work Style and Temperament
Employers also want to get a feel for what kind of team member you’ll be and how you’ll fare in the day-to-day work environment. Expect more open-ended behavioral and character questions aimed at assessing your work style, passions, and weaknesses:
Do you work well independently or as part of a collaborative team?
There’s no one right answer here – the goal is to give honest insight into your working style. As a historian, you may spend much time in solitary research – discuss the self-motivation and time management skills this requires. But also convey openness to collaboration, whether peer reviewing, interdisciplinary projects, or public outreach. Share experiences that demonstrate your flexibility.
How do you stay focused and productive during intense research and writing phases?
Demonstrate that you have strategies for sustaining energy and concentration throughout large projects. Maybe you schedule regular breaks, set daily writing goals, or limit distractions. Share what works for you. Convey passion for the engaging nature of historical research and writing.
What aspect of studying history excites you the most?
Sharing a bit of what drives your passion for the field makes you memorable. Is it uncovering forgotten voices? Tracing societal changes? Understanding present-day issues through a historical lens? Convey genuine enthusiasm – just take care not to get carried away rambling. A succinct, thoughtful response that connects with the employer’s mission is ideal.
What would you say are some of your weaknesses or areas for improvement?
The key here is to share a legitimate growth area – perhaps time management struggles or tendencies for perfectionism that delay output – while reassured the interviewers that you are actively working on it. Demonstrate self-awareness and dedication to professional development.
Can you tell me about a skill you’ve developed to compensate for one of your weaknesses?
This follow-up question allows you to end the weakness discussion on a positive note. Share how you recognized a development area and took concrete steps to improve. For example, you may have tackled procrastination tendencies by starting projects sooner and setting stricter deadlines for yourself. Keep the focus on solutions.
Demonstrating Leadership and Administrative Chops
If applying for a senior position, expect questions aimed at understanding your leadership, supervisory, and administrative expertise:
What is your leadership style and experience managing teams?
Share your approach to setting clear expectations, providing support, delegating, and fostering collaboration. Convey that you lead by example – by cultivating your own work ethic, timeliness, and communication skills, you set the tone for others. Provide concrete examples of successful team projects you steered.
How do you handle conflict or underperformance within your team?
Employers want to know that you can address difficult interpersonal situations with maturity and fairness. Discuss how you create an open communication environment that allows issues to be raised early, before escalation. Share how you provide constructive feedback focused on solutions and growth. Convey the ability to make tough calls like discipline or termination dispassionately when needed.
What experience do you have with budgets, grants, fundraising, or personnel management?
Quantify your fiscal experience where possible – perhaps you managed a $100K program budget or secured a $60K grant. Discuss strategically allocating resources. Share human resources experience in areas like hiring, onboarding, professional development, and compliance. Demonstrate sound administrative skills and business acumen.
How would you handle promotion and tenure evaluations?
For academic leadership roles, this question may arise. Stress the importance of clear expectations, performance metrics, and regular feedback. Share how you guide faculty members through the process and help them put their best case forward while upholding rigorous standards. Convey experience participating in these decision-making processes from the candidate perspective as well.
Conveying Passion for Your Specialization
When interviewing for a specific area of historical expertise, expect questions aimed at delving into your knowledge and enthusiasm for the topic:
What draws you to [insert historical specialization]?
Keep your response focused yet passionate. Convey genuine interest in the topic – perhaps you appreciate the geopolitical complexity of Cold War history or find medieval social history fascinating in its strangeness compared to today. Share related academic and professional experiences that allowed you to cultivate expertise.
What unique insights or perspectives do you bring to the study of [specialization]?
Highlight specific knowledge or interpretive viewpoints you can contribute. For example, if you have linguistic skills that provide access to untranslated sources, describe how this sheds new light. Or share how your interdisciplinary training in anthropology shapes more holistic analysis of social history. Convince the employer of the value you add.
What directions would you be interested in taking our [department, museum exhibit, research institute, etc] related to your specialty?
Show that you have ideas to move the organization forward rather than just maintaining the status quo. Share one or two specific initiatives, whether a new public program to engage students, shifting exhibits to include more diverse narratives, or pursuing research partnerships with relevant organizations. Demonstrate enthusiasm to grow programming and outreach related to your niche.
Standing Out with Public History Expertise
For public-facing historian roles like museum professionals, be ready to discuss your experience bringing history to general audiences:
How do you make historical research accessible and engaging to the public?
Discuss communication strategies aimed at diverse learning styles and backgrounds. Making historical narratives relatable through clear storytelling is key. Share creative presentation approaches – perhaps you’ve developed compelling exhibits, walking tours, or interactive online content. Convey passion for fostering public interest in history.
Can you share examples of programs you’ve created to engage children and youth in history?
programmes, hands-on artifact experiences, and live reenactments make knowledge stick. Share successes you’ve had making history exciting for younger learners. Convey creativity but also discuss how you ensured educational content was woven throughout.
What experience do you have using technology and digital media in public history?
Today’s audiences expect tech-savvy programs. Discuss any experience with tools like video production, social media, websites, mobile apps, podcasts, or augmented reality. Share examples of digitally enhanced exhibits or programs you’ve create
Conducting an Oral History Interview
FAQ
What questions do historians ask?
How do you answer a history interview question?
This question can give the interviewer insight into your knowledge of history and how you apply it to your work. You can use this question as an opportunity to discuss a historian who inspired you or whose methods you admire. Example: “I admire a wide range of historians for their unique contributions to the field.
What questions should a historian ask during an interview?
Practice questions to get you into the Interview mindset. 1) What is the role of myth in history? 2) Should historians seek to achieve objectivity, and can they ever succeed? 3) Is visiting historical sites useful to a historian?..
How do you answer a question about a historian?
You can use this question as an opportunity to discuss a historian who inspired you or whose methods you admire. Example: “I admire a wide range of historians for their unique contributions to the field. In particular, I have great respect for Edward Gibbon and his work on The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.
What is a history interview?
This method of interviewing is used to preserve the voices, memories and perspectives of people in history. It’s a tool we can all use to engage with and learn from family members, friends, and the people we share space with in an interview that captures their unique history and perspective in their own words.
