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The differences between historians and journalists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a historian and a journalist. Additionally, a journalist has an average salary of $60,828, which is higher than the $57,376 average annual salary of a historian.
The top three skills for a historian include cultural resources, historical research and historic resources. The most important skills for a journalist are news stories, multimedia, and story development.
| Historian | Journalist | |
| Yearly salary | $57,376 | $60,828 |
| Hourly rate | $27.58 | $29.24 |
| Growth rate | 4% | -10% |
| Number of jobs | 606 | 11,488 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 41 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Historians are professionals in social sciences with a specialization in history. They typically research, analyze, and interpret facts of human history. Other duties include collecting and evaluating data from various sources to answer questions on historical events, analyzing physical artifacts, written records and evidence during their investigations, and preserving significant historical documents. Additionally, you will liaise with historical sites such as museums to provide recommendations about historical conservation and the importance of historical sites, monuments, and artifacts.
A journalist is responsible for creating written correspondence, covering various subjects as the management requires. This task involves a lot of research investigations, conducting interviews, and gathering reliable sources to verify the authenticity of data before releasing the articles on news portals and other social platforms. Journalists should have excellent communication skills, both written and oral, conveying information to the target audience with high accuracy and efficiency. They analyze opinions and testimonies, create eye-catching headlines, and ensure adherence to deadlines.
Historians and journalists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Historian | Journalist | |
| Average salary | $57,376 | $60,828 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $125,000 | Between $38,000 And $95,000 |
| Highest paying City | Lowell, MA | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | New York |
| Best paying company | BP America Inc | Bloomberg |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Finance |
There are a few differences between a historian and a journalist in terms of educational background:
| Historian | Journalist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 76% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Most common major | History | Journalism |
| Most common college | Harvard University | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Here are the differences between historians' and journalists' demographics:
| Historian | Journalist | |
| Average age | 41 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 40.7% Female, 59.3% | Male, 46.6% Female, 53.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.8% Unknown, 6.4% Hispanic or Latino, 13.9% Asian, 7.8% White, 64.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% | Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 9.6% White, 66.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 10% |