History stands at the heart of a liberal arts bridge between the humanities and social sciences. Historical understanding is thus basic to the life of an educated human being. As such, it is the ideal major for the student who wants the broad educational background for entrance into professions such as law, government service, or business, or who wants a liberal arts education. History can also be valuable training for someone who plans to teach. In recognition of the broad range of uses to which historical education can be put, the field of public history has emerged in recent years. Today people whom others would consider bankers, lawyers, corporate executives, or public servants view themselves as historians—public historians. They are the people with analytical skills provided by their historical education who work outside the university but who consider themselves historians by virtue of the value of the training they have received. A significant percentage of the jobs listed by firms and agencies with BYU's Employment Office specify no major. Many of these will be taken by public historians anxious to serve their employers with the valuable skills learned in their history major.This program meets the educational requirements designed to lead to an occupationally required professional license or certificate in the state of Utah. Students pursuing occupations requiring a license or certificate in a state other than Utah should contact the appropriate BYU academic advisement center as well as the licensing agency in the state where they intend to work to seek information and guidance regarding licensure and certification requirements.This major is designed to prepare students to teach in public schools. In order to graduate with this major, students are required to complete Utah State Office of Education licensing requirements. The History Department requires a minimum of 18 hours of history credit to be taken in residency at BYU's Provo campus for this degree program. BYU Independent Study courses do not count toward residency. These hours may also go toward BYU's 30-hour residency requirement for graduation.