In addition to being eligible for scholarships and internships, History majors have a number of exciting opportunities available that will enrich their experience at UMD and provide experiences that will set them up for success after graduation.
History Club
History Club is open to all students at UMD, not just history majors. This group is a place for students who love history to meet one other and organize history-themed events like movie nights, museum field trips, board game groups, and even just cook-outs with other history majors. Check out the History Club website and get involved!
Alumni Mentorship
Unsure of what the future holds for you after graduation? Want advice about how to navigate your History major from someone who has been through it? UMD’s Alumni Mentorship program connects current majors with History alumni who are working in a field of interest. We have an incredible number of alumni who are willing to serve as mentors – here are just a few!
Community Events and Academic Conferences
History majors have the opportunity to participate in community events and academic conferences.
UMD’s History Department hosts the Minnesota History Day Northeast Regional Competition every year, and our students can serve as judges for the competition or as paid mentors for the middle and high school students who participate.
The History Department also organizes the annual Twin Ports Festival of History each year, an event that includes free History presentations, activities, and museum passes at UMD and at cultural heritage organizations all over Duluth, Superior, and Two Harbors. Our majors are not only able to attend all of these events, but often help organize and run the festival itself. This is a great chance to enjoy history and build your resume!
History majors are also encouraged to attend and even present research at regional History conferences. Students write research papers HIST 4999: Seminar course and many of our 3xxx classes, and our faculty are available to guide students who would like to further develop their papers and present them at a professional academic conference. We are often able to help cover the travel and lodging expenses for our students at these events. In recent years, History majors have presented at the Northern Great Plains History Conference and the War in the Ancient World International Conference, which was hosted at UMD in 2025.
History Study Abroad Programs
History faculty lead study abroad programs to places like Ireland, Panama, Poland, and Jamaica. These programs include winter-term trips to Panama, May term trips to Poland, and summer internships and fieldwork opportunities in Ireland.
Professor Scott Laderman will lead our next study abroad trip to Panama during the winter break of 2025-2026. The deadline to apply for this program is October 15, 2025. Scholarships are available. Check out the Panama: Global History of Surf Culture course page for more information, and email Professor Laderman with any questions you might have.
Every summer, History faculty place UMD students as interns at cultural heritage institutions Ireland as part of our Public History Major and Museum Studies Certificate programs. In the summer of 2025, 8 UMD students spent three weeks in Ireland interning at Bunratty Castle and Folk Park and the Irish Labour History Society Museum and Archive.
Our history faculty also occasionally conduct fieldwork projects with students in western Ireland. Read more about this experience from a recent UMD graduate.
If you’d like to know more about studying abroad in Ireland, contact David Woodward.
History Associate Professor Natalie Belsky has also led a summer UMD study abroad program to Poland for the class HIST 3575: Jews & Poles: Entangled Lives, Cultures and Memories in 20th Century Poland. Dr. Belsky is tentatively planning to lead a similar course again in the summer of 2026. Contact her for more information.
African and African American Studies also leads a study abroad program to Jamaica as part of AAAS 3005: Roots and Rebellion: Jamaica. Contact David Woodward and Hilary Kowino for more information and to find out when this exciting course will run next.