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Alumni & student stories

Your career options as a history major are numerous. You may enter the business profession, secondary education, voluntary service or graduate programs in history, law and library science.

Matt Ferguson 10Matt Ferguson '10
History major, integrated social studies education licensure
District field coordinator, Speaker of the House
John Boehner's West Chester, Ohio, office
Internships and volunteer work lead to job offer a week before graduation.  >>> Matt's story

Cheryl HackerCheryl Hacker '81
History major
Former principal assistant attorney general, education section, in the Ohio Attorney General s Office, now the general counsel for Shawnee State University.
The seeds for what has become a long legal career were planted at Bluffton, she said. >>>Cheryl's story

Katy HumphreysKaty (Haman '10) Humphreys
History major 
Katy drew upon personal experience to research and write her departmental honors project, The Pursuit of Safety: Fighting Communism and Terrorism to Preserve America s Way of Life.  >>>Katy's story

In recent years, Bluffton history grads have been accepted into a number of excellent graduate programs, including:

  • The University of Toledo
  • The University of Iowa
  • The University of Michigan Law School
  • Duquesne University
  • Wright State University 
  • Georgetown University Law School
  • University of Illinois (School of Library Science)
  • Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary
  • Southern Illinois University

What our alumni are saying:

The Bluffton University history department professors provided me with a great foundation for my career as a historian, by challenging me to improve my research and writing and critical thinking skills. These experiences benefited me greatly when I pursued a master s degree, as I was prepared for the academic demands that graduate school presented. Now, as a public historian, I use the same skills that I developed at Bluffton in order to research, preserve and teach history." 
             -- Matt Francis 02
                 Assistant Archivist, American Heritage Center,
                 University of Wyoming

"The Bluffton history department is impressive in the fact that it is both academically and ethically engaging. The relationships that can be built among students and faculty will last for years to come, and can ultimately benefit you beyond your time at Bluffton.
             -- William A. Freil 05
                 Graduate student in Public History, Duquesne University
                 Pittsburgh, Pa.

"The professors in the Bluffton history department teach in an engaging, candid, and thought-provoking manner, making the past much more alive then you would have ever imagined the dry words in your textbook could be. No matter what your interests are, a history major can open up a wide variety of career opportunities for you to pursue - including some you may never have thought of before." 
            -- Molly Sauder 04
                Graduate Student, School of Library Science, University of Illinois

The Bluffton University history department consists of professors that care and challenge their students to become successful in their professional lives and encourage them to become life long learners. The effort of the professors at Bluffton to have a personal relationship with each student speaks to their commitment to strengthen the knowledge and abilities of the students, and to prepare them to become life long learners. Today, in my classroom, I am able to use many of these same techniques, understandings and strategies in order to benefit my own students.
            -- Jeffrey C. Fay 01
                Social Studies Teacher; Assistant Football Coach
                Benjamin Logan High School, Bellefontaine, Ohio

Bluffton University taught me that history can be brought to life within the classrooms as faculty and staff encourage students to debate and explore various issues. During my study at Bluffton, I was continually challenged in a positive manner that has helped me to grow as a historian and as an individual. An education is what you invest in it. Bluffton University offers you the opportunity to continually grow, question and learn.
            -- Norma Flores 03
               Historical Interpreter, Fort Meigs State Memorial
               Perrysburg, Ohio

Even though my current profession is not in the historical field, my time studying history at Bluffton has still affected me long since graduation. I travel around Ohio for work and many of the places I go, no matter how obscure, have ties to important events in history. Bluffton can provide students with a different perspective to better understand the world we live in by giving them a broader view, both locally and globally.
            -- Sam Park 01
                Engineering Technician
               Innovative Joint Utility Systems, Gahanna, Ohio

I quite literally found my calling in the history department at Bluffton College. As a freshman, I took a European history course from Rick Hite and was hooked. Then I had the honor to work with John Unruh, the finest teacher and one of the best scholars with whom I have worked at any level. John s prodding and advice led me to graduate school and eventually to a rewarding career of teaching and scholarship. From John, Rick, Von Hardesty and Ray Hamman, I learned that history is an important, demanding, exciting and ultimately satisfying discipline. One day the chair of the history department at Louisiana State University commented with a wry grin, Rable, you were well trained. That was quite a tribute to a Bluffton education. To this day the example set by John Unruh and the other faculty at Bluffton continues to inspire.
            -- George Rable 72
               Charles Summersell Chair in Southern History, University of Alabama
               Tuscaloosa, Ala.

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