The study of history is a pursuit of the infinite varieties of human experience and transformations of those experiences over time.  The study of history provides an understanding of the past, which can influence one's ability to respond intelligently and effectively to the problems of the present and future.  In the broadest sense, history provides a critical knowledge of the institutions and values of the world in which we live.

History helps us understand people and societies.  In the first place, history offers a reservoir of information about how people and societies interact.  Secondly, history helps us determine why people behave as they do in complex societal settings.  This, fundamentally, is why we cannot stay away from history: it offers an important and extensive evidential base for the analysis of how cultures operate.  Moreover, history helps us understand all forms of change.  Any time we try to know why something happened we have to look for factors that took shape earlier.  Only through studying history can we grasp how things change; only through history can we begin to comprehend the factors that cause change; and only through history can we understand what elements of an institution or a society persist despite change.

History, then, focuses attention on complex processes, including the factors that are causing change around us today.  These are just some of the reasons many people become interested with the examination of the past and why our society requires and encourages the study of history in schools.  Students majoring in history will find many fields open to them.  Skills developed from this study, such as organization of diverse facts and opinions, and a clear presentation of conclusions drawn from those facts and opinions, are of fundamental importance in many professions.  Researchers, librarians, lawyers, teachers, and others all benefit from the skills acquired through using methods of historical study.