Will history professors be replaced by AI?
Updated
History professors score 52 of 100 for AI exposure. The largest share of their task time, 59%, is work AI speeds up while they stay in charge. AI can take over 10% outright, and 31% stays with people.
- 10% AI can do it
- 59% AI helps
- 31% Needs a person
High exposure
Higher than 79% of the 923 occupations we scored.
Task by task
We graded 25 tasks, listed here from most to least exposed. AI can do 2 of them today, speeds up 15 and leaves 8 to people.
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Maintain student attendance records, grades, and other required records. Routine data entry into records systems is highly automatable. | 80% AI can do it |
| Prepare course materials, such as syllabi, homework assignments, and handouts. AI drafts syllabi, handouts, and assignments quickly; instructor reviews. | 70% AI can do it |
| Evaluate and grade students' class work, assignments, and papers. AI grades against rubrics and drafts feedback; instructor verifies. | 60% AI helps |
| Compile bibliographies of specialized materials for outside reading assignments. AI retrieves citations fast but needs checking for fabricated entries. | 60% AI helps |
| Compile, administer, and grade examinations, or assign this work to others. AI drafts questions and grades objective items; proctoring stays human. | 55% AI helps |
| Write grant proposals to procure external research funding. AI drafts proposal sections; scholars shape strategy and fit. | 55% AI helps |
| Develop, maintain, and teach online courses. Online content is digital and AI draftable; instructor presence matters. | 50% AI helps |
| Prepare and deliver lectures to undergraduate or graduate students on topics such as ancient history, postwar civilizations, and the history of third-world countries. AI helps build lecture outlines and sources; professor delivers them. | 45% AI helps |
| Plan, evaluate, and revise curricula, course content, course materials, and methods of instruction. AI helps redesign course content; faculty judge pedagogical value. | 45% AI helps |
| Keep abreast of developments in the field by reading current literature, talking with colleagues, and participating in professional conferences. AI summarizes reading; conferences and colleague talks stay human. | 40% AI helps |
Show the other 15 tasks
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Review books and journal articles for potential publication. AI can screen submissions; expert peer judgement remains essential. | 40% AI helps |
| Participate in student recruitment, registration, and placement activities. AI drafts outreach and sorts records; recruiting events stay live. | 40% AI helps |
| Conduct research in a particular field of knowledge and publish findings in professional journals, books, or electronic media. AI aids literature search and drafting; archival fieldwork stays human. | 35% AI helps |
| Select and obtain materials and supplies, such as textbooks. Textbook selection needs judgement; ordering and sourcing are routine. | 35% AI helps |
| Provide professional consulting services to government, educational institutions, or industry. AI supports research for consulting; advisory relationships remain human. | 30% AI helps |
| Teach community courses and speak to local groups and organizations. AI helps prepare talks; live speaking to groups stays human. | 28% AI helps |
| Advise students on academic and vocational curricula and on career issues. AI answers requirement questions; career counsel needs personal judgement. | 25% AI helps |
| Supervise undergraduate or graduate teaching, internship, and research work. Mentoring students in research and internships is interpersonal work. | 18% Needs a person |
| Perform administrative duties, such as serving as department head. Department leadership involves meetings, people management, and institutional judgement. | 18% Needs a person |
| Initiate, facilitate, and moderate classroom discussions. Live discussion with students depends on real-time human judgement. | 15% Needs a person |
| Collaborate with colleagues to address teaching and research issues. Collaboration is interpersonal; AI may only help prepare materials. | 14% Needs a person |
| Maintain regularly scheduled office hours to advise and assist students. Office hours are live, personal interactions requiring human presence. | 12% Needs a person |
| Serve on academic or administrative committees that deal with institutional policies, departmental matters, and academic issues. Committee deliberation and institutional decisions require human participation. | 12% Needs a person |
| Act as advisers to student organizations. Student organization advising is interpersonal and needs physical presence. | 8% Needs a person |
| Participate in campus and community events. Campus and community events need physical presence and social engagement. | 5% Needs a person |
How history professors compare
All occupations (923)
Educational instruction and library (62)
Pay and outlook in the US
- Median pay
- $83,820 a year, May 2025
- People employed
- 18,790 in the US, May 2025
- Projected change in jobs
- 0.0% from 2024 to 2034
Skills to build
- Build syllabi and reading lists in Google Docs and Microsoft Word
- Verify bibliography citations against library databases before release
- Run grade records and attendance in the learning management system LMS
- Write grant proposal narratives for external history research funding
- Lead live seminar discussions and moderate student debate in person
Safer roles nearby
5 related occupations with lower scores.
Questions about history professors and AI
Will AI replace history professors?
Partly. About 4 in 10 working hours go to tasks AI can already do, mostly maintaining student records and preparing course materials such as syllabi and handouts. Leading live discussion, advising students in office hours, and committee work stay with people because they depend on real-time judgement and physical presence.
Which tasks are AI taking over for history professors?
Records maintenance scores highest at exposure 80, because routine data entry into the learning management system is highly automatable. Preparing course materials scores 70, since AI drafts syllabi, homework assignments, and handouts quickly while the professor reviews them.
Which tasks stay human for history professors?
Leading classroom discussion scores exposure 15 and office hours score 12, because both need live judgement and face-to-face contact. Committee deliberation also scores 12, since institutional decisions need human participation in the room.
How can history professors stay valuable as AI handles more of the job?
Verify every AI-drafted bibliography entry against library databases, since fabricated citations are a known failure. Put your time into grant strategy, fit with funders, and seminar teaching. These tasks sit in the 31% of hours that stay human in this job.
Related jobs
Next steps for history professors
Check which roles in your team AI can take on
We map your team's tasks, show what AI can do today and build the automations that pay back first.
Related topics
- Jobs AI can't replaceCement masons score lowest, at 8.
- Jobs most at risk from AIProofreaders score highest, at 76.
- High-paying jobs with low AI exposureRadiologists earn a median $420,860 and score 46.
- Entry-level jobs with low AI exposureCement masons need little prior training and score 8.
- Jobs AI speeds up the mostFor natural sciences managers, AI speeds up 96% of task time.
- AI and jobs in Malta15 iGaming roles graded task by task.
- Skills that keep work humanThe skills to build in the jobs AI changes least.
- Jobs A to ZEvery job we publish, by first letter.
- AI exposure by industryAverage scores for 22 occupation groups.
- Write a CV screening software can readHow applicant tracking systems read a CV, and what to change.
- AI for businessesThe tasks to automate first in each team and industry.
- How we score AI exposureThe grading, the weights and every source.