History Degrees in South Dakota

In 1980 the Supreme Court ruled that Congress had taken the Black Hills from the Sioux in 1877 in violation of the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868, and awarded $105 million in compensation. The Sioux have never taken a dollar of it, because accepting payment would work as a completed sale and end any claim to the land itself. The money has sat in a Treasury account earning interest for more than forty years and has since grown past a billion dollars. The history is settled and the case is not, which is a useful thing for a prospective student to sit with.

South Dakota has 8 colleges and universities offering history degrees, with 9 programs among them: 8 bachelor’s degrees, 1 master’s degree, and no doctorates.

Only Wyoming matches that, and only Alaska has less, with no graduate history program at all.

Top History Schools in South Dakota

With only eight schools in the state offering history, and most of them offering a single program, we publish the top three instead of a longer list. Our scoring uses the same four factors as every state we cover: history degree offerings and program variety (40%), student outcomes (25%), reputation (20%), and affordability (15%). Depth is decided by a single program, since USD is the only school with two. Outcomes are close, at 62% for South Dakota State and 60% for USD. On reputation, USD and South Dakota State both hold R2 classification and Northern State does not. Affordability decides nothing here either, with the three priced at $8,845, $9,299, and $9,432. Here are South Dakota’s best history degrees.

Most Affordable History Degrees in South Dakota

Most affordable history degrees in South Dakota

Rank	School	Program	Tuition per year
1	Black Hills State University	Bachelor's in History	$8,764
2	Northern State University	Bachelor's in History	$8,845
3	South Dakota State University	Bachelor's in History	$9,299
4	University of South Dakota	Bachelor's in History	$9,432
5	University of Sioux Falls	B.A. in History and Political Science	$21,750
6	Dakota Wesleyan University	Bachelor's in History	$33,790
7	Augustana University	Bachelor's in History	$40,160

Annual in-state tuition and fees. Seven entries and no top ten, because seven schools is the whole field we list history degrees for in South Dakota. The four public universities fall between $8,764 and $9,432, and the three private colleges begin at $21,750.

History Education in South Dakota

South Dakota has one of the smallest history offerings in the country, and the shape of it matters more than the size. Nine programs across eight institutions means most schools offer exactly one, and only the University of South Dakota offers two. There is no menu here: at seven of the eight schools, the history degree is the history degree.

The graduate picture is the narrowest in the country. One master’s degree, no doctorate, and no school teaching the subject at all three levels. A South Dakota student who wants a Ph.D. in history will be leaving the state to get one, and a student who wants a master’s has exactly one in-state option.

The price structure splits cleanly in two. The four public universities charge between $8,764 and $9,432, which is inexpensive by national standards. The four private colleges begin at $21,750 and run to $40,160. Nothing sits in between, so the decision is public or private rather than a matter of degree.

Distance study is a single program: Northern State’s online bachelor’s is the only online history degree in the state. For a state with South Dakota’s geography, that is a thin provision, and our guide to online history degrees covers what is available from institutions elsewhere.

Transfer within the state is well handled. The South Dakota Board of Regents system general education requirement is 30 credits, and the useful part is what happens when you move: complete it at any Regents institution and it counts as fulfilled at any other Regents institution, even where the receiving school uses different credit distributions and a different approved course list. The requirement travels as satisfied instead of being unpicked course by course. Details are with the South Dakota Board of Regents.

Becoming a History Teacher in South Dakota

South Dakota requires the Praxis Principles of Learning and Teaching examination for your grade band plus the relevant Praxis subject test, and the Department of Education publishes an approved list of the pedagogy and content tests it accepts.

Because the approved list is revised and because content tests are periodically renamed, check the Department’s current list instead of relying on a guide, including this one, for the specific test attached to social studies.

One thing is worth weighing before you commit to the classroom route in South Dakota specifically, and it is in the careers table below: the state’s secondary teaching salaries are among the lowest in the country relative to the national median.

Confirm current requirements with the South Dakota Department of Education before choosing a program.

History Careers in South Dakota

History Careers in South Dakota

Occupation	South Dakota jobs	South Dakota median	vs. U.S. median
Secondary school teachers	3,360	$51,050	-29%
Postsecondary history teachers	30	$69,220	-17%
Curators	50	$74,990	+18%
Archivists	not published	not published	n/a
Historians	not published	not published	n/a

Employment and wage data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025. South Dakota’s figures for archivists and historians were withheld entirely, both counts and wages, which is common in states with samples this small.

The table is short because South Dakota is small enough that the Bureau suppressed two of the five rows, and what remains divides sharply.

Curators are the surprise. At $74,990 they earn 18% above the national median, which is a genuinely strong figure and the only occupation here above the national rate. The count is 50 positions, so this is a small market paying well, not a large opportunity.

Secondary school teaching is the difficult number. A median of $51,050 is 29% below national, which ties Mississippi for the second-largest shortfall in the country behind Oklahoma. It also covers 3,360 positions, which is by far the largest employment figure in the table, so it is the market most graduates will actually encounter.

Postsecondary history teaching sits 17% below national across just 30 jobs statewide.

Set against public tuition topping out at $9,432, the honest reading is that South Dakota is inexpensive to study in and difficult to be paid well in outside museum work. For students intending to stay, that trade is worth examining closely; for students willing to move, the degree costs less here than in most places.

History Resources in South Dakota

• South Dakota State Archives, at the Cultural Heritage Center on Governors Drive in Pierre. The official repository for state government records, covering the governor’s office, the legislature, the courts, and state agencies. The archives operate by appointment, so arrange a visit in advance rather than turning up.
• South Dakota State Historical Society, in the same building, which runs the state museum alongside the archives. Having both under one roof means a research trip to Pierre covers the state’s documentary record and its public collections together.

Frequently Asked Questions