Bethany Hill, B.A. 2010
Head of Communications for CommonBond — New York, NY
2010 Major: History and Public Policy
How has being a History graduate from Duke helped shape your professional success?
"At Duke, I majored in History with a concentration in medieval history. Medieval texts can difficult to interpret, and my Duke degree required me to spend a lot of time analyzing old manuscripts. I learned how to synthesize information, identify trends, and craft a narrative. Since then, I've built my career sharing the stories -- and the impacts -- of new technologies. Today, I oversee communications for a financial technology company and apply many of the same information analysis skills I learned at Duke History classes."
What advice would you give students in History?
"I would encourage History students to take a history course on a topic that has absolutely nothing to do with their primary focus of study. Even though my thesis was on contagion theory in medieval Britain, my senior year, I took a South African history course and it completely changed the way I think about economic and political structures. It ended up being one of the most meaningful courses I took at Duke. I'm planning a trip to South Africa this fall, and look forward to reconnecting with the history I studied almost a decade ago at Duke."
