| A simple and understandable definition of an adjunct | | | | professor and receive full benefits for that semester. |
| professor is a professor who works part-time for an | | | | Other institutions provide an annual contract |
| institution of higher learning. Part-time professors | | | | stipulating how many courses you will teach for them |
| have all of the qualifications to be full-time professors | | | | and how much your annual pay will be. These |
| but either has elected not to work on a full-time or | | | | situations are relatively rare but do occur. You should |
| have been unable to secure a full-time position and | | | | seek for these opportunities when you search for |
| wish to continue teaching. The quality of education | | | | universities to teach at. |
| should be similar between the two groups. | | | | The disadvantages of being a part-time professor |
| Adjunct professors are usually hired to work on a | | | | are relatively few but are real. However, there are |
| semester-to-semester basis without promise of | | | | usually ways around them. You are not guaranteed |
| future employment. However, it is common for | | | | continued employment at an institution. There are |
| adjuncts to establish a relationship with a department | | | | few if any benefits offered to adjunct faculty. The |
| and be employed on a de facto basis. For example, | | | | pay per class may be less than that for a full-time |
| there are institutions I have worked at for 15 years, | | | | faculty member. Sometimes, the administration and |
| receiving assignments every semester. | | | | or full-time faculty look down at their adjunct staff. |
| In addition to being rehired every semester, | | | | However, the advantages outweigh these |
| universities have developed various methods to retain | | | | disadvantages. Adjunct professors have no boss. |
| their better part-time faculty so that they do not | | | | They can make their own schedule. If they teach |
| drift away to other institutions. Some institutions | | | | online, they can travel while teaching. Adjuncts can |
| provide limited benefits such as health-care and | | | | teach at several schools simultaneously so if one |
| retirement. Other institutions have a sliding scale so | | | | school does not rehire them there is only a partial |
| that the longer you teach for them, the higher is | | | | loss of income. Adjunct professors are not limited by |
| your pay. Some places provide a semester contract | | | | the amount they work so they have the capability of |
| so that you are considered to be a full-time | | | | earning a substantial income. |