Foot in the Door

Many of these posts are for undergrads, and some for no one in particular (though perhaps all narcissistic, like most blogs, I guess). With the academic hiring season close to its conclusion, maybe it's time for a blog for the adjuncts (part-timers).

There are lots of reasons why people will teach part-time at a college. For example, some adjuncts are sincere in teaching to "give something back," some do it for the ego stroke, and some do it to make ends meet (like those who list their occupation as "consultant"). Those in this last category who teach many classes at several schools (often for around $3000 per class) as a way to make a living are sometimes called "gypsies." That's a mighty tough way to make a living.

What I'd really like adjuncts to know is that part-time work in academia virtually never evolves into full-time tenure-track work. Most colleges have minimum hiring requirements (ours includes a doctorate in field, for example), and someone who does not meet those minimum requirements has no shot of getting hired for a continuing tenure-track position. I really think that department chairs, or whoever does the hiring, have a moral obligation to inform part-timers that not only is there not an implied guarantee that future classes will be available, but that a tenure-track position for anyone without all the credentials will in all probability never be available to them. There is usually no foot in the door for adjuncts.