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[maries]

I'm thinking about giving up my secure and decent-paying day job and just doing adjunct work next year.  I have one friend who makes close to 80K as an adjunct, but he teaches like 20 courses a semester (no, I don't know how that is even physically possible).  I'm not sure I could handle that many classes.  I'm thinking maybe 8, max.  The most I've ever taught is two, but that was while working full time.  What's the most you've ever taught in one semester? 

[larryc]

I have done six. I wasn't happy but then I have a lousy work ethic.

[erictho]

3 per term, then usually 1 more in either the spring or summer term.

[ccteach]

First of all, congratulations on your career change! Teaching is a very rewarding career.

As a full-time instructor, I teach no more than 17 - 18 credit hours.

I am really, really, really against teaching an excessive number of credit hours. I don't think it's good for the students or good for the instructor. I have read a lot about how the unions discourage it, too. (Why should we hire more full-time employees with benefits and a decent standard of living if we can hire adjuncts or have full-time faculty how teach 24 credit hours per semester?) I think that discussion is for another forum, though. ;)

[maries]

First of all, congratulations on your career change! Teaching is a very rewarding career.

As a full-time instructor, I teach no more than 17 - 18 credit hours.

I am really, really, really against teaching an excessive number of credit hours. I don't think it's good for the students or good for the instructor. I have read a lot about how the unions discourage it, too. (Why should we hire more full-time employees with benefits and a decent standard of living if we can hire adjuncts or have full-time faculty how teach 24 credit hours per semester?) I think that discussion is for another forum, though. ;)

Yes, it's like participating in your own exploitation.  When I taught in my field (in the humanities), I felt bad about being an adjunct.  Now I teach ESL, in community colleges mostly, which is a bit different.  The full-timers don't actually make more money than we do, they just get benefits and have to do a lot of really crappy-looking administrative work.  I love being an adjunct - don't have to go to any of the meetings or stupid professional development stuff; just teach and leave. 

[mimi1]

I can only teach 14 hours per semester to stay adjunct status.  So, this coming semester I am teaching 12 hours at one school and probably 5 hours of contact time per week at another school.  This is really about all I can handle, but I like my evenings free as often as possible... :) 

[big_giant_head]

I have taught 9 classes in one semester, but two of those were just glorified test proctoring.  So 7, really.  And yes, of course: this is not good for the students or the instructor, or, ultimately, the school.  They haven't noticed yet, and they probably won't, because most adjuncts do their best, and we're pretty dang good at what we do.  But it's not the same as having a job at one campus, with an office and a telephone and set hours, and the ability to put faces with names in all the various admin offices.  Students have a hard time finding you, and you are always needing to do something else when they want to talk about coursework.

My myriad classes were not all at the same school--to make a living as an adjunct in most places, you have to work at 2 or 3 schools at the same time.  $80,000??  Wow.  Just...wow.

The most I ever made was about $20,000.  In my part of the country, you get about $1500 per class, whether at a private or a public uni or a CC. 

And if you do end up teaching at more than one place, remember that you'll be doing Blackboard here and Moodle there.  Using APA here and MLA there (really: one SLAC insists that all students use APA no matter the class, and they're insanely anal retentive about it).  Referring your students to an outstanding library here and a sad little shoebox with 6 books there.  Honors students here and...other kinds...there. 

So, you know, if you want a challenge, and don't want ever to be bored, and don't mind the pay, and don't mind not knowing if you're going to be able to pay your bills until mere days before the start of each semester, then go for it.  I'm not being sarcastic: it really is the most challenging, and sometimes satisfying, work I've done.  But the pay just sucks.  The hours suck.  The lack of recognition and status sucks.  The lack of health insurance and retirement accounts sucks. 

My two cents...

[mimi1]

I am with big giant head on this one - $80,000!!!!!!  I can't think that is anywhere near the norm...  I, too average about $1500 per class. 

[zharkov]

A couple of years ago, I was teaching something like 8 or 10, which was way too much.  I didn't plan on teaching that many, but had to bail out the school b/c of a couple of different issues.....

It also depends on the courses and how much prep and grading are required. I teach a couple of "bread and butter" courses that I could teach with almost no prep at all, but I teach other courses that require much more prep or grading.

Keep in mind that (1) some adjunct jobs only pay 1000-1500 and (2) some schools limit the number of courses you can do as an adjunct.  I think my school limits it to 2, but the chair can give an experienced adjunct more, on a case by case basis.

[maries]

I live in a major metropolitan area, so the pay is higher here (2-4K per course).  You can clear 100K here annually and still not be able to afford a decent house. 

[larryc]

There was a Chronicle article about two years back profiling a woman who taught, well she would not say how many, but a lot of courses online and she was making something like $90k.

[untenured]

I remember that article, larryc.  She was amazingly efficient and worked like a dog.  She also a very fast typer.  Wow, what a life.

Maries, what's your ultimate goal out of all this?  Do you want to teach full-time someday?  If so, you might want to improve your CV while retaining your full-time job.

Becoming a pure adjunct will deny you benefits and insurance that your employer might give.  Also, teaching the number of courses necessary to live a decent lifestyle might burn you out over the long haul.

Have you considered alternatives?

Untenured

[mfaer]

I teach 12 ch's of first-year writing (aka, freshman comp) per semester and can't imagine teaching more than 15 ch's.  Luckily I am paid a full-time salary, even though I am on the non-tt.

[maries]

Maries, what's your ultimate goal out of all this?  Do you want to teach full-time someday?  If so, you might want to improve your CV while retaining your full-time job.

Untenured

Honestly, I'm not sure what my ultimate goal is.  The last time I had a goal was when I finished the PhD.  Since then I've just been trying to make a living. 

I have more of a short-term goal - get the hell out of K-12.  I love the courses I teach as an adjunct, but I hate my full-time job.  I don't actually need the benefits - I can get them through my husband.  Also, it's not so terribly difficult to get a full-time (non-tenure) job in ESL where I live, although I don't really want one.  I guess I want my freedom more than anything else. 

What do you mean by "improve my CV"?  If you mean like, publish and all that, forget it.  My full-time job in K-12 does not allow me time to sleep sufficiently, much less write an article.  Also, I have been out of my field for over 5 years, and it's way too late to go back.  I am in ESL now, and although I have no trouble getting teaching jobs, tenure track is out of the question as I don't have the academic background for it.  Also, to be honest, academic publishing in ESL holds very little appeal for me.  I'm don't have those kinds of feelings for ESL.  I just want to be friends.

I guess I just want to do more of what I like (teaching adults and college students), and less of what I hate (working in K-12).  And I want a more flexible schedule - K-12 is like 60 hours a week, every day, all day.  Maybe I'm just lazy.

[big_giant_head]

Maries, it sounds like you might actually be a good fit for adjunct work.

When it's not your only source of income and professional standing, it can be great.  If you get benefits and a roof over your head from your husband, and you don't see an immediate need to nail down your own tt career, I say go for it. 

The teaching will be much more to your liking, I would imagine (I know it is to mine; I would chew off my foot before teaching K-12, mostly because of the administrative straightjacketing).  The hours will be WAY better, especially if you only teach a couple of classes per semester.

And you'd be free of committee work and research requirements.  In your situation I think it would be a perfectly reasonable choice.