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[captain_obvious]

A totally ignorant question here:

On many of the job search threads, I see people mention that it takes "18 graduate units" to be considered competent to teach a subject.  What exactly constitutes 18 units?  In my program, you only need 20 units (=20 courses) total.  That means, without doing an additional 3 years of coursework on top of your regular load, 18 units in a second field would be completely impossible.  Is this really what is meant by the 18 units talk, or is it something else?

[acrimone]

You went to a school like my Undergrad, where one unit=one course.

Most schools, I discovered, aren't like that.  Most courses are worth 3 or 4 units at most places.  Some are worth 5.

[captain_obvious]

Yeah, at my undergrad courses were generally worth 3-4 credits each.  At my current grad program, they're worth 1.  So is that what it means?  "18 graduate credit units" is only like 4 courses or something?  Anyone who's been to grad school or dealt with accrediting boards wanna chime in on this?

Thanks!

[georgia_guy]

The term usually used is 18 credit hours. Also, it's does not classify you as "competent", but academically qualified (they are very different concepts).

Most US semester classes are either 3 or 4 credit hours per course. That means that 6 three hour classes in a field will suffice to show "academic qualification, providing you have a terminal degree in some other area.

As an example, I have more than six statistics courses in my graduate work. As such, I would be considered academically qualified to teach statistics, in spite of the fact that my degree is in business.

[captain_obvious]

Thanks, Georgia.  Qualified is the word I was looking for.... brain's a bit mushy at the moment :-/

So you're saying, for example, that if I have 6 3-hr courses in, say demographic computer modeling and mapping, I'd be considered "qualified" to teach courses in it, even though my degree will be in an unrelated humanities field, yes?

Is there some way that "credit hours" are standardized by accrediting boards given that different schools have different ways of assigning credit for courses?

[georgia_guy]

Here is an exerpt from a SACS accreditation standard:

Program Length
The institution offers one or more degree programs based on at least 60 semester credit hours or the equivalent at the associate level; at least 120 semester credit hours or the equivalent at the baccalaureate level; or at least 30 semester credit hours or the equivalent at the post-baccalaureate, graduate, or professional level. If an institution uses a unit other than semester credit hours, it provides an explanation for the equivalency. The institution also provides a justification if it allows for fewer than the required number of semester credit hours or its equivalent unit for a degree.

[aandsdean]

Thanks, Georgia.  Qualified is the word I was looking for.... brain's a bit mushy at the moment :-/

So you're saying, for example, that if I have 6 3-hr courses in, say demographic computer modeling and mapping, I'd be considered "qualified" to teach courses in it, even though my degree will be in an unrelated humanities field, yes?

Is there some way that "credit hours" are standardized by accrediting boards given that different schools have different ways of assigning credit for courses?

A couple of things.  The answer to your first question is yes, for UNDERGRADUATE courses.  Generally speaking, graduate courses require a terminal degree in the field. 

"Fields," though, are pretty broad--as in "English," "Biology," etc.  My Ph.D. is in English and thus I'm theoretically qualified to teach a grad-level course in Joyce--however, since I haven't read Ulysses, it would be a very bad idea.  This is the distinction between "qualified" (a technicality) and "competent" (a measure of ability in practice).

As for standardized hours, every school, somewhere, has an hour-equivalency policy if it's not on the normal system.  My undergrad SLAC, for example, stated someplace that it considered its courses to be worth 4 credit hours, though like some others here we just needed to accrue 32 courses to graduate rather than 120 hours or whatever.

Georgia_guy's "program length" citation is not really on-point, as it's the number of hours to earn a degree at each level, rather than the number of hours in a discipline that technically qualifies you to teach.

And finally, especially in SACS schools, everything you teach that isn't very obviously in the field of your degree will require a separate justification.  Thus, if you have an English Ph.D. and are teaching in women's studies (or vice-versa), somewhere there will be a file (or there should be, lest the SACS storm-troopers descend upon you) that explains why you're qualified to do so.

[captain_obvious]

aaaaaah.  Thanks, aandsdean.  I'm asking all these questions because my adviser is strongly encouraging me to complete a certificate in another (related) field in order to increase my marketability.  So I'm just looking at the certificate's requirements and trying to figure out whether it is actually a good idea and whether I'd actually be considered qualified in anything other than my own field at the end of the day.

Thanks for all the info.

[aandsdean]

aaaaaah.  Thanks, aandsdean.  I'm asking all these questions because my adviser is strongly encouraging me to complete a certificate in another (related) field in order to increase my marketability.  So I'm just looking at the certificate's requirements and trying to figure out whether it is actually a good idea and whether I'd actually be considered qualified in anything other than my own field at the end of the day.

Thanks for all the info.

If you're looking at something like a certificate in women's studies or the like, if it's not too much work, by all means yes do it...Everywhere I've been we've loved stuff like that because it generally strengthened our faculty both on paper and in reality.  In some ways it's like getting 1-1/2 faculty members for the price of one (take that how you will, but it does improve your market position!).

Good luck.

[captain_obvious]

That's really good to hear.  I'm actually looking at two different certificates-- one that covers a subject matter outside (but related to) my main field, and another that's more methodological (it'd involve a bunch of technical skills that are very useful in my field but that few of us actually have).

[georgia_guy]

Georgia_guy's "program length" citation is not really on-point, as it's the number of hours to earn a degree at each level, rather than the number of hours in a discipline that technically qualifies you to teach.

Well, the main point I was trying to make there is that any program that does not use the common practice should have some conversion practice available.

[aandsdean]

Georgia_guy's "program length" citation is not really on-point, as it's the number of hours to earn a degree at each level, rather than the number of hours in a discipline that technically qualifies you to teach.

Well, the main point I was trying to make there is that any program that does not use the common practice should have some conversion practice available.

I know--it just sounded oblique and didn't directly address the "teaching qualifications" issue...

[aandsdean]

By the way, here are the SACS "Commission Guidelines" for faculty credentials from the SACS website--sorry I lost the URL as for some reason I didn't get a new tab open:

When an institution defines faculty qualifications using faculty credentials, institutions should use the following as credential guidelines:
a. Faculty teaching general education courses at the undergraduate level: doctorate or master’s degree in the teaching discipline or master’s degree with a concentration in the teaching discipline (a minimum of 18 graduate semester hours in the teaching discipline).
b. Faculty teaching associate degree courses designed for transfer to a baccalaureate degree: doctorate or master’s degree in the teaching discipline or master’s degree with a concentration in the teaching discipline (a minimum of 18 graduate semester hours in the teaching discipline).
c. Faculty teaching associate degree courses not designed for transfer to the baccalaureate degree: bachelor’s degree in the teaching discipline, or associate’s degree and demonstrated competencies in the teaching discipline.
d. Faculty teaching baccalaureate courses: doctorate or master’s degree in the teaching discipline or master’s degree with a concentration in the teaching discipline (minimum of 18 graduate semester hours in the teaching discipline).
e. Faculty teaching graduate and post-baccalaureate course work: earned doctorate/terminal degree in the teaching discipline or a related discipline.
f. Graduate teaching assistants: master’s in the teaching discipline or 18 graduate semester hours in the teaching discipline, direct supervision by a faculty member experienced in the teaching discipline, regular in-service training, and planned and periodic evaluations.

[historian]

Our state requires 18 earned graduate hours to teach an undergrad course---we are also under SACS so that must affect the particulars but in terms of coverage of department courses, to hire someone adjunct, we require 18 hours in history at the graduate level (I do think they have fudged this with people who have 6 hours in a cognate minor field within their 18---probably by labeling them as interdisciplinary studies with an emphasis in history) but as long as they have 18 hours that can be *argued* to be in the discipline, they hire them.

[captain_obvious]

Interesting

With the info from you folks in mind, I've taken a closer look at the certificate requirements.  One seems like a very good idea, while the other (although I might do it anyway just because I want the training) does not include enough courses to 'qualify' me to teach anything additional.


Thanks, all!

C.O.