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[treehugger1]

Where adjuncting = teaching part-time on a one-semester or one-year basis with no benefits and minimal salary -- between $1000 and $ 5000 per course.

"On principle" = for some reason that goes beyond personal need/pleasure/career prep
"practical reasons" = everything else

I'm thinking of refusing to adjunct "on principle," because it debases the profession -- although I freely admit that I also have personal reasons (at the moment) for not jumping at the opportunity. (Cynic that I am, I also incline towards option 7, so would be one of the first to accuse myself of total bad faith here). I also realize that one person's refusal would amount to an entirely ineffective and quixotic form of resistance.

Just curious to see what others think about this hopefully not-already-beaten-to-death topic.

[erzuliefreda]

I taught PT for two years at two universities. The money was crap, but the experience landed me my TT job. Without adjuncting, I would not have rocked my teaching demonstration or been able to discuss my teaching intelligently during the campus interview.

If you have the privilege of not adjuncting, good for you.

[infopri]

I've done more adjuncting than TT teaching.  I can't answer your survey, though, because the answers are neither comprehensive nor mutually exclusive.  To wit:

- I might refuse to adjunct (and have, in the past) for practical reasons (bad timing, essentially).

- I'd jump at the opportunity to adjunct (and have) because I love teaching.

- I'd love to adjunct (and have/do) because I can use the money (little though it is).

- Where I work, adjuncting is, if not fine in practice and principle, at least better than it is at a lot of other places.  I'm treated with respect by the faculty and staff, and there is now a union contract in place guaranteeing some benefits (most of which I can't use because I have better benefits as the wife of a tenured faculty member, but it's nice to know the adjunct benefits are there).

And to your choices, I'd add:

- I'd be happy to adjunct (and have) simply to help out my school, as I have a long and mutually beneficial relationship with the people there.

[treehugger1]

I can't answer your survey, though, because the answers are neither comprehensive nor mutually exclusive.

That's why you have up to 5 options and an "other" box. ;-)

[infopri]

I can't answer your survey, though, because the answers are neither comprehensive nor mutually exclusive.

That's why you have up to 5 options and an "other" box. ;-)

Ah.  Either you've changed the poll, or I can't read.  (The latter is certainly possible!)  Thanks for adding the "help out" option.  I've now voted.  :)

[hipgeek]

All my replies were practical: $, experience, and I'd refuse for practical reasons (such as being too busy, which is bound to occur one of these days, but so far I've found it really hard to say no).

I'll say this for my adjuncting:  it is nothing like teaching at my R1 grad school.  It's a CC I adjunct at and the expectations are not as stringent.  I teach very developmental courses, small number of students, lots of rewriting the same paragraphs over and over.  The syllabus is already designed, the textbook is chosen.  It's not necessarily ideal, but I feel that it's good experience and at $2,500 a course it's decent for adjunct pay.  I know this sounds awful, but the work just isn't that taxing.

I have a friend that teaches on-line and says she makes great money but I haven't done that yet, partially because going through the training sounds like a pain in the butt.  Also, I do enjoy seeing people face to face and while I think my CC experience could go on and even help my CV I think the online stuff couldn't.  But, frankly, this assumption could be completely off-base.

[systeme_d_]

Would I adjunct now?  Hells to the no.  I have tenure.

Have I adjuncted in the past?  Heck yes.  When I was in grad school.  I needed the cash, and the teaching experience.  And I am grateful to those colleges that took a chance on a PhD student and inexperienced teacher.  Thanks to them, I don't suck at teaching any more.  (To those students at C College, L College, and A Community College:  Sorry.  Really.)

[hipgeek]

Would I adjunct now?  Hells to the no.  I have tenure.

Have I adjuncted in the past?  Heck yes.  When I was in grad school.  I needed the cash, and the teaching experience.  And I am grateful to those colleges that took a chance on a PhD student and inexperienced teacher.  Thanks to them, I don't suck at teaching any more.  (To those students at C College, L College, and A Community College:  Sorry.  Really.)

I love you, systeme_d.  You're too funny!

[systeme_d_]

Would I adjunct now?  Hells to the no.  I have tenure.

Have I adjuncted in the past?  Heck yes.  When I was in grad school.  I needed the cash, and the teaching experience.  And I am grateful to those colleges that took a chance on a PhD student and inexperienced teacher.  Thanks to them, I don't suck at teaching any more.  (To those students at C College, L College, and A Community College:  Sorry.  Really.)

I love you, systeme_d.  You're too funny!

I love you back, Hipgeek!
*mwah*

[prof_smartypants]

Would I adjunct now?  Hells to the no.  I have tenure.

Have I adjuncted in the past?  Heck yes.  When I was in grad school.  I needed the cash, and the teaching experience.  And I am grateful to those colleges that took a chance on a PhD student and inexperienced teacher.  Thanks to them, I don't suck at teaching any more.  (To those students at C College, L College, and A Community College:  Sorry.  Really.)

This. I adjuncted as a graduate student, and I wouldn't have my permanent job now had I not done that. It gave me tremendous experience. As a result, I was able to waltz into my current job and rock my classes from the start. My strong evals are making the case to the dean for converting my non-tt line to a tt line next year.

I guarantee you that I wouldn't be in this position 1 year out of my PhD without adjuncting.

[infopri]

I have a friend that teaches on-line and says she makes great money but I haven't done that yet, partially because going through the training sounds like a pain in the butt.  Also, I do enjoy seeing people face to face and while I think my CC experience could go on and even help my CV I think the online stuff couldn't.  But, frankly, this assumption could be completely off-base.

I now teach entirely online.  The money is exactly the same as it would be for teaching in the classroom, which isn't great, but it's significantly more than your university apparently pays.  I do think your assumption is off-base, though, hipgeek.  One of the reasons I took this gig, originally (a couple of years ago) is that I'd never taught online before, and I think, in today's market, online teaching is a valuable thing to have on your CV.  More and more schools are offering courses online, and they're going to want folks with experience to teach them.

That said, I do very much miss the face-to-face contact, both socially (teaching online from home is very isolating) and, especially, pedagogically.  Especially for my subject matter, face to face works much better.  Still, I've learned a lot about how to do the online version better, and it's very popular with the students, many of whom are distributed around the globe and wouldn't be able to enroll in our programs without the online courses.

Have I adjuncted in the past?  Heck yes.  When I was in grad school.  I needed the cash, and the teaching experience.  And I am grateful to those colleges that took a chance on a PhD student and inexperienced teacher.  Thanks to them, I don't suck at teaching any more.  (To those students at C College, L College, and A Community College:  Sorry.  Really.)

This. I adjuncted as a graduate student, and I wouldn't have my permanent job now had I not done that. It gave me tremendous experience. As a result, I was able to waltz into my current job and rock my classes from the start. My strong evals are making the case to the dean for converting my non-tt line to a tt line next year.

I guarantee you that I wouldn't be in this position 1 year out of my PhD without adjuncting.

Same here.  I did a lot of teaching (!) as a grad student, and it was a big factor in my getting my TT job--which I landed just about the time I defended my dissertation proposal.

[duchess_of_malfi]

I'm thinking of refusing to adjunct "on principle," because it debases the profession...

That's just great. 

[hipgeek]

Same here.  I did a lot of teaching (!) as a grad student, and it was a big factor in my getting my TT job--which I landed just about the time I defended my dissertation proposal.

Wow!  I didn't even know you could really be on the market at that stage.  It sounds like a ton of work.

Also, thanks for the corrective on on-line teaching.  I will be frustrated with the isolation, but I think you've given me the push I need to try it. 

[treehugger1]

So what I see is that adjuncting helps build skills, bridge the gap between grad student life and the TT.

I guess what I'm looking at is the possibility of perpetual adjunctdom and I'm trying to decide how ethically unsavory it would be  to accept this as a semi-permanent arrangement to the two-body problem. I suppose I'm thinking both duty to others and to myself. Does one have a duty to oneself *not* to work for peanuts (and hence increase competition, place downward pressure on wages for everyone else in the vicinity)?

Has anyone else asked themselves this question?

[rear_view_mirror]

So what I see is that adjuncting helps build skills, bridge the gap between grad student life and the TT.

I guess what I'm looking at is the possibility of perpetual adjunctdom and I'm trying to decide how ethically unsavory it would be  to accept this as a semi-permanent arrangement to the two-body problem. I suppose I'm thinking both duty to others and to myself. Does one have a duty to oneself *not* to work for peanuts (and hence increase competition, place downward pressure on wages for everyone else in the vicinity)?

Has anyone else asked themselves this question?

Since no one acts on principle alone, a solution is to work for unionizing, because then principle and self-interest are aligned.