Adjunct Professor Job Description, Skills, and Salary
Get to know about the duties, responsibilities, qualifications, and skills requirements of an adjunct professor. Feel free to use our adjunct professor job description template to produce your own. We also provide you with information about the salary you can earn as an adjunct professor.
Who Is An Adjunct Professor?
Professors who are hired on a contractual basis, usually in part-time roles, are known as adjunct professors. Adjunct faculty teach classes in the same way that full-time professors do, although they are excused from some of the duties that full-time university professors have.
Adjunct professors’ career paths may be uncertain: for example, jobs are frequently on a contract basis, and salary is typically lower than that of full-time academics. However, for some adjunct faculty, the benefits may exceed the drawbacks.
Regardless of the unique conditions in which adjunct instructors find themselves, one thing is certain: they enjoy teaching and working with students.
Professors who work as adjuncts work part-time. They aren’t regarded as permanent employees, and they aren’t on their way to a tenured post. They can establish a teaching schedule that suits them as a contract employee.
Some people simply teach one class, while others have a large number of students. They might take on many assignments or perhaps work a day job. When the term is up, the adjunct is free to look for other teaching jobs at the same or different schools. While adjuncts may not have the same responsibilities as full-time, tenured professors (such as performing university research), they do fulfill many of the “standard” tasks involved with teaching a class. This task may include:
Developing the syllabus: The adjunct instructor must put together what the students should read and finish, as well as the time the syllabus should be used. This includes information such as class expectations, due dates, assignments, and a broad description of the course.
Giving quizzes and exams and grading them: Exams are created and overseen by adjunct professors to assess student competency. It’s critical to guarantee that students are prepared and that their work is plagiarism-free.
Writing assignments: Adjunct teachers make assignments for their students to complete in class and at home. Connecting mandatory reading to assignments such as worksheets or essays is an example of this.
Grading: Adjunct professors frequently develop their own rubrics for assignments and exams. Using the rubrics allows them to see which areas they should concentrate on in order to improve students’ understanding.
Giving lectures: Depending on the subject you teach, you may choose to provide lectures of varying lengths. This can include adding graphics, videos, and other media to make the content more interesting.
Organizing group work: In the classroom, students frequently work in groups. In-class and high-stakes assignments require adjunct lecturers to plan activities that allow students to communicate with one another.
Adjunct Professor Job Description
Below are the adjunct professor job description examples you can use to develop your resume or write an adjunct professor job description for your employee. Employers can also use it to sieve out job seekers when choosing candidates for interviews.
- Instructing graduate and undergraduate students in a specific field of expertise.
- Delivering, developing, and reviewing course material and syllabi
- Creating an environment in the classroom where students feel at ease to participate and learn.
- Grading papers, quizzes, and examinations that have been assigned to you.
- Determining students’ grades are by their participation, class performance, assignments, and exams.
- Developing assessments in accordance with departmental guidelines and requirements.
- Getting students ready for tests and providing constructive feedback on their performance.
- Drafting consultation periods where questions and concerns can be expressed as well as extra help for students who need it.
- Answering the questions and dealing with concerns from students and providing feedback on projects or drafts of essays.
- Suggesting additional books or recommendations to pupils.
- Working on the course program with colleagues.
- Guiding pupils on how to succeed and attain their objectives.
- Keeping up with new developments and changes in their field of study.
- Taking part in professional development opportunities.
Qualifications of an Adjunct Professor
- A master’s or doctoral degree in the relevant academic discipline is required.
- Working as a TA in a university or something comparable is a plus.
- Attendance and participation in conferences should be documented.
- It would be advantageous if you had published papers or research pieces.
- Interpersonal, observational, and communication abilities are exceptional.
- Patience, good organizational and analytical capabilities.
Essential Skills
Communication
A lot of an adjunct professor’s day is spent communicating. They give lectures, answer queries, send emails, and offer detailed instructions and feedback for homework assignments and papers. Adjunct professors collaborate with other instructors and educational personnel, therefore communication is critical in almost every activity they do.
Time management
Adjunct professors frequently adhere to rigid timetables, which include class times, preparation, and grading. They can use time management to perform all of their tasks and duties on time. It is critical to provide timely feedback so that students are better equipped to complete future assignments, hence it is critical to grade examinations and papers swiftly.
Interpersonal skills
Adjunct professors collaborate with a wide range of individuals, including other academics and students. Interacting with a variety of people necessitates great interpersonal skills in order to transmit the correct information. It’s critical to tailor your interpersonal skills to the specific relationship you have with each individual. A relationship with the department head, for example, may be more official, whereas expressing compassion to students may be more beneficial.
The ability to think critically
This ability refers to your ability to weigh all of the information around a problem and make a well-informed choice. When grading open-ended papers or tests, devising useful coursework, and offering carefully researched replies during conversations, adjunct teachers apply this expertise. This is one of the skills that adjunct lecturers use the most in practically every area of education.
Organization
Adjunct professors are outstanding organizers since they frequently teach multiple classes in a semester. This necessitates weekly preparation of assignments and lesson content, as well as organized grading techniques such as recognizing where you’ve stopped and kept records. As an adjunct lecturer, you must be organized, especially if you need to send certain documents to faculty for evaluation before a deadline.
Computer skills
You’ll very certainly be utilizing a computer to check emails, maintain attendance, make lesson plans, and do other computer-related tasks. To complete these tasks successfully, you must have excellent computer abilities.
Student evaluation
In addition to instructing your pupils, you’ll need to assess their classroom performance. This will allow you to assess your effectiveness as an instructor as well as how well your pupils retained your lesson.
Speaking in front of an audience
Many adjunct lecturers give weekly lectures. Lecturers must be able to prepare and deliver clear, effective presentations on a regular basis, sometimes many times a day. Practicing public speaking will help you talk properly and respond to inquiries in your lectures and classes.
Student engagement: You must actively involve your students by ensuring that they listen to you in order to be a great teacher. This is critical to ensuring that students are getting the most out of your lessons. They’re also more inclined to engage with you if they’re motivated.
As an adjunct professor, you’ll need to build a lesson plan that will provide valuable information and knowledge to your students. The more effectively you can plan a lesson, the better.
How to Become an Adjunct Professor
- Complete your bachelor’s degree.
You’ll take a variety of math, science, history, English, and other classes as part of an associate or bachelor’s degree program. Maintaining a high grade point average during your undergraduate time is critical, as graduate institutions frequently need a GPA of 3.0 or above.
Consider speaking with your undergraduate professors about their teaching experiences if you wish to pursue a job as an adjunct lecturer. If they are adjuncts themselves, they can give you valuable information about the job market and typical responsibilities. Your professors can still provide crucial information regarding lesson planning, grade monitoring, classroom management, and more, even if they are full-time, tenure-track educators.
- Obtain a terminal degree in your chosen field.
A Ph.D. is necessary for most academic fields, while an MFA or other comparable professional degree may be acceptable in some situations. In the past, many jobs required only a master’s degree. However, due to an abundance of Ph. D.s, the master’s degree is becoming less valuable.
Once you’ve decided on a subject of study, devote the balance of your undergraduate degree to classes in that field. If you want to be an adjunct English professor, for example, you should take literature classes from various time periods and genres, as well as rhetoric and creative writing courses if they are offered.
- Go to Graduate school
You’ll need to apply for and complete graduate school after receiving your bachelor’s degree. You may be required to take the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) to be admitted, depending on your program. The GRE assesses vocabulary and reading comprehension, as well as geometry, algebra, calculus, and data analysis. A 45-minute timed essay assignment makes up the test’s last component. Higher GRE scores could help you get into graduate school.
Although some institutions allow adjunct professors to teach with only a bachelor’s degree, a master’s degree is usually required. The majority of master’s programs last between two and three years.
- Acquire some teaching experience.
While pursuing a terminal degree, the majority of adjunct applicants have teaching experience as graduate teachers. Any prior teaching experience, even if it was as a volunteer or substitute teacher, is preferable to none. The more teaching experience you have, the more courses you will be able to cover.
- Use scholarly journals to publish your work.
Although scholarly qualifications aren’t as important for adjuncts as they are for tenure-track teachers, they will help your CV stand out.
- Prepare Resume
Develop and document professional abilities and expertise that are relevant to the field in which you are seeking adjunct jobs. To be an adjunct nursing lecturer, for example, you must have prior nursing experience.
To apply for open employment, adjunct professors must have a resume. It’s a good idea to make a list of all of your education and qualifications to include in your application while you’re still in school and acquiring experience. To figure out what to include, look at job descriptions and sample resumes for academics in your field. The following are included in all basic resumes:
Education, experience, skill certifications, accolades, and publications are all available upon request.
- Utilize an online dossier service to create a curriculum vitae and a dossier of reference letters. To identify and apply for employment openings, look for them on the human resources websites of local colleges and institutions, as well as other online job sites.
Because adjunct employment is not considered full-time work, you can set your own hours and places. If you work in a city with a diverse range of institutions, you may be able to split your time between many campuses to guarantee you’re getting enough sleep. If adjunct professorship is a side job, you can work one or two classes to keep the rest of your time free.
- Develop methods for quickly preparing courses and grading papers. Because of the low pay per course, you will have to take more courses to make up for it.
Where to Work
Professors of adjustment operate in a classroom setting with varying class numbers depending on the type of subject. They frequently collaborate with students and other educators. Depending on the class load, they may work a variety of hours. Some adjunct professors may be able to offer classes during the summer, while others may only be able to teach during the spring and fall semesters.
Adjunct opportunities are frequently available at community colleges, in addition to universities. Check the application guidelines thoroughly before applying to ensure you have all of the required information.
Adjunct Professor Salary Scale
Salaries for adjunct professors in higher education vary greatly based on the state, type of college, discipline taught, and the professors’ degree, teaching experience, and field knowledge. It could also be based on the applicant’s educational background.
Adjunct instructors’ average yearly income varies by state, ranging from $51,077 to $72,907. Compensation can be computed on a per-course or hourly basis, with hourly rates ranging from $26 to $95 per hour.
Salaries differ depending on the type of institution: Adjunct instructors at traditional four-year institutions typically receive more money than those at community colleges.
In Nigeria, Lecturers are paid based on rank, Lecturer II gets between N137,459 and N164,970 per month. Lecturer I is paid between N173,333 and N22,667 every month. The salary ranges from N257,625 to N371,292 per month for a Senior Lecturer. Readers make between N314,018 and N417,062 each month. In Nigeria, a professor makes between N381,695 and N501,680 per month. An adjunct professor earns half of what a full-time professor earns.
