Adjunct Professor / Instructor
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- vaxorcist0
I taught at 3 different institutions as an adjunct some years ago.... approx 1999-2007 or so....
1. Only one school had dues to a union, not too much either if I remember right... I gladly paid the dues... partially due to hearing about the the high-conflict history of the administration vs part timers,
2. I always had other gigs and only taught 1 class a semester, so 3 -4 credit hours for me...
3. I knew a number of people who taught adjunct at multiple school,s but i didn't, as I wanted to keep track of my time and not be too busy to have time for my students
4. stay arms length away from committee responsiblities, and get a feeling for the department politics vs some other departments in the institution, sometimes there are "people with long toes" i.e. it can be easy to accidently step on somebody's toes when you're just trying to help get something done, somebody else might be very touchy and territorial about you intruding on their fiefdom...
Also, be aware that some schools / faculty / staff are very friendly to people with "real world" experience and some are scared/confused/ different,... they may be nervous or happy to see you...
if anyone says "you'll be back next year tenure track" get it in writing before you give up other gigs, as things can drastically change whenever administration people change....
Good luck! Cool students can make it all worth the occasional institutional hassles...