Research Blog #8: Interview

I did an interview with Karen Thompson.

1. Who are the adjuncts at Rutgers University?? (are they recent grads, life long adjuncts)

Adjuncts (or part-time lecturers, PTLs, as they are called at Rutgers) are a diverse group, as are full-time faculty.  Many, but not all, have PhDs and look forward to an academic profession.  Some are new to teaching and still believe that the adjunct position will lead to a full-time position.  Others have full-time work elsewhere and add part-time adjunct teaching to their lives for the extra money or for the thrill.  For instance, I have a full-time position at the faculty union (Rutgers AAUP-AFT) in addition to my teaching but this was not always the case.  I have taught part-time at Rutgers since 1979 and in the past I was looking for a full-time position.  Many adjuncts / PTLs teach at multiple institutions in order to piece together a living.  This group is large and makes the low pay particularly egregious.

2. Why do they do it?

As I noted in 1., some adjuncts / PTLs teach to supplement their full-time salaries elsewhere and others cobble together several positions for a living.  Most adjuncts / PTLs accept what appear to be unrewarded positions because they LOVE teaching.  I often point out that this attitude leads them to “volunteer,” teaching for such little compensation that part of the reward is just being able to teach (at a large research institution like Rutgers.)

3. A lot of my research shows how low the wages actually can be, but these adjuncts still remain loyal to this profession.  Why doesn't someone break the cycle and leave for a better paying job?

Some adjuncts / PTLs do leave for greener pastures – out of desperation for more reasonable pay, but you’re right that an unbelievable number stay despite the low pay and no benefits because they love teaching, they enjoy “passing” as a professor, and they are still deluded in believing they have a foot in the door, a path to a full-time position, which they don’t.

4. Why are the administration positions getting paid such high compensation, while the pay for adjuncts is on the decline?  And why are the salaries so low for these adjunct positions?

Administrators are highly paid because they set their own salaries, and adjuncts / PTLs receive little compensation because administrators also get to set their pay and do not value them or their work.  In general, teaching is not valued at the university, whether delivered by adjuncts / PTLs, teachings assistants, or tenure track faculty.  Administrators are up front in saying they like to pay adjuncts / PTLs as little as the market will bear, an indication of their devaluing instruction.  Another reason adjuncts / PTLs are paid so little is that the administration gets away with it – if more adjuncts / PTLs would refuse to teach without further compensation, salaries would be higher.  In fact, salaries are higher in certain disciplines, like business and law, because the relevant professionals will not teach for a pittance.