You would think with the rising cost of tuition, (approximately twice the rate of inflation) college staff would be well paid and content. Unfortunately, the only entity benefiting from higher tuition is the college proper. Here are just a few reasons why adjunct professors and those they teach are suffering despite higher costs.

Adjunct

Imagine being a professor of American Literature, you have studied hard and put a lot of time and effort into designing a class that will engage and most importantly teaches your students. Now, you have yet to attain tenure and even though you are a full-time professor you are barely making ends meet, which means you may end up teaching Sociology 101 in order to improve your pay day.

You would be surprised how often adjunct or non-tenured track faculty are asked to teach a class that is outside of their expertise or passion and to make matters worse they have weeks or maybe days to put the class together. Often you will be required to use the text book already ordered for the class or follow a syllabus that was designed 10 years ago.

Effects on Students

Keep in mind that we are not just talking about lower priced public schools; no these are institutions that regularly cost upwards of $70,000 per year. There are several problems students will encounter, including but not limited to:

• Lack of knowledge and passion on part of the teacher leads to poorly communicated ideas (IE.. bad teaching)
• Since teachers are often rushing to work a second job at another facility they rarely have time to counsel students or offer office hours.
• Adjunct faculty has often moved on in as little as a couple years, which means it is hard to take multiple classes with a good teacher or obtain a recommendation after graduation.
• Studies show students who learn from part time staff are less likely to graduate or transfer to a four-year institution.

Conclusion

Colleges are well aware of the problem at hand but have done little to correct the problem. As a student or parent of a student, you can help by asking questions of any school you are considering. Find out how many adjunct professors they employ and what their policies concerning them are. Perhaps, if students begin demanding a better quality education, colleges will begin to invest tuition into well-qualified professors.

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