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[NecrosaroIII]

I majored in History. In another life, I could have seen myself being a History professor, but I couldn't make it into grad school.

What's it like for those of you that work in a college / university setting? I have a few friends that are part time instructors. They bitch and moan about dealing with their students. But it's not their primary careers. My fantasy version is that it's a lot of work grading and prepping, but is ultimately rewarding. But I acknowledge this is probably not realistic.

- What sort of field do you work in?
- How is interactions with students?
- How are office politics?
- Do you find it fulfilling? What frustrations do you have?
- Many professors I knew worked at several schools. Do you do the same?

 

[Ownage]

I majored in History. In another life, I could have seen myself being a History professor, but I couldn't make it into grad school.

What's it like for those of you that work in a college / university setting? I have a few friends that are part time instructors. They bitch and moan about dealing with their students. But it's not their primary careers. My fantasy version is that it's a lot of work grading and prepping, but is ultimately rewarding. But I acknowledge this is probably not realistic.

- What sort of field do you work in?
- How is interactions with students?
- How are office politics?
- Do you find it fulfilling? What frustrations do you have?
- Many professors I knew worked at several schools. Do you do the same?

Ever think of teaching part time at a local community college? MA level can get you there. Different scene of students. Fewer fuckups and more folks bootstrapping.

I have friends who are adjunct lecturers at CCs, and I've helped teach a class (not the course but a few classes) during MBA. I'd like to teach a course or two in the future if there's time.

The older I get the more I see how I couldve gamed the system by going to a local CC, getting a 4.0 and having near zero debt, and then transfer to someplace like Duke or UNC Chapel Hill to graduate versus going all 4 years at the university. Big savings and same result. That is, unless you value beer pong.

 

[Quasicat]

I have been invited as an adjunct in World History for both a Community College and State University while still teaching American History full time at a rural middle school. The Community College was looking for a Bachelor’s degree while the State University wanted a PhD, but a Master’s would suffice.

I hated working at the University level for many reasons. Many of my colleagues held their value if they were published. This came up in almost every conversation and if you responded that you hadn’t published anything, they would pretty much give you the cold shoulder while there. If they found out that you taught in public school, they would always ask how much I made, which was more than what they made. Office hours were required and I would stay my four hours a week and would have no visitors; the moment I left, students would show up. The students were fine, but their parents were absolutely terrible…like far worse than the parents I deal with in public school.

Community school faired much better, many colleagues would help out and would tell me that we were in this together. The College gave me my entire curriculum and even the file to the standard syllabus which I could put my name on, adjust as necessary, and print. The students were appreciative and would feel welcome to ask me questions before or afterwards since I did not hold office hours on campus.

I could see myself going back to the Community College to teach when I retire. I’m not sure I would ever want to be a full time professor, but I could go back on a part time basis and enjoy it.

 

[NecrosaroIII]

I have been invited as an adjunct in World History for both a Community College and State University while still teaching American History full time at a rural middle school. The Community College was looking for a Bachelor’s degree while the State University wanted a PhD, but a Master’s would suffice.

I hated working at the University level for many reasons. Many of my colleagues held their value if they were published. This came up in almost every conversation and if you responded that you hadn’t published anything, they would pretty much give you the cold shoulder while there. If they found out that you taught in public school, they would always ask how much I made, which was more than what they made. Office hours were required and I would stay my four hours a week and would have no visitors; the moment I left, students would show up. The students were fine, but their parents were absolutely terrible…like far worse than the parents I deal with in public school.

Community school faired much better, many colleagues would help out and would tell me that we were in this together. The College gave me my entire curriculum and even the file to the standard syllabus which I could put my name on, adjust as necessary, and print. The students were appreciative and would feel welcome to ask me questions before or afterwards since I did not hold office hours on campus.

I could see myself going back to the Community College to teach when I retire. I’m not sure I would ever want to be a full time professor, but I could go back on a part time basis and enjoy it.

What was the day-to-day like? Were you pretty comfortable in your routine

 

[Quasicat]

What was the day-to-day like? Were you pretty comfortable in your routine

I don’t remember much from the University level since I only did it for a 10 week quarter and I really hated it. I normally can build a good rapport with people, but it was extremely unwelcoming and I was looked down upon due to only having a Master’s degree or having not published anything. The students would emphasize the Mister in my name and some of the students would ask me why I wasn’t a Doctor in a very sarcastic way. I stuck it out, but I hated it.

At the Community College level, I would look at the day’s lesson that was provided to me from the department lead and would add my own examples to it. I would then pick up a bite to eat and head in about an hour early. As students started to filter in, I would usually sit on the platform and review my slides, answering questions, and welcoming the students to the class. I would then lecture from the large auditorium that would seat around 50 people...it was usually full. The class was usually on Monday/Wednesday or Tuesday/Thursday evenings and ran from 6pm to 10pm. I would stick around afterwards to field any questions…I usually left by 10:15pm. On days where there was an exam, there was a Grad Assistant that would come in and proctor the test and I would not need to go in. The GA would “grade” the exam, which means that it was a straight multiple choice exam and the students took it through Edulastic, which literally grades it immediately after the students submit it. Something that made it more comfortable was the ages of the students. Community College, as opposed to the State University, had a large range of ages and socioeconomic backgrounds: There were College Plus Credit students (which were high school juniors and seniors), there were recently divorced single parents, I even had a guy who was recently released from prison where he got his GED and was working on his Associate’s. They genuinely wanted to be there which was different from the University and the middle school, where I still teach.

The only reason why I stopped, was because my dad was diagnosed with stage three cancer and my first child was born around the same time. My focus started to change so I asked if I could take a break as it was something I was doing for fun. It’s been about 14 years since I’ve been there, and they have been under a completely new change of administration, but I do hope that I can get another chance at doing it when I retire from public education.

 

[NecrosaroIII]

Great response. Thank you for your candidness. Sounds like University is extremely cutthoat

 

[Ownage]

Great response. Thank you for your candidness. Sounds like University is extremely cutthoat

Very. I have an ex-wife whose best friend slept her way thru her PhD with faculty and scored tenure at the university (University of British Columbia's EE Dept). The department head also got her a job as a consultant at Telus. That bs happens more than I expected.

 

[jason10mm]

I do. I refuse to call students "learners" or to have an intro slide where I apologize for any microaggressions in advance whilst groveling about how good of an ally I am.

I suspect I'm not long for academia

 

[Ownage]

I do. I refuse to call students "learners" or to have an intro slide where I apologize for any microaggressions in advance whilst groveling about how good of an ally I am.

I suspect I'm not long for academia

DEI is akin to the cultural revolution in China. Stand your ground and be normal.