They don't make much money, they don't have health benefits, and they don't have job security. So why do adjuncts keep showing up to teach in college classrooms semester after semester, year after year?
The Chronicle went to Chicago to find that out, and a lot more.
Adjuncts who teach part time are now about half of the professoriate, making them a crucial sector of academe. But information on their daily jobs, their qualifications, and their motivations is sparse. To help fill the gap, we focused, both in a survey and in intensive reporting, on adjuncts in the Chicago metropolitan area. The region's rich mix of public and private four-year institutions and community colleges provided a lens through which to view the variety of adjunct employment.
Jennifer O'Riordan, an adjunct psychology instructor at Joliet Junior College, listens to colleagues at a union meeting. She has become an advocate for better pay.
Our survey was answered by more than 600 adjuncts who work at 90 institutions. Their responses, though not a random sample, gave us a detailed look at their educations--most do not have doctorates--and their compensation--annual salaries of $20,000 or less are the norm. Students are likely to pay more than that at some of the area's colleges, like Loyola University Chicago, which charges about $30,000 in tuition alone.
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