Hec--thanks bunches for the rec! Gonna look for that book, you betchya.

We pay $5000 at my large public university. Nationally known private universities pay more. On the other hand, the local community college pays $850.

For what time period? Per semester?

my impression is that adjunct faculty basically make zero dollars. Or like one or two dollars, tops. But that's as much as I know.

If it doesn't at least cover gas and lunch I'm gonna pass.

If it doesn't at least cover gas and lunch I'm gonna pass.

That it should do. I just know my mom teaches because she likes it, not because of the money -- it makes her nowhere near her regular consulting rate, even after having taught the same class for a while, which brings the prep time needed way down.

Snerks

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my impression is that adjunct faculty basically make zero dollars.

this is true. when I taught at the Law School, I made about 10% of what a full professor made. and they only taught one more class a semester than I did!!!

For what time period? Per semester?

Yes, 16 week semesters, 2.5 hours of class time per week, plus meeting with students outside of class, usually only one hour a week, plus grading.

As Jesse said, it's really the first time that you teach a particular course that is very time consuming. If this is something that you might do every semester (assuming that you like it and they like you) then it might be worth doing even if the pay is low. But if it's a one-time deal you should remember that the prep time is going to be outrageous the first time around.

Right. The rise in adjuncts is a cost-saving move for universities, most of the time. (Although some professional degree programs bring in outsiders specifically to inject real-world experience into the classroom, which is what aurelia's situation sounds like.) Usually it's a flat fee per class per semester, but it varies a lot.

Has this university really never had an adjunct before, or are they hoping your guess will be a lowball? My old univ., in a professional program, paid about $2500 per class. Which is not a lot, if you consider the time spent on class time, office hours/questions, and any grading you have to do; but those classes also met only once a week, at night, so they could easily be fit into a real-world work schedule.

I know that the undergrad university pays $1500 per credit, so maybe you could use that as a guideline

The rise in adjuncts is a cost-saving move for universities, most of the time.

It's a huge cost savings. At a research university full-time faculty only teach two or three courses a year. For the same price, you can get adjuncts to teach 15 courses, and forget about providing health and retirement benefits. Plus, administrators like the fact that part-time faculty lack power in the system.

On the other hand, if you are teaching something that you care about and you find the interactions with students to be satisfying, then part-time teaching is kind of like a hobby that you get paid for.

Rick is right. I love teaching, I would do it again in a heartbeat. The money is a nice bonus, though