Here are all of the multiple-choice questions that we posed to part-time adjunct faculty members in the Chicago area about their working conditions and pay, and the responses we received. The Chronicle did not randomly select a survey sample, and so these responses may not be representative of adjuncts who did not take the survey. We heard from 625 respondents at 90 institutions from April to July. We e-mailed the survey this spring to 3,356 adjuncts whose e-mail addresses we found listed on 35 college and university Web sites. The Chronicle also asked groups that represent adjuncts to tell part-timers about the survey. And we asked adjuncts themselves to pass the survey along to other adjuncts.
| For how many years total have you been working as a part-time adjunct? | |
|---|---|
| 16 or more | 12% |
| 11 to 15 | 12% |
| 6 to 10 | 25% |
| 2 to 5 | 34% |
| Fewer than 2 | 16% |
| What is the highest degree you have attained? | |
| Master’s | 56% |
| Ph.D. | 24% |
| Bachelor’s | 6% |
| Other terminal degree (e.g., M.B.A., J.D.) | 14% |
| At how many institutions did you teach as a part-time adjunct during the 2008-9 academic year? | |
| 1 | 67% |
| 2 | 24% |
| 3 | 6% |
| 4 | 2% |
| 5 or more | 1% |
| How many classes did you teach as a part-time adjunct this year? | |
| 2 or fewer | 41% |
| 3 to 5 | 34% |
| 6 to 10 | 17% |
| 11 to 15 | 5% |
| 16 or more | 3% |
| How many online classes did you teach this year? | |
| 0 | 81% |
| 1 | 4% |
| 2 | 3% |
| 3 | 1% |
| 4 | 1% |
| 5 or more | 6% |
| Did not answer | 3% |
| Which type of class did you teach most often? | |
| Introductory classes | 33% |
| Courses in the major | 27% |
| Advanced courses | 21% |
| Remedial courses | 5% |
| A mix of all in equal parts | 11% |
| Did not answer | 3% |
| What is the lowest amount you earned for the typical class (e.g. three credits) this year? | |
| Less than $1,500 | 20% |
| $1,600 to $2,400 | 34% |
| $2,500 to $3,500 | 20% |
| $3,600 to $4,500 | 13% |
| More than $4,500 | 9% |
| Did not answer | 3% |
| What is the highest amount you earned for the typical class (e.g. three credits) this year? | |
| Less than $1,500 | 12% |
| $1,600 to $2,400 | 28% |
| $2,500 to $3,500 | 28% |
| $3,600 to $4,500 | 16% |
| More than $4,500 | 13% |
| Did not answer | 3% |
| Estimate your total income from your part-time adjunct teaching. | |
| More than $20,000 | 18% |
| $15,100 to $20,000 | 13% |
| $10,100 to $15,000 | 16% |
| $6,100 to $10,000 | 21% |
| $3,100 to $6,000 | 16% |
| $3,000 or less | 14% |
| Did not answer | 2% |
| Did you have this year a full-time job separate from your part-time adjunct teaching? | |
| Yes | 40% |
| No | 60% |
| What is the primary reason you work as a part-time adjunct? | |
| Prefer part-time work | 32% |
| Cannot find full-time teaching job | 30% |
| Already have full-time job | 21% |
| Need part-time work to fit with demands of family life | 12% |
| Did not answer | 5% |
| Were you represented by a union in any of your part-time teaching jobs this year? | |
| Yes | 32% |
| No | 59% |
| Don’t know | 8% |
| Did any of the institutions where you taught this year as a part-time adjunct allow you to participate in their employee health-care plan? | |
| Yes | 14% |
| No | 73% |
| Don’t know | 13% |
| If any of the institutions allowed you to participate in their health-care plan, did they offer to pay some of the cost? | |
| Yes | 10% |
| No | 52% |
| Don’t know | 38% |
| Did the institution(s) where you taught this year provide you access to: | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Almost always | Sometimes | Never | Don’t know | |
| Libraries? | 86% | 4% | 3% | 7% |
| Fitness centers? | 26% | 8% | 34% | 32% |
| Day care centers? | 6% | 2% | 42% | 50% |
| Did the institution(s) where you taught provide you with: | ||||
| Almost always | Sometimes | Never | Don’t know | |
| Offices? | 41% | 26% | 32% | 2% |
| Money for travel to conferences? | 6% | 13% | 66% | 16% |
| Professional development and training? | 30% | 38% | 25% | 7% |
| Support services like secretarial help? | 31% | 34% | 31% | 4% |
| As a part-time adjunct, did you: | ||||
| Almost always | Sometimes | Never | ||
| Help develop courses in your department? | 14% | 31% | 55% | |
| Serve on faculty committees? | 6% | 17% | 77% | |
| Attend faculty departmental meetings? | 15% | 33% | 52% | |
| On average, how many hours per week, per class, were you expected to spend advising students outside of class? | |
| None | 29% |
| Up to 2 hours | 37% |
| Between 2 and 4 hours | 16% |
| More than 4 hours | 6% |
| Don’t know | 11% |
| Were you paid an amount this year above the per-class fee for work you did outside the classroom, e.g., holding office hours, attending faculty meetings, participating in training opportunities? | |
|---|---|
| Almost always | 7% |
| Sometimes | 19% |
| Never | 69% |
| Don’t know | 5% |
| Do you pursue your own research and writing? | |
| Almost always | 34% |
| Sometimes | 38% |
| Never | 28% |
| Considering all aspects of working as a part-time adjunct, are you: | |
| Very satisfied? | 17% |
| Satisfied? | 51% |
| Unsatisfied? | 26% |
| Very unsatisfied? | 5% |
| In your opinion, how has the recession changed the job market for adjuncts in Chicago? | |
| Created many more jobs | 1% |
| Created somewhat more jobs | 9% |
| No impact | 37% |
| Created somewhat fewer jobs | 39% |
| Created many fewer jobs | 14% |
| At what type of institution(s) in the Chicago area did you work as a part-time adjunct this year? (choose all that apply) | |
| Four-year public | 17% |
| Four-year nonprofit | 50% |
| Two-year public | 37% |
| For-profit | 9% |
| Other | 6% |
| Note: All questions refer to the period covered by the summer of 2008 and the 2008-9 academic year. Adjuncts were invited to take the survey only if they had worked as part-time adjuncts between June 2008 and the date they received the survey invitation this spring. Percentages are rounded and so may not add to 100 percent. | |
| Source: Chronicle reporting | |
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