2008 Woodie Awards
Adjunct faculty provide benefits to school and deserve some of their own
Issue date: 10/27/05 Section: Opinion/Editorial
- Page 1 of 1
Adjunct pay and benefits have been a contentious issue not just on this campus, but on college campuses across the country. As enrollment increases and budgets stagnate or fall, universities are scrambling to find ways to save money. Hiring adjunct faculty is one way of saving money, since adjuncts are the equivalent of part-time employees. Just as corporations hire part-time employees to avoid paying the full-time wages and health insurance benefits, universities save money with adjunct faculty. Adjuncts often teach at multiple schools, but their classes can be canceled at the last minute if enrollment isn't high enough.
Adjuncts certainly don't make poor professors. Indeed, they provide a benefits associate or tenured professors do not: they often work in the field they teach. Webster's push for "real-world experience" for its students is certainly aided by the large percentage of adjunct faculty.
But some universities are under fire for their use of part-time faculty. Florida Metropolitan University, a branch of Corinthian Colleges Inc., is a for-profit school in Tampa, Fla. The Wall Street Journal interviewed students who tried to transfer their credits to other schools - and found their credits were worthless. FMU employs more part-time than full-time faculty, which was one factor in its application for accreditation being denied. Now its students are left with thousands of dollars of debt and worthless degrees.
Of course, Webster is a very different institution than FMU. Besides Webster's long-standing tradition of quality education, Webster is accredited and non-profit, which means it won't be milked for every possible penny. But the high number of adjunct faculty don't support a positive image for the university in academic circles.
Adding full-time faculty would be an expensive move for the university at a time when the purse strings are tight. But investing in tenured and new faculty would let the university reap long-term benefits in the form of more donations to the university's endowment and higher standing in academic circles.
Meanwhile, officials should provide the hard-working adjuncts with more pay and benefits. Attracting the highest-quality adjuncts will help attract high-quality students as well as maintain high standards for all the classes. If Webster isn't treating its adjuncts well, what will keep drawing them back to the university if other schools are offering a better deal?
Adjuncts certainly don't make poor professors. Indeed, they provide a benefits associate or tenured professors do not: they often work in the field they teach. Webster's push for "real-world experience" for its students is certainly aided by the large percentage of adjunct faculty.
But some universities are under fire for their use of part-time faculty. Florida Metropolitan University, a branch of Corinthian Colleges Inc., is a for-profit school in Tampa, Fla. The Wall Street Journal interviewed students who tried to transfer their credits to other schools - and found their credits were worthless. FMU employs more part-time than full-time faculty, which was one factor in its application for accreditation being denied. Now its students are left with thousands of dollars of debt and worthless degrees.
Of course, Webster is a very different institution than FMU. Besides Webster's long-standing tradition of quality education, Webster is accredited and non-profit, which means it won't be milked for every possible penny. But the high number of adjunct faculty don't support a positive image for the university in academic circles.
Adding full-time faculty would be an expensive move for the university at a time when the purse strings are tight. But investing in tenured and new faculty would let the university reap long-term benefits in the form of more donations to the university's endowment and higher standing in academic circles.
Meanwhile, officials should provide the hard-working adjuncts with more pay and benefits. Attracting the highest-quality adjuncts will help attract high-quality students as well as maintain high standards for all the classes. If Webster isn't treating its adjuncts well, what will keep drawing them back to the university if other schools are offering a better deal?