Adjunct By Choice

By Randy Eldridge Slave labor. Exploited. Manipulated. Abysmal. Degrading. Not respected. These are all words that I see whenever I'm reading an article or a post about being an adjunct instructor, regardless of what website or article…

By Randy Eldridge I recently came across an article in the Economist that argued that obtaining a Ph.D. was essentially a waste of time. Not to repeat the entire article, what the author bitterly (in my opinion) claims is that the…

By Randy Eldridge If any of you have read any of my previous blogs, you're familiar with Dr. Abbott. He's my department chair and a great guy. In fact, he's really one of the best people that I've worked for, both in and out of the…

By Randy Eldridge Ok, I admit it. I'm 42 and I use Facebook. A lot. Maybe even too much. I was never on Myspace or any other social networking site you can think of. I've used LinkedIn for a long time primarily for professional…

By Randy Eldridge "Mr. Eldridge has been the best instructor that I've had since I've been here." Great, I remember thinking after reading that and several other positive comments. That comment will always stick with me. It was one of…

By Randy Eldridge "Can I help you?" the young lady sitting at the colorfully decorated table asked me when I first walked into the building. It was my first night teaching at this particular school. I had only been there two previous…

By Randy Eldridge My first teaching interview! I was so excited. The Department Chair had called me within a week of me sending in my resume asking me if I was still interested. "Absolutely!" I responded. I was on my way, I thought.…

By Melissa McDonald A couple months ago, my fellow Adjunct By Choice, Ron Tinsley, gave us his reasons for considering and then not pursuing a Ph.D. in "Just a Side of Fries, Please." He writes, I've realized I can do this without a…

By Melissa McDonald Every term, I always have at least one student who says, quite brazenly, some variation of "I hate being forced to write, and I'm in this class just because I have to be." I am sure my colleagues in other general…

By Melissa McDonald I like to keep busy. Teaching semester-after-semester keeps the momentum going, but then something happens that forces me to sit out for a semester or more. Usually, we move. As I mentioned in my blog "Who Gives Up a…