Key Contacts 

If you have questions, please contact your Department Human Resources Representative.  

Applicability  

Adjunct faculty 

Policy Purpose and Description  

Adjunct faculty are generally P&S staff members within the University or professionals whose areas of expertise are insufficiently represented on the faculty; they ordinarily hold a terminal degree in the field. Adjunct faculty appointments are particularly valuable when they make use of the experience of professionals to enhance academic instruction. Adjunct faculty may provide instruction in courses for academic credit (including courses in the Center for Credit Programs), supervise clinical or practicum experiences, or support the teaching of others. 

Definitions

NA

Procedure 

In each of the first six years of an adjunct appointment, the department submits a teaching evaluation to the Dean's Office if the adjunct has had classroom duties during that year. The College has developed a standard form for adjunct teaching evaluation. The evaluation is due in the Office of the Dean in late spring. 

After the first six years of appointment, a performance evaluation must be submitted every third year if the adjunct has had classroom duties at any time during the three-year appointment period (prior to initiating an extension of a complimentary appointment). 

An adjunct faculty member, whether on salary or not, may undergo review for promotion. The procedures and timeline are those outlined in the Collegiate/University Procedural Guidelines for Promotion and Tenure Decision Making, except that external evaluations of scholarship are necessary only for promotion from adjunct associate professor to adjunct professor. The rationale for promotion must be based on the University and Collegiate criteria for faculty rank and departmental criteria for rank, if those exist. 

The Dean consults the Collegiate Committee on Faculty Promotion and Tenure during its deliberations in January and transmits a recommendation to the Provost. 

Forms  

Standard form for adjunct teaching evaluation 

Frequently Asked Questions  

If an adjunct faculty member only teaches a course in the fall semester, do they still need a review submitted in June? 

Yes, please submit the standard form for adjunct teaching evaluations which should include a teaching observation and/or a review of the ACE evaluation forms. 

Are adjunct appointments recognized by the Graduate College?

Adjunct faculty are not automatically members of the graduate faculty. To appoint an individual to graduate faculty status for a specific period or purpose (such as service on a thesis committee), the department applies to the Graduate College.

Related Information 

Collegiate/University Procedural Guidelines for Promotion and Tenure Decision Making  

University and Collegiate criteria for faculty rank 

Revision History 

11/15/2019