Adjunct faculty are a substantial part of higher education, but their working arrangements vary widely by institution, program, discipline, and personal circumstances. Recent NCES data describe the broader faculty workforce in fall 2022, CUPA-HR reports adjunct conditions in 2024-25, and the TIAA Institute’s survey describes adjunct experiences in 2018.
Contents
- How large is the faculty workforce?
- How common are adjunct appointments?
- What do adjuncts earn?
- How much do adjuncts teach?
- Who teaches as an adjunct?
- How institutions set adjunct conditions
- Adjunct work and career preferences
How large is the faculty workforce?
The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) counted 1.5 million faculty at degree-granting postsecondary institutions in fall 2022. Of that total, 56% were full time and 44% were part time. The part-time share was 50% in fall 2011, so the proportion working part time declined by 6 percentage points over that period.
The headcount change behind those percentages moved in opposite directions. Full-time faculty increased 11%, from 762,100 in fall 2011 to 842,400 in fall 2022. Part-time faculty decreased 13%, from 762,400 to 665,200. These are faculty headcounts, not a count of courses, credit hours, or full-time-equivalent employees.
NCES also reported a change in the gender composition of faculty. Female faculty increased from 734,900 in fall 2011 to 776,500 in fall 2022, a 6% increase. Male faculty decreased from 789,600 to 731,100, a 7% decline. As a result, women represented 52% of faculty in fall 2022, compared with 48% in 2011.
Institution type matters as well. In fall 2022, 63% of faculty worked at public institutions, 33% at private nonprofit institutions, and 4% at private for-profit institutions. Public-institution faculty counts changed from 954,200 in 2011 to 946,800 in 2022, a 1% decline. Private nonprofit institutions increased from 432,600 to 495,800, a 15% increase, while private for-profit institutions fell from 137,700 to 65,000, a 53% decline. These institution-level trends are from NCES’s Characteristics of Postsecondary Faculty.
How common are adjunct appointments?
CUPA-HR’s 2024-25 data provide a more specific view of adjuncts. Adjuncts made up approximately 40% of the higher-education faculty workforce in that reporting. Their share was 46% at private institutions and 37% at public institutions. Because these percentages come from CUPA-HR’s 2024-25 data rather than NCES’s fall 2022 count, they should be read as a separate measurement rather than a direct year-to-year update.
The institutional mission makes a large difference. Adjuncts represented 66% of the faculty workforce at associate’s institutions, compared with 33% at doctoral institutions. Among all adjuncts reported in the CUPA-HR data, 64% were employed by public institutions.
The broader NCES context also shows why appointment type matters. The fall 2022 FTE student-to-faculty ratio was 13:1 across degree-granting postsecondary institutions, compared with 16:1 in fall 2011. In fall 2022, the ratio was 17:1 at public 2-year institutions and 14:1 at private nonprofit 2-year institutions. It was 14:1 at public 4-year institutions, 10:1 at private nonprofit 4-year institutions, and 23:1 at private for-profit institutions.
Tenure systems do not cover every institution. NCES reported that about 57% of degree-granting institutions had tenure systems in academic year 2022-23. The share ranged from 1% at private for-profit institutions to 99% at public doctoral institutions. Among full-time faculty at institutions with tenure systems, 44% had tenure in 2022-23, down from 49% in 2011-12.
What do adjuncts earn?
CUPA-HR reported an overall median adjunct pay rate of $1,166 per credit hour in 2024-25. At three credit hours, that rate translated to $3,498 for a typical three-credit course. Median pay was $1,265 per credit hour at doctoral institutions and $1,028 at associate’s institutions. The reported pay gap between those institution types was $711 for a typical three-credit course.
Pay also varied with educational attainment. Adjuncts with a doctorate had median pay of $1,300 per credit hour, while adjuncts whose highest degree was an associate’s degree had median pay of $990 per credit hour. The figures describe median reported rates, not annual income or total compensation.
For comparison, NCES reported average full-time instructional salaries on 9-month contracts in academic year 2022-23 as follows:
| Institution type | Average full-time instructional salary |
|---|---|
| Private nonprofit institutions | $107,000 |
| Public institutions | $94,000 |
| Private for-profit institutions | $63,500 |
| Private nonprofit 4-year doctoral institutions | $122,500 |
| Public 4-year doctoral institutions | $105,300 |
| Private nonprofit 2-year institutions | $69,100 |
These full-time salary averages should not be treated as an annualized adjunct rate. They use a different employment group, contract structure, and measurement period. NCES also found that full-time faculty tenure rates in 2022-23 were 46% at public institutions, 39% at private nonprofits, and 9% at private for-profits, compared with 51%, 44%, and 31%, respectively, in 2011-12.
How much do adjuncts teach?
CUPA-HR reported a median of 5 credit hours taught by adjuncts per term. A large majority, 79%, taught 6 or fewer credit hours at a time. At the other end of the distribution, 8% taught 10 or more credit hours in a semester and 7% taught 12 or more credit hours per term. Approximately 7% said teaching was their main source of income.
The TIAA Institute’s 2018 Adjunct Faculty Survey offers additional detail about course loads and institutions. In that survey, 74% of adjuncts taught at a single college or university. Thirty-five percent taught one course at a single institution, and another 35% taught two courses there; in total, 52% taught one or two courses at a single institution. Twenty-six percent taught at two or more colleges and universities. Among adjuncts teaching at two or more institutions, 83% taught three or more classes.
The same survey found that adjuncts earned an average of $3,000 per course, with almost 60% earning less than that average per-course amount. The result is a survey-era average, not a current national pay estimate. In the TIAA data, 44% reported working for pay outside their college or university during the past school year. Outside employment was reported by 55% of adjuncts working at two or more institutions and 40% of those working at one institution.
Who teaches as an adjunct?
CUPA-HR reported that women represented 57% of adjunct faculty. Women represented 57% of the non-tenure-track workforce, compared with 44% of tenure-track faculty. Black faculty represented 10% of adjuncts, versus 7% of non-tenure-track faculty and 5% of tenure-track faculty. Asian faculty represented 6% of adjuncts, compared with 10% of non-tenure-track faculty and 16% of tenure-track faculty. Hispanic faculty represented 7% of adjuncts and 6% of full-time faculty.
The CUPA-HR data also reported pay ratios by race and gender. Black men, Black women, Hispanic men, and White women were paid $0.95 for every $1.00 paid to White men in adjunct positions. Asian men were paid $1.11 and Asian women $1.10 for every $1.00 paid to White men. These are reported group pay ratios, not individual salary predictions.
Educational attainment was common among adjuncts. Approximately 88% held an advanced degree; 59% had a master’s degree as their highest degree and 29% had a doctorate. The CUPA-HR report found that a greater proportion of Asian adjuncts held a doctorate, 37%, than Black adjuncts, 32%, Hispanic adjuncts, 26%, or White adjuncts, 28%.
The TIAA survey, conducted in 2018, found that 70% of adjunct faculty were over age 40 and that the average age was 50. Female adjuncts averaged age 47, compared with 53 for male adjuncts. Fifty-two percent were female, 67% were married or living with a partner, and 60% lived in households with annual income of at least $50,000.
How institutions set adjunct conditions
More than half of institutions, 56%, told CUPA-HR that the academic affairs or provost office determined adjunct pay. Collective bargaining agreements and human resources offices were each reported by 12%, while only 7% said the department, college, or discipline determined pay.
Pay could also vary according to the work or qualifications involved. Fifty-six percent of institutions said pay varied by an adjunct’s education level, 53% by the type of degree program taught, and 54% by the specific discipline or course. At doctoral institutions, 63% said education level affected pay and 65% said discipline or course affected it. At baccalaureate institutions, the corresponding figures were 41% and 42%; at associate’s institutions, they were 39% and 39%. Sixty percent of private institutions said degree-program type affected pay, compared with 47% of public institutions.
Course cancellation is another important condition. At 70% of institutions, low enrollment caused a course to be canceled and the adjunct received no pay for that course. At 13%, low enrollment reduced adjunct pay rates, and at 4%, pay scaled incrementally with the number of enrolled students. Course cancellation due to low enrollment was reported at 76% of public institutions and 75% of baccalaureate institutions.
The expected duties also varied. Sixty-seven percent of institutions said adjuncts were not expected to perform duties beyond teaching. Twenty-two percent expected or encouraged additional work without paying for it, while 10% paid adjuncts for additional activities beyond teaching.
Adjunct work and career preferences
The TIAA Institute’s 2018 survey found that 66% of adjuncts were satisfied with their academic career: 23% were very satisfied and 43% satisfied. Sixteen percent were dissatisfied. Satisfaction differed by household income: 23% of adjuncts with household income below $50,000 were dissatisfied, compared with 11% of those with income of at least $100,000. Very satisfied responses were reported by 15% of the lower-income group and 29% of the $100,000-or-more group.
Half of adjuncts preferred a tenure-track position, 10% preferred a full-time nontenure-track position, and 25% preferred to remain in an adjunct position. Among dissatisfied adjuncts, 80% preferred tenure track and 5% preferred adjunct work. Among very satisfied adjuncts, 33% preferred tenure track and 45% preferred an adjunct position.
The survey also connected preferences with household income. Sixty-nine percent of adjuncts with household income below $50,000 preferred a tenure-track position, compared with 34% of those whose household income was at least $100,000. These 2018 survey results describe reported preferences at that time; they do not forecast future faculty employment or current career intentions.