An exploration of the challenges faced by traveling adjuncts

Abstract

Higher education institutions are heavily reliant on part-time adjuncts to teach their students. These part-time adjuncts now account for the majority of faculty in the United States. This qualitative study utilizes a phenomenological approach to explore the essence of the lived experiences of part-time adjuncts who travel to more than one university in their work roles. This study utilized semi-structured interviews with eight traveling adjuncts. The interview questions were based on: the theory of underemployment, employee engagement theory, and the learned helplessness model. While higher education institutions are reliant on adjunct faculty for their survival, the findings uncovered negative factors within the work environment which included job dissatisfaction, low pay, and little or no benefits. The implications and recommendations of these findings and recommendations for future research are also discussed.