Why can't I get an online teaching position??

Discussion in 'Off-Topic Discussions' started by Randell1234, Oct 13, 2005.

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  1. Randell1234

    Randell1234 Moderator

    I have applied to quite a few schools and the results have been:
    Had a phone interview and was told it went fine and they would schedule my training when they had a need for technology instructor. That was almost a year a ago and I never heard from them.

    Completed the training at another school (six weeks) and was told they would contact me when they needed me...nothing.

    Of all the schools I applied to (maybe a dozen) those are teh only two responses. Could it be my resume? What do schools look for in adjunct online instructor?

    Any words of wisdom would be appreciated.
     
  2. Rich Douglas

    Rich Douglas Well-Known Member

    Finish your doctorate.

    Adjunct instructors with master's degrees are routine; they'll call when they really need you. But adjunct instructors with doctorates are still rather rare, and very valued by these schools. (They're constantly striving to maintain academic levels in their faculties.)
     
  3. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    I've never seen hard data on this (would make a good research project!), but my sense of things is that schools that use adjuncts use them very disproportionately. During the years I had involvement with the University of Leicester's distance MS in training and HR, they appointed ten US-based adjuncts with comparable credentials . . . and the way it worked out was that two of these ended up with about 95% of the students, and the others either one or zero each.
     
  4. Randell1234

    Randell1234 Moderator

    Rich,

    Thanks for the response. I am trying to weight out the benefit of finishing my PhD faster (ie more money out of pocket) and the possibility of getting a adjunct position faster.

    I know that is an "unknown" but I am thinking about it.
     
  5. me again

    me again Well-Known Member

    IMO, people with Masters degrees are getting to be a dime-a-dozen to colleges and universities, with the exception being esoteric fields like math, engineering, etc. Also, when schools have instructors with doctorates, it lends more credability to their institution and, as I understand it (?), institutions need X% of their instructors to have doctorates (verses just having a masters) and, for that reason, they want candidates with a doctorate. If you had a doctorate, you would get a much bigger responce and you would be much more employable.
     
  6. -kevin-

    -kevin- Resident Redneck

  7. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    Randell,

    If your CV has that Associate's degree from Phoenix on it, I'd remove it. I know Keiser College's online campus discards anything that says Phoenix, Capella, and the like. And that's at a for-profit school! Hopefully Northcentral is a little better, since they haven't had such pervasive marketing. (That's not an opinion from me about the quality of for-profit programs -- it's just a report from the field.)

    The other thing you could do is take 18 credits in something hard for hiring deans to find, like Finance or Statistics. (Not sure what subject your PhD studies are?)

    Good luck!

    -=Steve=-
     
  8. me again

    me again Well-Known Member

    Re: Re: Why can't I get an online teaching position??

    In my area, Keiser College is developing a reputation as a school where if you have the money, then you can have the degree. Subsequently, I find it ironic that they would not accept adjuncts who graduated from UoP and the like. Go figure.

    It has been repeatedly said that NCU does not heavily market its degree programs -- and it has been repeatedly said that this is a good thing. There may be some truth to that.
     
  9. Bruce

    Bruce Moderator

    Randell,

    Perhaps I hit it at just the right time, but when I applied to three different DL schools earlier this year for an adjunct position, I was hired by two of them. I can't really tell you what I might have done right, I had no previous online teaching experience, and my sig line is basically my resume.

    I tend to think I just had unintended good timing, because one of the schools for which I teach is now only accepting applications from doctorate-holders for adjunct CJ instructor positions (probably for the graduate level).
     
  10. Randell1234

    Randell1234 Moderator

    Thanks...was that salt you just rubbed in my wounds??? ;)
     
  11. Rich Douglas

    Rich Douglas Well-Known Member

    Speaking of "salt in wounds," I hope my "finish your doctorate" comment wasn't taken as insulting--I just wanted to emphasize the significance of having one when applying for teaching jobs. And I hope yours goes well!
     
  12. Steve Levicoff

    Steve Levicoff Well-Known Member

    Re: Re: Why can't I get an online teaching position??

    INteresting observation, although I was already thinking in a different direction. Like . . .

    If your CV includes the degrees from California Coast, dump 'em. At least UOP is regionally accredited (although I am hardly a UOP fan). But Cal Coast? I'd deep-six your CV as soon as I saw that one, despite your otherwise credible credentials.

    :D
     
  13. Kit

    Kit New Member

    Realizing that the above comment was tongue-in-cheek, it still helps to remember that simply being in the right place at the time as well as other 'luck' factors are often more critical than many folks would like to admit. Take advice of others into consideration, but while you're doing that keep plugging away. You'll get there!

    Good (better?) luck,
    Kit
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 15, 2005
  14. Bruce

    Bruce Moderator

    Sorry, didn't mean it like that! :(

    I should have mentioned that in past years, I had applied for a bunch of DL adjunct positions, and never got more than a standard form e-mail, acknowledging receipt of my resume and cover letter.

    Some schools that seem to constantly recruit online adjuncts;

    University of Phoenix
    American Intercontinental University
    Colorado Technical University
    Florida Metropolitan University/Corinthian Colleges, Inc.
     
  15. Randell1234

    Randell1234 Moderator

    I did not think it was insulting...it is just a fact. I have thick skin :D
     
  16. Randell1234

    Randell1234 Moderator

    Re: Re: Re: Why can't I get an online teaching position??

    I never put Cal Coast on any CV for an adjunct position. I sometimes put CCU on my cover letter stating "additional studies at DeVry, St Petersburg College, and California Coast University."

    I have just removed UoP also. With COSC, TUI, and NCU being unknowns, I would rather keep them guessing at first.
     
  17. Randell1234

    Randell1234 Moderator

    Thanks...you just made me feel better!!!
     
  18. Bruce

    Bruce Moderator

    You have very solid credentials in what I think is a "hot" field, so I have no doubt that someone will pick you up shortly. Did I just make you feel like a baseball free agent? :cool:

    Seriously, I've found that getting an online adjunct position with a Master's degree is very much hit-or-miss. Once your Master's is two years old, check out the University of Phoenix. I'm not sure why they have the two-year rule, but it's there.

    Check these sites on a regular basis;

    http://www.chronicle.com/jobs

    http://www.higheredjobs.com

    It also pays to check the websites of individual schools. I've never seen UoP advertise for adjunct positions anywhere external, and I got the teaching gig by going to their website and clicking the "Join the Faculty" link, which didn't occur to me until earlier this year.

    Some schools I've seen that recruit online adjunct faculty solely from their webpages;

    APUS/AMU
    Bellevue University
    Kaplan University
    Northwestern State University (Louisiana)
    University of Phoenix
     
  19. AuditGuy

    AuditGuy Member

    Online Teaching Experience

    Bruce and/or Others that have taught online classes:

    Just curious to what you thought of the teaching experience online. I have taught about 10 semesters of undergrad and MBA classes locally, but looking to try online teaching.

    Also, what's a good guideline for finding a decent place to teach? I want to try it, but I think it hurts my credentials if it is a marginal university.

    The ones I am currently looking at are:

    Florida Metropolitan
    Phoenix Online
    Empire State
    Arkansas State -Berbee
     
  20. me again

    me again Well-Known Member

    If I can obtain a doctorate, then I am going to apply to some online teaching positions for some extra cash.
     

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