Just throwing it out there, what is in demand at online schools? What would be the best 18 hours or MA, if need be, to pick up to get more classes? I currently teach at two of the bigger schools, but no one likes to put history in their main curriculum it seems, and I can't get very many classes! I am throwing this out here theoretically, I need more degrees like I need a hole in the head, but just wondering what would have been more logical to do with my long academic career...
I don't track this as I'm not so interested in teaching at the college level. However, based on my sparse experience, if I wanted to break into the college teaching world (via DL) I would focus on Math/Stats.
It looks like finance and accounting are always in demand. I have seen many listing a CPA as a requirement for accounting. What do you do in the professional world? One of the best ways to getting teaching assignments is to combine real-world experience with those 18 credits. I am looking at adding 18 credits in marketing later but have quite a bit of experience in the field also. I currently teach computer classes (and have a lot of experience in that also).
>> Easy answer. Log into the online college catalogs for a few schools you might like to work for. Nearly everyone is listing their schedules online, if you need one for example, you an go here www.bhc.edu direct link: http://www.bhc.edu/index.aspx?NID=227 Simply go through each department and look at how many sections of each course are being offered. In the link I provided, you'll find -for example- that there are 4 sections of Financial Accounting being offered this Spring, but there are 27 sections of English 101. Catalogs that allow you to view archives are great, because you can go back and see the names of faculty and add up their teaching load You'll be able to determine in just a few minutes if they are staffing the dept with full timers or part timers. Hint: full timers are staying put. Part timers leave. Also, are the names new, or are these folks who have been around consistently? Even if a department prefers to hire adjuncts, I'll bet you my last penny that what they like better is an adjunct who will return. Retraining is a pain, so turnover is always a piece of the puzzle. Lastly, go to the college's website and see if they post open teaching positions. Ours does, and we are "always" looking for science teachers lol. Seems like no one in my part of town likes to teach general biology All of this info will help you put together a picture of the supply and demand at that school...and hopefully, help you put together an idea of how to market yourself! Good Luck!
While the Gen Ed classes always have a high number offered, you also need to consider how many people are quailifed (or willing) to teach them. If there is only one accounting instructor but 25 english instructors you have to ask if you want to be one of the few or of the many. I have considered English or history to get another 18 credits as a solid foundation for gen ed classes. Either way, you can't go wrong.
You ask what I do professionally.... teach, write books, research... I am a traditional academic My professional experiences are solely in admin / library, but mostly teaching. Although I have heard that English (I am already a historian) was always in demand, I hear it is the most time consuming of the whole lot. Although I suppose it would make me a better writer... I do teach at a CC, but they, as some of you have mentioned, favor the full time over the part time, and I don't have classes right now. So I live off of online school money! I don't know if either of the schools I teach for allow you to look at their databases of classes, but I suppose I should check. I am OKed to teach multiple classes at both, but have never been offered more than the same type of course. Since a lot of you have experience with UoP, can anyone tell me how long it usually takes to get offered two courses at a time? I am going on one year now, and hoping to get more classes. Although the work has never gone more than a week where I was not teaching, and I am thankful for that. I think in the end I was wondering if an MBA could lead to something productive... also, do many of you teach at schools with an distance masters degree? I was looking at some of the APUS programs, they are cheap and interesting sounding. (I really like space studies, but pretty sure it would be hard to get courses in that anywhere else!)
Does your department head know you want to work more? Do the department heads of other departments know you want to work more? If you have the credit- go talk to them now. Seriously, just go to their office and hand them your phone number- tell them you work in the XYZ department and you also have 18+ credits in their area, you want to teach more, and if they ever need an adjunct to give you a call. There are a lot of times when an adjunct pulls out at the last minute. Your phone number should be in their hand so you can fill in on a moment's notice. Staffing is a MAJOR nightmare. If you are the "go to guy" this is a great help! You already have your HR paperwork done- you are the dream candidate! Also, if you don't already know who the dept heads are in your college by first name, you need to spend more time on campus networking. These are people you should be saying "hello" to in the halls and chatting with in the cafeteria.
The dean who hires online faculty at a university where I used to work told me the only disciplines for which she didn't get a tall stack of applications for each opening were Finance, Accounting, Mathematics, and Statistics. That also means don't get an MBA, as they usually don't come with 18 hours in a specific discipline. If you find one specifically in Accounting or Finance that has 18 hours in that, then that's probably okay. But you may as well just do the 18 hours if you already have a Master's. Definitely not English, the humanities, or even the social sciences: http://chronicle.com/article/Graduate-School-in-the-Huma/44846/ They're a dime a dozen, and you're competing against people with doctorates. Conventional wisdom on those fields is that you might as well buy a lottery ticket -- your odds of winning are the same, it pays better, and it's less work. Good luck, -=Steve=-
Steve, I am well familiar with that article, and some of TH Benton's other pieces. It is pretty much true, of course no one really tells that to you before you start a PhD (I am about a little over 2 years away from finishing, hopefully). I will play the tenure track lottery then, right now I am just looking for extra money doing what I enjoy most - teaching. Jennifer, Thanks for the input, I suppose I can drive around the multiple campuses and meet the other department heads.
Everybody wants Eng comp teachers. Why? Because there's a huge turnover because of the sheer volume of work involved in teaching a comp class online. It's insane. I taught Eng comp for a number of years and realized I was making far less money that my colleagues teaching in other areas (I was working more hours for the same pay). So now I don't teach comp but a completely different subject. Eng comp teachers usually find something else to teach and the turnover is pretty high most places. I've had schools beg me to teach Eng and I just won't do it anymore. I don't have the time or the patience. So if you like teaching writing, go for the additional grad hours in Eng. You'll always be able to find a job teaching online Eng comp.
