I am a public school teacher, about to start my fourth year. I want to break into teaching college level courses on the side (preferably online). I have a Certificate of Online Learning that I was required to obtain for work. I have a bachelors, masters (online), and I have about 1.5 years remaining on my doctorate(online). I have teaching experience however, I have not been able to obtain any college level teaching experience. I am willing to even volunteer for a semester or two as an adjunct and/or teaching assistant. I have applied at the University of the People which uses volunteer adjuncts (with no luck). If anyone has any advice they are willing to share it would be much appreciated.
What state are you in? Just wondering, what was your major for undergrad and major for the masters degree?
Hi Josh. The problem is that at this point there's a boatload of applicants for every online teaching position. That's why you can't even find a school that will let you do it for them for free. And even those who break in find that the pay is minimal, worse on an hourly basis than picking up a few shifts at Starbucks. I know that sounds really negative, but that's the situation. Those qualified to teach subjects that are harder for schools to find, like finance, accounting, or statistics, sometimes fare better.
Reach out to some of your local community colleges, I’m sure that a volunteer opportunity can be arranged. They all have tutoring labs, often dependent on volunteers. Depending on your specialty, check with the chair who most aligns with your masters degree. Take a close look at the specifics of your graduate degree credits. It’s not ideal but 18 cumulative grad credits open the door to other specialties. Recommend you also check out some of the adjunct websites, groups, forums, what not. Adjunctnation is the largest. Don’t become discouraged, but it’s often a fiercely competitive field and the compensation is rarely significant. My highest paid classes pay $4500 a semester, the people teaching them could earn that in a day or two at common consultant rates. For many adjuncts, it’s about the love of the subject matter, helping others and their field, and the commraderie of working with others who love their field.
My degrees are in history. I am working full time as a teacher so the starting salary isn’t a concern since it will be strictly for gaining experience. I apply for literally every online adjunct position I have came across for several years. I have only ever only had one interview for an adjunct position.
Well, if you're determined, there's a consultancy called The Babb Group led by Dani Babb that helps people like you have a better shot at getting faculty gigs. I don't have any experience with her organization, but the things I've seen her and her people post to social media made sense to me. https://www.thebabbgroup.com/
Thank you for everyone's advice. I have recently had another interview and have started the onboarding hiring process for an online adjunct position.
