Adjunct, Instructor, & Lecturer roles

[Averroes MD]

How hard is it to "land" such gigs at a major university?

For those of us who may be geographically restricted and have another source of income, this is probably an option to consider as a "back up." But, is even this a difficult back up to get?

What about at one's own university?

And what is the difference in all of these roles?

Adjunct = class by class basis, unstable because of that

Instructor = Is this for language instruction only?

Lecturer = full-time, teaching heavy, & only a few years of job stability?

Have I got this right?
Anyone have any experience of such jobs? Also, does it really affect your ability to do research & be taken seriously by fellow academics?

Thanks!

P.S. Also, can you be a perennial post-doc?

Edited January 26, 2021 by Averroes MD
grammar

[Deep Fried Angst]

Contingent employment and NTT employment typically does not affect how your research is seen by others since most people are aware of the state of the job market. One of the top prizes in early career scholars for SBL The Achtemeier Award was given to a contingent faculty this year. However, most of these positions have a much higher work load for less pay than TT and Tenured jobs. Less money and less job security makes it harder to do research and have continued research progress, especially if the schools you become connected to don't have a great library section in your research area. 

The terminology varies from department to department. Mine only has instructor for PhD Candidates who are getting teaching fellowships beyond their fifth year. No lecturers. And everyone else is some from of Adjunct or VAP. 

To my knowledge a couple Post-Docs is fine, but after that I'm not sure how that would look of if post doc committees would be ok with hiring someone on their 5th post doc. 

The key thing to do is let departments in your area know you are there and open to taking on a course or two at their institution if anything opens up. You might end up taking on a medical leave or a sudden departure (someone leaves right before the semester begins) teaching load for a semester. Posting a job and doing a long hiring process for an adjunct is a lot of work for a little payoff. Many times departments will hire those who they know are open to doing the job without ever posting a position. 

[Averroes MD]

8 hours ago, Deep Fried Angst said:

Contingent employment and NTT employment typically does not affect how your research is seen by others since most people are aware of the state of the job market. One of the top prizes in early career scholars for SBL The Achtemeier Award was given to a contingent faculty this year. However, most of these positions have a much higher work load for less pay than TT and Tenured jobs. Less money and less job security makes it harder to do research and have continued research progress, especially if the schools you become connected to don't have a great library section in your research area. 

The terminology varies from department to department. Mine only has instructor for PhD Candidates who are getting teaching fellowships beyond their fifth year. No lecturers. And everyone else is some from of Adjunct or VAP. 

To my knowledge a couple Post-Docs is fine, but after that I'm not sure how that would look of if post doc committees would be ok with hiring someone on their 5th post doc. 

The key thing to do is let departments in your area know you are there and open to taking on a course or two at their institution if anything opens up. You might end up taking on a medical leave or a sudden departure (someone leaves right before the semester begins) teaching load for a semester. Posting a job and doing a long hiring process for an adjunct is a lot of work for a little payoff. Many times departments will hire those who they know are open to doing the job without ever posting a position. 

Thanks. That is helpful!