Workload for Adjuncts

This is a summary of major contract provisions related to workload for adjunct faculty. For full information refer to the CBA or contact the Union.

Assignment of Courses

Whoever assigns your courses (program director, department chair, etc.) has substantial power over your employment. There are a few relevant protections:

  • Termination during the semester: acceptable justifications are lack of teaching effectiveness, or a failure to conform to written policies and practices. The Union would consider such termination a disciplinary action and we would assert that administration must follow the CBA disciplinary process, including a meeting where you may bring a union rep.

  • Cancelation before the semester: can be justified by the above reasons or by lack of enrollment, to accommodate changes in program or curriculum, or to give the course to a full time faculty member. If canceled less than one week before the start of class, you're entitled to cancelation pay of 10% of the class fee.

  • Senior adjunct and waitlistee protection: if you are a Senior Adjunct or you have been waitlisted for a Senior Adjunct position, you gain the right to continue teaching your most recent course as long as it's offered, except for the reasons above. Please contact us with questions about how this applies in practice, as it's not always straightforward.

Senior Adjunct

To apply for promotion to senior adjunct, you must teach or work as a librarian for 7 consecutive academic years, or 8 of the last 10 academic years. Contact your UPRC chair to request application materials, or ask your course scheduler to point you in the right direction. If you have trouble finding the right person, the Union can try to help.

Application deadlines are every October 1 and March 1, but it may take substantial time to prepare the materials, so ask early. There is a wait list for senior adjunct positions, but the sooner you apply, the higher you will be on the wait list. As of Fall 2026, the wait list is taking about two years. We hope to negotiate an increase in the maximum senior adjunct positions in the next contract.

Maximum Workload

Adjunct faculty members can teach up to 9 credits per semester and up to 16 credits per academic year. Summer and intersession do not count toward these limits. College of Nursing and Public Health courses also do not count toward these limits.

If your department wants to assign you up to 18 credits per year, they can request a waiver from the Union, which is generally approved.

If you teach 18 credits in a year more than once, you are entitled to temporary full time pay and benefits. In practice, the Provost's office often rejects such assignments.