Contingent Faculty

In the United States, contingent faculty can be defined as faculty who teach part-time or those who teach full-time but are not on the tenure-track. These faculty are typically on limited contracts, some of which are fixed (e.g., 1 year) and others of which are renewable (e.g., every 1 to 3 years). In contrast, tenure-track generally refers to faculty who are assigned to a probationary period of approximately 6 years after which faculty peers evaluate if an individual has performed in teaching, research, and service to a standard that merits earning tenure—a permanent appointment at the institution. Tenure is designed to guide compensation practices and protect academic freedom with continuous employment and thus facilitate the quality of faculty work. Although some institutions may have tenure ...