For most of my young adulthood, I had plans to become a full-time professor, and I worked on that career path for many years. But after it became clear it was probably never going to happen, I could have left academia for something else entirely.
Instead, I chose to stay.
How I got here
In my twenties, I thought spending my time immersed in research and writing sounded like an awesome life plan. So I went to grad school, only to discover after borrowing six figures in student loans that a doctorate didn’t guarantee a job.
These days, it seems to me that universities are graduating so many students with Ph.D.s that scoring a full-time tenured position can feel a bit like winning the lottery. Even if you graduate from the right school with tons of scholarly publications under your belt, you still have to wish on a star that a position will become available and that you’ll rise to the top of other applicants.
My degree is in mythological studies. In a decade of searching job postings, I’ve never found a school looking for a full-time mythology professor. So, I eventually came to accept that it would never happen for me and gave up trying.
Why I’ve stayed
I’ve worked as an adjunct (part-time, non-tenured) faculty for 17 years now. Many times over the years, I’ve thought about leaving academia altogether. My Ph.D. in mythology, which provides insight into how cultures think and what they value, would surely be a asset to any corporation’s marketing team in my mind.
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But then I had a baby. He was born in early summer, and thanks to working as an adjunct instructor, I was able to take the entire fall semester off for maternity leave, and that was after already having my summer off. Altogether, I was able to stay home with my son for most of his first year.
When I was ready to come back, I simply let the department chairs at the two colleges I was teaching for know I was available. They assigned classes to me as though I’d never left. Although my leave was unpaid, few corporations would have given me so much time.
Courtesy of Sarah Graves
My job comes with a lot of benefits for parents
Time off isn’t the only perk that has made parenting easier. Even during the semesters I’m teaching, I’m able to cancel classes or teach on Zoom when I need to. If my 10-year-old son gets sick or his school has a day off for teacher development, I can be home.
Even better, I only need to be on campus three days a week. Though I often need to do class prep and grading on Tuesdays and Thursdays, my time is flexible on those days, which means it’s easier to schedule things like doctor’s appointments.
Perhaps best of all, I always have time off during my son’s school breaks, so I get to be home with him and not worry about childcare.
There are some drawbacks
The lower income I earn from working as adjunct faculty can be tough to swallow. I make less than half of what many full-time, tenured professors earn, and my husband and I often have to scrape by from paycheck to paycheck.
Many things would be easier if I made more money. For example, our living room furniture is 30 years old, we rarely take vacations, and although my husband is saving for retirement, we can’t afford to put away any of my income for my own retirement savings. I also worry about affording emergency expenses like major car repairs or unexpected medical bills.
It’s also disheartening to think about how I’ll never really advance in my career. In academia, advancement typically means becoming a full-time, tenured professor. But there’s no clear path to this for me. If I stay, it means accepting I’ll always remain as adjunct faculty.
Ultimately, the pros outweigh the cons for my family. I have the kind of flexibility I likely won’t find in another job, and we’ve managed to make the money work. Moreover, our son will grow up, and when he becomes an adult and leaves the nest to create a life of his own, I’ll be happy I’ve spent all this time with him.
