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The differences between adult education instructors and adjunct professors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an adult education instructor and an adjunct professor. Additionally, an adjunct professor has an average salary of $98,821, which is higher than the $45,926 average annual salary of an adult education instructor.
The top three skills for an adult education instructor include math, professional development and social studies. The most important skills for an adjunct professor are course curriculum, syllabus, and semester.
| Adult Education Instructor | Adjunct Professor | |
| Yearly salary | $45,926 | $98,821 |
| Hourly rate | $22.08 | $47.51 |
| Growth rate | -6% | 12% |
| Number of jobs | 43,991 | 22,488 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Average age | 43 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Adult education instructors are teachers in continuing and adult education who are working in various settings. The instructors teach adult students a range of courses including high school equivalency, math, literacy, and art. They teach English as a secondary language to students as well as cooking, health, and technology. It is their responsibility to instruct adults in preparatory and remedial education classes. Their job may or may not be performed in a traditional educational institution.
Adjunct professors are instructors who are employed on a contractual basis, commonly in part-time positions. They teach courses in the same manner as full-time professors do, but they are free from some of the duties of those fully employed university instructors or in tenure-track positions. They create, develop, distribute, review, and manage course syllabus materials. They teach students, evaluate their performance, and maintain records of attendance, engagement, and progress. They may also facilitate lectures, conduct seminars, and do other administrative tasks within the department. Most adjunct professors enjoy teaching as part-time because they have more flexibility in terms of schedule, can avoid the dilemma of the higher education system and it's known to be less stressful and demanding.
Adult education instructors and adjunct professors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Adult Education Instructor | Adjunct Professor | |
| Average salary | $45,926 | $98,821 |
| Salary range | Between $31,000 And $67,000 | Between $44,000 And $219,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Providence, RI |
| Highest paying state | California | Rhode Island |
| Best paying company | Boston Public Schools | Rhode Island School of Design |
| Best paying industry | Government | Education |
There are a few differences between an adult education instructor and an adjunct professor in terms of educational background:
| Adult Education Instructor | Adjunct Professor | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Most common major | Elementary Education | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |
Here are the differences between adult education instructors' and adjunct professors' demographics:
| Adult Education Instructor | Adjunct Professor | |
| Average age | 43 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 35.1% Female, 64.9% | Male, 51.5% Female, 48.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.7% Asian, 5.9% White, 61.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 7.0% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.1% Asian, 11.3% White, 66.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 12% | 16% |