Professor of practice vs adjunct professor

The differences between professors of practice 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 a professor of practice and an adjunct professor. Additionally, an adjunct professor has an average salary of $98,821, which is higher than the $70,670 average annual salary of a professor of practice.

The top three skills for a professor of practice include curriculum development, professional development and graduate courses. The most important skills for an adjunct professor are course curriculum, syllabus, and semester.

Professor of practice vs adjunct professor overview

	Professor Of Practice	Adjunct Professor
Yearly salary	$70,670	$98,821
Hourly rate	$33.98	$47.51
Growth rate	12%	12%
Number of jobs	19,517	22,488
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 38%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	4	4

What does a professor of practice do?

An expert in their respective field, a professor of practice is in charge of facilitating discussions and activities in adherence to a curriculum. Their responsibilities include developing lesson plans, creating coursework assessment and test structures, liaising with internal and external parties, establishing objectives and guidelines, monitoring the students' progress, and providing assistance as needed. Furthermore, as a professor of practice, it is essential to hold activities while maintaining a safe and healthy learning environment for the students.

What does an adjunct professor do?

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.

Professor of practice vs adjunct professor salary

Professors of practice and adjunct professors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Professor Of Practice	Adjunct Professor
Average salary	$70,670	$98,821
Salary range	Between $36,000 And $136,000	Between $44,000 And $219,000
Highest paying City	Troy, NY	Providence, RI
Highest paying state	New York	Rhode Island
Best paying company	Harvard University	Rhode Island School of Design
Best paying industry	Education	Education

Differences between professor of practice and adjunct professor education

There are a few differences between a professor of practice and an adjunct professor in terms of educational background:

	Professor Of Practice	Adjunct Professor
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 38%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Most common major	Nursing	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Professor of practice vs adjunct professor demographics

Here are the differences between professors of practice' and adjunct professors' demographics:

	Professor Of Practice	Adjunct Professor
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 56.5% Female, 43.5%	Male, 51.5% Female, 48.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.0% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 9.9% Asian, 11.4% White, 66.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	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	16%	16%

Differences between professor of practice and adjunct professor duties and responsibilities

Professor of practice example responsibilities.

Used blackboard online to manage students tests, grade papers and assign materials.
Mentore student leaders into institutionalizing broad policies and actions that better support international students, and the annual multicultural celebration.
Direct all administrative aspects of Psy.D.

Adjunct professor example responsibilities.

Lead outreach to community and statewide stakeholders in the PPCC entrepreneurship program.
Develop and prepare class syllabus and teaching materials for strategic management, business and government ethics, and organizational behavior classes.
Provide instruction/guidance for nursing students; deliver didactic lectures on human anatomy and physiology.
Identify course objectives, design syllabus, develop all instructional activities and materials, including written exams.
Facilitate courses in communications, economics, leadership, management, corporate finances, strategic planning and organizational behavior.
Develop and teach course curriculum on the subject of exercise science and clinical pharmacology to athletic training students.

Professor of practice vs adjunct professor skills

Common professor of practice skills

Curriculum Development, 31%
Professional Development, 17%
Graduate Courses, 15%
Mathematics, 11%
Student Body, 8%
Research Projects, 6%

Common adjunct professor skills

Course Curriculum, 11%
Syllabus, 8%
Semester, 6%
Blackboard, 4%
Student Learning, 4%
Course Materials, 4%

Professor Of Practice vs. similar jobs

Professor Of Practice related careers

Professor Of Practice related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Education, Training, and Library Industry
Professor Of Practice
Professor Of Practice vs Adjunct Professor

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse education, training, and library jobs