The Lost Generation of Scholars

Conversations about the adjunct crisis in higher education tend to center on what happens to the increasing number of PhDs who prepared for tenure-track faculty positions, but who will spend the majority of their careers as precariously employed and poorly paid adjuncts in what Kezar, DePaola, and Scott identify as the “gig academy.” This semi-permanent adjunct underclass of PhDs works under labor conditions that make pursuing research and scholarship virtually impossible. Juggling extremely high teaching loads and working to secure contracts for the next semester or academic year effectively…