Appointment Letters

Your appointment letter indicates the number of assigned credits, the full-time equivalency (FTE) of your assignment, and the pay for the time period of the assignment. The college/university policy may require that the appointment letter be signed and returned.

Employment Status and Pay

Unless you have been hired in an unlimited status, your employment status is either adjunct (paid per credit) or temporary (paid a proportion of an annual base salary). Adjunct and part-time faculty pay begins and ends according to each academic term. For these less than full time employment statuses, it is not possible to spread annual pay over the summer months or between terms.

Compensation for teaching and almost all other conditions of employment is governed by the union contract between Board of Trustees and the Minnesota State College Faculty (MSCF). The full contract can be viewed at  http://www.hr.mnscu.edu/contract_plans/index.html.

Per Credit Pay – Adjunct Status

If you are teaching fewer than 5 credits in a term, your status under the contract is called “adjunct.” Your payment is based on a per credit rate ranging from $525 to $1200 per credit. The amount is negotiated between you and your dean.

Pro-Rata Pay - Part-time Temporary Status

If you are teaching more than 5 credits in a term, your salary will be paid as a proportion of an annual base salary for a full-time position. Your base salary rate is determined by your education and experience. A form for calculating an annual base salary is available in the placement packet at www.hr.mnscu.edu/forms/MSCF/salaryPlacementInstructions.pdf . Please note that the calculations are different for technical and liberal arts courses. You will need your official transcripts and work experience documentation in order to complete the form. Your work experience can be calculated using the Paid Occupational Experience form found at the same site.

Your pay will be spread out over the course of the term on a bi-weekly basis. The payroll system calculates the pay by number of days in an academic term and follows the bi-weekly schedule on the exact days of the term. As a result, your first and last pay checks of the term are normally smaller than the 10-day pay period checks in between.

Questions:

Your Human Resources Office can answer questions about your credit load, pay calculation, or other questions related to your pay.