The following resource was compiled through the process of developing and hosting a panel on the landscape of contingent roles and early-career experiences, held in January 2026 at the AIA/SCS Joint Annual Meeting in San Francisco, CA.

We are deeply grateful to our panelists Naomi T. Campa (The University of Texas at Austin), Matthew Chaldekas (Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen), Carl “CJ” Rice (Vassar College), Leticia R. Rodriguez (University of Houston), and Jeremy Swist (Michigan State University) for their substantial and invaluable contributions to the event and to this resource!

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What does the contingent faculty landscape look like?

Tenure-track positions are the exception not the rule. The reality is that few tenure-track positions are available in classics and archaeology (about 20% of all humanities PhDs get a tenure-track position), and that situation is unlikely to change anytime soon. Contingent positions provide the opportunity to do the same things you love about a tenure-track position (e.g., teaching, research) without the pressure of a tenure clock and often with fewer departmental service responsibilities. Term-limited contracts and at-will employment is also how nearly all non-tenure-track jobs operate, both within academia and outside it; getting tenure is an abnormal employment scenario. Both tenure-track and contingent faculty positions are viable career paths for classics and archaeology PhDs. It is important to fully understand the positives and negatives of each type of position for your own career and life goals. Do not assume that a tenure-track position is the best option for you or that not getting a tenure-track position means you have failed.

Do you have any tips for the application process?

Tailor your applications to the specific institutions and departments to which you are applying. If you have any doubt about application instructions, or you have a unique situation that the instructions do not seem to cover, reach out to the department (usually postings have a point of contact specified). A small liberal arts college with a high teaching load will require you to frame your application differently than an R1 institution with a heavy research and publication load. Keep your priorities in mind when applying, including on what you wish to spend your time. Applications require a significant investment of time, time that could have been spent on research, writing, teaching, and other responsibilities. Many contingent faculty members are caught in a catch-22: they need more publications to get a tenure-track or other position but don’t have time to write due to the lengthy application process. On the job market, you have to be smart, you have to work hard, and you have to be lucky. It’s easy to discount the luck aspect. Trying to figure out why you didn’t get a position is a futile and self-defeating exercise. There’s a lot you don’t know going on behind the scenes, including the nebulous idea of “fit.”

How do you highlight your teaching experience in an application?

You probably have more teaching experience than you realize, but you need to tailor it to support your application. Never underplay your expertise. Have confidence in your teaching and use it as a strength when applying for jobs. Showcasing a diversity of courses on your CV is a huge boon so look at every course as an opportunity to highlight the diversity of your teaching experience. Show that you can adjust your courses based on topic or academic schedule (e.g., quarter vs. semester system). The majority of colleges and universities are not the R1 or Ivy League institutions that grant PhDs, so you will be expected to teach more broadly than your research expertise. You can teach courses you haven’t taught before, including language and survey courses. Art historians and archaeologists will often be expected to teach language courses, while philologists who can add material culture and digital humanities topics to their teaching will strengthen their applications. Be specific in your teaching statement and cover letter and use active (I did X) rather than potential (I would do X) language. Avoid general or theoretical statements and instead focus on practical experience and anecdotes from your teaching, such as types of exercises or how you tailor your teaching to different class sizes. Continue to revise this document as your teaching portfolio expands, adding in more practical statements as your experience increases. The value of teaching evaluations depends on the type of institution to which you’re applying. R1 institutions value research and the teaching statement more than teaching evaluations whereas small liberal arts colleges will look at your teaching portfolio more closely.

I have a disability. Do I disclose my disability in applications?

Disability is a protected status under current U.S. law and therefore does not need to be disclosed in application materials or interviews. Disclosing a disability is a personal choice. Stigma against disability is still present within the field. It may be preferable to talk about disability in interviews but not disclose it in writing. Alternatively, writing about disability as an academic triumph may be beneficial for a teaching statement or cover letter. A good course of action is to assess how faculty members in a department self-identify. If faculty members openly discuss their own disabilities, a candidate with a disability may feel more welcome in that department.

Do you have any tips for the interview process?

Ask colleagues or department faculty for a mock interview so you can practice answering common interview questions. Be as specific as possible in your answers. For positions with high teaching loads, your teaching experience may be more relevant than your research topic. Prepare your own questions for the interview on topics like service requirements, funding opportunities, and forms of mentorship. When negotiating a job offer, ask about duty time and any corresponding restrictions on benefits, research funds, and paid time off. Remember to list campus interviews on your CV as invited lectures.

I got the job! Now what?

First things first, remember that you are no longer a graduate student, even if you are closer in age to the graduate students than to other faculty members. Those faculty members, not the graduate students, are now your peers. Set your priorities, both professional and personal, and make sure your time reflects those priorities. Think about how to protect yourself professionally: establish boundaries and consider how you want students to address you. A top priority in your new position should be acting as a good colleague. Never underestimate the strength of weak ties: you don’t know what connections you’re making through these contingent positions and they could lead to another opportunity down the road.

What are the financial realities of a contingent position?

Compensation varies by institution and position. Consider all aspects of compensation (e.g., salary, research funds, benefits, relocation expenses) as well as the expenses you will incur (e.g., relocation expenses, housing, insurance, visas) when assessing a prospective position. Many contingent positions do not qualify as full-time employment and therefore do not include benefits like health insurance and retirement accounts. Research funding may also be difficult to secure. Contingent faculty are often unable to accept external fellowships because doing so would require ending their employment contract. It is important to ask about research funding when negotiating a job offer so you are fully informed about your benefits and opportunities.

What are contingent positions like outside North America?

Similar to positions in North America, European contingent positions are often secured through networking and luck. Apply for positions even if it doesn’t seem like your research or experience is a perfect fit. Titles and responsibilities differ by institution; in general, European institutions offer few professorships but many contingent positions. Often these contingent positions are support roles equivalent to lecturer positions in North America, but with greater job security due to the nature of European labor laws. In addition, more robust social welfare states may support additional costs such as child care. Advancement can be difficult in European institutions as you will be competing against other postdoctoral researchers with significant publication records who may be native speakers and have lengthy experience in their country’s university system. Proficiency in the country’s native language is often not required for entry-level post-docs; check the job posting or contact the department to see if the position requires teaching in English or the native language. Such positions offer a meaningful opportunity to publish for those still seeking to land a job on the tenure track, but the reduced teaching load and infrequency of teaching evaluations could complicate a return to the North American contingent faculty track. 

Many contingent positions have a high teaching load. How can I remain active in my research with so little time for it?

Try tackling low-hanging fruit like publishing a short article or presenting at a conference to remain in the conversation. Some hiring committees limit writing samples to 15 pages, so a short article can both keep your research and publishing active while providing an exemplary writing sample. Book reviews may be another fruitful activity but assess the risk first. Book reviews often take more time than expected and could risk offending a scholar in the field.

The current political landscape in the United States is closing doors to some applicants. How do I stay relevant if I decide to take some time away?

As above, stay active with activities that require less investment of your time, like conference presentations or publishing short articles. Stepping away for 1–2 years will not be considered a significant break, but longer breaks may be a barrier to reentering the field. Always remember to keep your research alive for you more than for the field. If you’re no longer excited by your research, it may be time to consider another career.

How do I build and maintain mentorship networks in a contingent position?

Your Ph.D. advisor will likely still be a primary writer for your letters of recommendation as this person is probably the one most familiar with your work. Faculty colleagues in the department in which you now work may not have enough exposure to your research or teaching to write effective letters on your behalf. Maintaining a relationship with your Ph.D. advisor after graduation is completely personal and largely depends on the relationship you forged in graduate school. Consider creating  networks of mentorship for different aspects of your professional life. The National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity (NCFDD) offers mentorship resources to help faculty succeed in their careers.

I have or want to start a family. Is a contingent position a viable career?

It is possible to start and raise a family while holding a contingent position. In fact, contingent positions may be preferable if you don’t want to move from a specific city or geographic location. Contingent positions in European welfare states can also make it easier to move to Europe with a family. Your marital and family status is protected under current U.S. law and does not need to be disclosed either in application materials or interviews. You may find that working it into a cover letter is beneficial to showcase how you can juggle multiple responsibilities, but you may want to look carefully at how faculty members in a department self-identify before disclosing personal details. As with any situation, keep your priorities, both personal and professional, top of mind when considering positions.