Academia/Industry PE Adjunct Faculty Clearinghouse
High industry demand for workers is causing both an inflow of students and an increase in faculty vacancies in the US. Faculty salaries are generally lower than industry salaries, and 19 Petroleum Engineering (PE) departments in the US have a combined total of 42 faculty vacancies. Even with these vacancies filled, student-to-teacher ratios are climbing, which will begin to affect the quality of training prospective students receive.
On 13 April 2007, SPE sponsored a workshop of PE department chairmen and industry to address the issue and identify possible solutions. Adjunct faculty provided by industry are the best short-term solution to reduce teaching loads.
What is being requested?
Companies are asked to review the list of requests
for adjunct faculty 
for the 2007-2008 school year
and consider offering employees to meet these needs
How could company employees meet this need while still working for the company?
- Full-time secondments are not required for adjunct faculty
- Short seminars or concentrated subject “blocks” of several weeks
- Two-person rotations (similar to industry practice on international assignments)
- “Distance learning” is a possibility, especially live telecasts allowing real-time interaction between lecturer and students
- Discuss other options with the faculty contact listed
Why should companies “lend” their staff as adjuncts?
- Industry has a strong interest in assuring the next generation of engineers are properly trained while in school
- Bringing "real-world" perspectives to academic environment enhances training
- Opportunity to identify promising candidates and form positive view of company for later recruitment
- Supporting the research capabilities of universities will provide capacity for developing tomorrow’s technologies
What else can companies do?
- Provide “faculty fellowships” of USD 10,000 to USD 30,000 to bring salaries more in line with industry
- Offer fellowships to graduate teaching assistants
- Offer internship opportunities
Petroleum engineering schools are a vital part of our industry, providing graduates with unique skills and much of the basic research behind the industry’s technological progress. By working closely with the schools, companies can build a solution to the short-term faculty shortage that best leverages the resources and talents of industry.
