Part-time professors in public universities of Sonora

Abstract

Part-time professors (PTPs) currently constitute the largest segment of academic staff in higher education globally, primarily tasked with teaching responsibilities. These professors generally work under unfavorable conditions, with varying levels of commitment, ranging from a few hours at a single institution to contracts of more than 25 hours across multiple establishments. In higher education in Sonora, PTPs adhere to this characterization: they make up the majority of academic staff, representing 70%, are responsible for teaching, and experience significant internal and institutional differences. Beyond these general statistics, this group remains understudied. This article aims to provide an initial approach to the PTP group in Sonora, emphasizing their demographic characteristics, employment conditions, and institutional differences. To this end, two large higher education institutions are considered: the Universidad de Sonora (UNISON) and the Universidad Estatal de Sonora (UES). The empirical data supporting this study comes from the institutional databases of the universities under review. The findings reveal that the institution of affiliation is a significant source of differentiation among PTPs: at UNISON, most professors are older and have achieved notable career advancement, particularly those with more teaching hours, whereas, at UES, professors tend to be younger, experience high job turnover, and face employment instability.