How do they calculate full-time equivalent of the part-time experience?

[kisunja]

Hi all,
Sorry if this topic has been discussed already - I just could not find anything about my case.
I've been part-time research and teaching assistant for exactly 3.5 years now (and will be 2 months more before I apply). But my contract has never exceeded 12 hours/week and I worked only 8 months each year, because of the summer break.
Now I am hard time calculating how much experience I have in the full-time equivalent. I could not find anything about it in the processing manual. Does anyone has a clue how an officer would add that up?
Thanks in advance!

 

[Leon]

They calculate by 1950 hours per year for full time so add up your total hours and divide by 1950 to get how many years.

 

[PMM]

Hi

Leon, do you perhaps know if that is based on a 40hour week?

Get out your calculator, 1950/52 = 37.5

PMM

 

[kisunja]

Thanks Leon and PMM!
But what does 52 in 1950/52 stands for? number of weeks?

 

[Leon]

1950 hours in one year equals full time
there are 52 weeks in one year
1950 hours divided by 52 weeks gives you average 37.5 hours per week

 

[kisunja]

Thanks, Leon.
I am still unsure how they would apply it to academia... for example even if universities offer spring-summer courses, but not in all departments and not in all subjects (for example not in mine). even tenured profs in my department usually do not teach in the summer, nor are they required to be present on campus 37.5 hours per week... and in my home country lecturers in higher ed institutions do not teach July through August,period.
does anyone know how exactly they would calculate workload for college instructors?

 

[Leon]

Don't teachers/instructors include their preparation time? That's one argument I've heard anyway for teachers long summer holidays that they make it up over the winter. At the university I went to, the professors did research in the summers. Most of them were a lot more excited about their research than their teaching but they had a teaching duty as a part of their positionS. They talked about stupid teaching interfering with their real work.

 

[kisunja]

Exactly! That's my point. Hence my questions about calculations.

 

[Leon]

So estimate the total hours you worked including prep time and divide by 1950 to get how many full time years that translates to

 

[kisunja]

Leon, thanks!
Do you think it would work if I include a explanation letter and write that I can claim 20 hours per week, as full-time workload at my university is 2 courses per term, and I teach 1 and spend remaining 8+ hours/week on prep and grading? Do you know someone for whom it worked?

 

[JDiddyRhymes]

I am facing the same exact issue. I was an adjunct instructor. In certain semesters I taught up to 8 courses per semester. I have a LOT of hours worked. My lawyer said if i can get a letter that I worked full time then problem would be solved. But, did i really work full time? I mean I had full time load as far as teaching, but I didn't get any benefits. This is confusing. I need to know if my lawyer knows what she s talking about. With 3 years of experience I would have 471 points total. With 2, I would have 446. BIG DIFFERENCE! I would appreciate any suggestions or advice.