2025-26 AY Lecturer Pool – Political Science

Position description

The Department of Political Science is dedicated to promoting political understanding and public engagement through innovative teaching, research, and community service in all areas of politics and political science. The department currently consists of nearly 40 faculty, with about equal numbers of tenure-line and lecturers. With approximately 650 Political Science majors, the department is deeply committed to high quality undergraduate and graduate education, offering multiple degree programs and internship opportunities in the state capital. Undergraduate students can major in Political Science, International Relations, and Political Science/Journalism. Graduate students can pursue a Master’s degree in Political Science. The department also hosts a highly successful internship program, which includes both a regular year-round internship option and the prestigious Sacramento Semester Program. The programs are managed on the main campus and downtown. Other opportunities include a lively peer-to-peer student mentoring program. The department is housed in the College of Social Sciences and Interdisciplinary Studies, consisting of ten academic departments, four interdisciplinary academic programs, and several centers and institutes as well as the Project for an Informed Electorate and the Center for Race, Immigration, and Social Justice.

The Political Science Department is interested in hiring lecturers in all political science subfields, including political theory, comparative politics, public policy, international relations, identity politics, law and society, CA state and local government, research methods, and American politics, but we have a particular need for lecturers who can teach Introduction to American Government.

Duties of a part-time lecturer include instruction, class preparation, grading, and office hours. Other duties may be assigned based on departmental needs. Course assignments, including dates, time, and modality, are made by the Department Chair under the direction of the College Dean.

Part-time lecturers are instructional faculty with conditional appointments based on enrollment and budget. Hires from the pool of applicants are made when there are instructional needs to fill coursework offered by an academic department based on changing enrollment patterns, changes to tenure-track faculty assignments, and other factors that cannot be addressed with our existing faculty. Initial appointments are typically for one semester, but occasionally academic year initial appointments are made. Appointments may be renewed based on department needs, funding, and performance. Often appointments are made just prior to the start of the semester. 

Rank and Salary

Initial rank and salary for lecturer faculty are based on professional experience and educational background and are determined by the hiring department.

Most new lecturers are hired at the Lecturer A or B rank. As of July 2024, the classification salary ranges for the respective ranks are:

Lecturer A: $5,507 – $6,677

Lecturer B: $6,221 – $13,224

Lecturer C: $6,825 – $14,523

Lecturer D: $8,593 – $15,211

The salary ranges indicated are based on a “full-time rate” (15 weighted teaching units [WTUs]). A semester’s worth of compensation is made up of six (6) payments of the given amount. To calculate your salary for a semester, the base rate would be pro-rated based on the units worked out of 15 WTUs. If you were a Lecturer A assigned 3 units at the minimum salary, your pay would be structured as follows: $5,507 x 3/15 (3 units out of a possible 15 units total) = $1101.40 x 6 checks = $6,608.40 total for 3 units/semester. 

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS: 

Master’s degree in Political Science or related field is required to teach lower division courses.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS: 

Experience in teaching college course.

Application instructions

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