New Faculty Orientation

[rpv_rn]

I left a staff education in a hospital setting to become a faculty in an ADN program at a community college.

I did not have a formal orientation to the comm college and the nursing division. My orientation consisted of "see one/ do one" (following another instructor). However, as I worked more semesters, I found that I did not have all the knowledge needed (eg, orientation of incoming students, ordering text & modules for the following semester, counseling/ tutoring / exiting students, posting grade in department and in the college adm & records department). In other words, there was no standardized orientation plan for the nursing division.

It is difficult for new FT faculty but even more difficult for adjunct faculty. The FT senior faculty members become angry with the adjunct faculty (AF) because they feel that the AF is too easy when evaluating the students, not grading papers, such care plans, properly, and does not complete the necessary forms through-out the semester.

How are new tenure track faculty oriented at your institution? If you're an adjunct faculty, how were you oriented to the nursing division and the college?

I would love to know if your college has a formal orientation plan for new & adjunct faculty. If you do have an orientation plan, please share! Our nursing division could use the help. Thank you!

[BeenThereDoneThat74, MSN, RN]

well, as it happens, i was just hired as an adjunct at the local cc. i start clinicals this week. i also work pt at a hospital-based adn program.

i must say, i did not get a nursing faculty orientation at either school. i did, however, sit down (in each school) with the course coordinator and go over the essentials. at the first school i teach at, i did have somewhat of an orientation to clinicals. i was paired up with a preceptor for about 4 clinical days, which was nice. quite honestly, at the cc, i'm not sure how the grading goes. i'm only doing clinical, and it's pass/fail, so i don't know if i'm reponsible for entering grades, per se. i don't know if it's considered a separate grade from the lecture part of the class. at my other school, there is a team teaching approach, and the coordinator handles all that. at the end we go over each student, and they will expect that i would have told her if someone was failing clinically, prior to this meeting. i'm learining as i go. it's a small school, and i don't feel like i've been thrown to the wolves, so i'm grateful for that.

at any rate, the faculty at both schools have been more than helpful and welcoming. i really feel like i have the support i need (so far). i am a young educator (compared to my colleagues), and maybe they look at me as their ticket to retirement (well, they don't need me to retire, there'll just be more of a shortage then:chuckle )

[zacsmimi]

I start this week too. I had NO orientation to the school. One meeting with a lot of paperwork handed to me. Very nice and all, but I am on my own. See my post under new instructor... Yikes!

[BeenThereDoneThat74, MSN, RN]

Just got mail from the CC I started working for... inviting me to an adjunct orientation. It's for all disciplines, not just nursing. Sadly I cannot attend, but it's nce to know they offer something.