Where Tenure-Track and Staff Head Counts Moved in 2025–26

Faculty hiring shifted markedly in the 2025–26 academic year, according to new head-count data from the College and University Professional Association for Human Resources, or CUPA-HR. Based on a survey of more than 900 colleges and universities, the report found that tenure-track faculty ranks grew 7 percent over the prior year — the largest single-year increase since 2016.

The same survey shows that non-tenure-track faculty grew 2 percent between 2024 and 2025, down from 3.6 percent growth the year before. Adjunct faculty head counts rose 0.9 percent, up modestly from 0.3 percent. For the first time in the decade covered by the data, tenure-track faculty growth exceeded non-tenure-track faculty growth, according to the report.

While faculty positions generally expanded, staff jobs moved in the opposite direction. Full-time staff head counts decreased 6.6 percent, and part-time staff fell 23.9 percent, ending a multiyear period of growth that had peaked at 6.5 percent in 2024. The report called the drop a sharp reversal and said institutions cut staffing levels broadly in 2025, with part-time positions bearing the brunt.

Why the First Tenure-Track Lead Over Contingent Hiring in a Decade Matters

The Decade-Long Pattern Reverses

The seven-point gain in tenure-track ranks is the story’s central signal. For years, institutions added contingent and part-time academic labor faster than tenure lines. The report’s finding that tenure-track growth exceeded non-tenure-track growth for the first time in a decade is a measurable change in workforce composition, not a projection.

Where the Cuts Landed

Separating faculty from staff is important. The 23.9 percent decline in part-time staff and 6.6 percent decline in full-time staff suggest institutions did not simply freeze hiring across the board. They expanded academic tenure-track lines while reducing non-faculty payroll. That pattern points to a budget reallocation toward academic positions rather than uniform austerity, though the survey does not state the cause.

What This Means for the Academic Job Market

For job-seeking academics, the 7 percent tenure-track increase is more significant than the 2 percent non-tenure-track gain because tenure-track roles generally carry longer commitments and higher institutional investment. But the slowdown in non-tenure-track and adjunct growth — to 2 percent and 0.9 percent — suggests institutions are not expanding the broader academic workforce as rapidly. The gains may be selective rather than a return to abundant hiring.

What CUPA-HR’s Faculty and Staff Data Means for Campus Budget Decisions

  • For campus HR and budget leaders: Reconcile the 23.9 percent part-time staff decline with fall student-services coverage. If part-time staff roles included tutoring, advising or auxiliary services, track service gaps before the 2026–27 term.
  • For tenure-track hiring committees: The 7 percent increase will begin to pressure promotion and tenure review pipelines around 2029–31; plan review committee capacity now for larger cohorts.
  • For non-tenure-track and adjunct faculty: Growth in those ranks slowed to 2 percent and 0.9 percent, so conversion opportunities may be targeted. Ask whether your institution matches the national shift before assuming broad tenure-line conversion.
  • For faculty senates and unions: Use the CUPA-HR finding that tenure-track growth outpaced contingent hiring for the first time in a decade as leverage in contract talks about job security and advancement for non-tenure-track instructors.