Preparing Your Class

Adjunct Faculty Guide

One of the most important parts of teaching a class is being properly prepared.  The following resources will explore course listings, ordering textbooks and course packs, reserving library materials and submitting the syllabi.

Each course at Wagner requires a course syllabus. All course syllabi will be posted on the web, and must be distributed on the first day of class. You must also submit your syllabus online by the end of the first week of class

The syllabus is the major means of communication regarding course objectives and requirements. Every syllabus should contain the following components:

  • 1. Course title, course number, meeting day and time
  • 2. Course objectives
  • 3. Book titles and/or readings required for the course
  • 3. Dates the course will meet and reading assignments required for those dates
  • 4. Dates of exams and/or paper submissions
  • 5. How grades will be determined
  • 6. Your contact information, including when and how you plan to hold office hours



We also ask that you attach copies of Wagner's Academic Honesty Policy, Grading Guidelines and Incomplete Policy, or at least reference them in your syllabus. If this is your first teaching assignment at Wagner it is important that you have the Program Director or your faculty liaison review your syllabus and answer questions regarding the content and quantity of course assignments.

If you require assistance preparing your syllabus, please contact wagner.facultysupport@nyu.edu.  

Your syllabus should be posted on your NYU Brightspace site, as well as the Wagner website.  Click here to submit your syllabus to the Wanger website.

It is important to order books for students at least six weeks before classes begin. The link below will allow you to requisition books online directly from the NYU Professional Bookstore. 

In order to accommodate students who may not be able to obtain copies of class materials, NYU's Bobst Library has a Course Reserve service where you may reserve materials for your class. It is important to put at least one copy of your readings on reserve before the beginning of your semester.

The Course Reserve is not limited to textbooks. Through the links below to their online service, you can request reservations of:

  • Textbooks
  • Media - videos, audio or musical scores
  • Links to e-content
  • NYU Coursepacks
  • Personal books
  • Personal videos, audio or DVDs
  • Photocopies

Note: There are restrictions on the items that you can place on reserve. Visit the Bobst Course Reserve page for a comprehensive list of acceptable items as well as a step-by-step guide to reserving materials. Use the Reserve Form to go straight to reserving materials.

As an adjunct, you want to provide your students with the best, most relevant materials, but you also want to steer clear of copyright infringements. Most of your materials can be made available to students on your NYU Brightspace site.  If the resource is publicly available online, the best practice is to simply post the link, in your syllabus and/or your NYU Brightspace site.  If you are only using a chapter or two from a book, a scanned PDF of the material may be posted on your NYU Brightspace site under the doctrine of fair use.  If you have questions relating to fair use, please see the official NYU Handbook for Use of Copyrighted Materials.

If you need assistance scanning and uploading material, or have any questions, please contact wagner.facultysupport@nyu.edu.

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