Precarious Trails: Stringent Measures on Young Faculty in China's Changing University Governance

• In Event: Faculty Identity and Faculty Careers

Abstract

As universities reform their tenure track and faculty evaluation policies, they adopt a new approach to governing faculty members. This new approach introduces stringent personnel measures that aim to enhance faculty performance through competition, but its impact on faculty members is yet to be explored in the context of China. To address this gap, a qualitative, embedded case study was conducted using an inductive and interpretive method. The study collected documents and gathered faculty members' opinions on faculty evaluation reforms. Through this research, we uncover the increasing precariousness experienced by young academics due to top-down procedural governance approaches. This form of precarity can be seen as a distinct version from the casualization of academics that is commonly discussed today.

Authors

• Yu Meng, Central China Normal University

• Man Hong Lai, Chinese University of Hong Kong