自習近平上台後,中共強化對社會的控制。在此背景下,本文關注中國大陸高校領導人流動特徵的變化。本文分析140位在胡錦濤和習近平時代初次擔任中管高校領導人之後發現:首先,黨齡的重要性大增,黨委書記和校長的黨齡同步大幅提高,兩者差距縮小。其次,國外博士學位、長期海外經驗的重要性大幅下降,海歸博士出任校長的空間縮小。第三,部分校長的學經歷背景與解放軍或軍工產業密切相關,同時滿足紅與專的要求,似有搭配國家科技發展之跡象。當前的流動模式可稱為「政治優先」。專業憑證雖仍有其重要性,但政治憑證才是不可或缺的前提。這個模式已不同於既有文獻基於菁英二元論所提出的觀點,更不同於強調專業性的技術專家政治。
This paper explores the changes in the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) selection of elite universities leaders since 2012. After analyzing 140 university presidents and party secretaries who received their appointments in the Hu Jintao and Xi Jinping eras, this paper found three major differences in mobility patterns. First, the importance of party seniority to both university presidents and party secretaries significantly increased. Scholars with young party age were unlikely to serve as presidents. Secondly, Western-trained Ph.D. and long-term overseas experiences were no longer the most salient professional credentials. Thirdly, some presidents who were local-trained Ph.D. holders and had weak overseas experiences had close ties with the People's Liberation Army (PLA) or defense industry. Therefore, their appointments appear to be related to China's technology policy. Accordingly, the current mobility pattern can be best described as "politics first," whereby professional credentials may remain important but political credentials become indispensable requirements. This new model differs from the existing literature based on elite dualism and technology that emphasizes specialization.