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Exclusive | Wanted: China-born researchers to leave US to work in China. Attractive pay
Chinese institutions are offering large salary packages to entice scientists hit by funding cuts and persistent scrutiny in the United States
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Ling Xinin Ohio
China is launching dedicated recruitment programmes to lure Chinese-born researchers who are considering leaving the United States, a source told the South China Morning Post.
The offer comes amid major funding cuts and declining academic freedom under the Trump administration.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, a senior geologist based in Beijing said one of the programmes offered “very attractive” postdoctoral positions designed to appeal to researchers thinking about returning to China due to financial and political challenges in the US.
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“I’ve heard of offers approaching US$100,000 per year for three years,” he said. That level of support was at least double the typical salary of a postdoctoral researcher, whether in China or the US, and essentially matched the compensation of an assistant professor, he noted.
A leading Chinese-American biologist who has worked in the US for decades, and requested not to be named, said many people were “making moves”, but were unlikely to go public until their decisions were finalised.
China-born scientists in the US have found themselves squeezed from two directions since Donald Trump returned to the White House in January.
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