New guideline prioritizes innovation over metrics

China has introduced a new guideline to enhance the evaluation of scientific research by young university faculty members, as part of broader efforts to strengthen the development of teachers early in their careers.

The document, issued by the Ministry of Education and five other government bodies recently, aims to comprehensively boost young teachers' ideological and political caliber, teaching quality, scientific research and innovation capabilities, and international perspective.

The guideline calls for a reformed approach to assessing young academics, with evaluation criteria scientifically determined to reflect individual career aspirations, disciplines and roles.

In accordance with the guideline, greater emphasis will be placed on innovation capability and quality, practical results and contributions, moving away from an overreliance on simple quantitative metrics for judging research performance.

Mechanisms for peer review will be refined, and a system for evaluating representative research outputs will be promoted. The guideline also calls for academic self-reliance, encouraging young teachers to publish their work in domestic academic journals.

The document outlines measures to ensure stable, long-term support for young faculty engaged in original and breakthrough technological innovation. It promotes organized research and supports interdisciplinary and cross-field studies, helping to build China's independent knowledge system and broaden the international reach of its academic discourse.

Beyond research evaluation, the guideline calls for improving ethical conduct mechanisms, stressing the need to strictly address violations of laws and regulations and remove "bad apples" from the teaching profession. Meanwhile, untrue rumors targeting teachers will also be swiftly addressed and cleared.

Partnerships between universities and large enterprises for training purposes are also encouraged, including an emphasis on enhanced support for career development as well as mentorship and opportunities in project applications and academic roles.

To improve overall job satisfaction, the guideline advocates for reforms in the salary system, exploring annual salary and project-based pay structures to raise income levels. Efforts will be made to reduce non-academic burdens on young teachers and to assist with housing, health and well-being.

Zhang Donggang, Party secretary of the Renmin University of China, said a sound evaluation mechanism is fundamental to motivating young university faculty to fulfill their responsibilities and pursue career development.

Colleges and universities should build on the progress of reforms, such as addressing the excessive emphasis on academic titles and published papers, and creating a new evaluation system, he said.

It is also important to improve evaluation criteria for talent in interdisciplinary studies and think tanks, and to establish diverse career development paths, he added.

He said evaluation reform should be combined with changes to professional title assessments and the salary system to encourage young faculty to innovate and be creative.

Zhou Yaming, director of the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission, said the city will also revamp its evaluation mechanism by implementing two new approaches: "evaluation based on representative achievements" and "long-cycle evaluation", Zhou said.

The representative achievements approach fully respects disciplinary differences and empowers academic communities in the evaluation process. Instead of relying solely on research projects, publications, or awards, it places greater emphasis on actual job performance, he said.

The long-cycle evaluation focuses on process and development, allowing young faculty to dedicate their main efforts to original, high-risk research and encouraging them to pursue bold innovations, Zhou added.

zoushuo@chinadaily.com.cn