Centre for Women's Studies
Wenrui Xue
PhD student
Profile
Biography
Wenrui Xue is currently a PhD student at the Centre for Women’s Studies at the University of York. Originally from China, he received his bachelor’s degree from Sun Yat-sen University. His undergraduate thesis was on the semantic analysis of Spanish media coverage of the 8-M feminist movement and related marches that took place in the country during the COVID-19 pandemic. After that, he obtained his master’s degree from the London School of Economics and Political Science, where he became interested in women’s studies in China. His thesis compared and explored the changes in women’s portrayals in Chinese and Soviet films during the Maoist and Stalinist periods and the historical reasons behind the similarities and differences. His current doctoral project research focuses on the personal experiences of Chinese female university students in the job market and recruitment process. His research interests include feminist theory, women and education, women and employment, and women and family.
Research
Overview
In recent years, gender discrimination in employment recruitment has started to appear frequently in the public eye in China’s mainland. Along with the increase in the number of university graduates, the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the national economy and the job market order. All of these have further intensified competition in the job market. Increasingly, female recent graduates have started to share their job search woes on social media and report relatively “hidden” gender discrimination when facing male competitors. This study will look at how female university students in China resist or compromise the influence of capital and power in the employment recruitment process.
