Postdoctoral Research Fellow; Principal Investigator: Prof Xiaolan Zheng

Salary Salary will be RMB 272,606 per annum, pro-rata for part-time/short-term contract.

Fixed-term

Closing Date Monday 12 October 2026

Reference 184702

Nottingham University Business School China Prof. Xiaolan Zheng's research team is seeking an outstanding Postdoctoral Research Fellow to join the postdoctoral research station in business administration for the development of University of Nottingham Ningbo China research agenda.

Your key responsibilities include:

• To formulate and articulate research objectives, alongside developing proposals for both individual and collaborative projects, utilizing established methodologies and techniques to execute research effectively within the specified area;
• To analyze data meticulously, interpret findings, evaluate scholarly texts, and contribute innovative insights, while adhering to project deadlines and collaborating seamlessly with team members and partners;
• To write up research work for publication and/or contribute to the dissemination at national/international conferences, resulting in successful research outputs;
• To identify opportunities and assist in writing bids for research grant applications;
• To build relationships with both internal and external contacts in order to exchange information, to form relationships for future collaborations and identify potential sources of funds and/or opportunities for collaboration.

• The candidate must have obtained a PhD in Finance or Accounting within the past three years.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English, including the ability to communicate with clarity on complex information. Excellent communication skills in Chinese is a plus.
• High analytical ability to analyse and illuminate data, interprets reports, evaluate and criticise texts and bring new insights.
• Ability to creatively apply relevant research approaches, models, techniques and methods.
• Ability to assess and organise resource requirements and deploy effectively.
• Ability to build relationships and collaborate with others, both internally and externally.
• Some practical experience of applying the specialist skills and approaches and techniques required for the role.

Join a unique British University in China. University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC) was the first Sino-foreign university to open its doors in China. Located in Ningbo, this award winning campus offering a UK-style education has grown to establish a student body of over 10,000 in just 21 years.

About Postdoctoral research station in Business Administration
. Postdoctoral research station in Business Administration was approved to establish in Nov 2023. It is UNNC's first postdoctoral research station, and its founding deeply aligns with the national strategic needs in promoting talent cultivation and innovation as well as that of UNNC. UNNC's undergraduate programme of Business Administration was launched in 2004 and the doctoral programme in 2009. The subject has been listed among the world's top academic subjects by Shanghai Ranking for four consecutive years.

The discipline of Business Administration has also established teaching and research platforms at multiple levels and carried out in-depth industry university research cooperation with world renowned enterprises such as Microsoft and Amazon. In the future, UNNC will incorporate the development of the postdoctoral research station into the agenda of the university to provide talent support in efforts to promote scientific and technological innovation as well as economic and social development.

Dr. Xiaolan Zheng is a professor of finance at the Nottingham University Business School (NUBS) China. She holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation. Her research focuses on capital structure, debt structure, dividend policy, trade credit, corporate governance, banking, digital innovation, international finance, and the influence of institutions on financial decisions. She has published in the Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Review of Finance, Journal of International Business Studies, Journal of Corporate Finance, Research Policy, and Journal of Banking and Finance, among others.

Dr. Huimin Song is a Professor of Practice in Accounting and Director of the Nottingham Global Case Center (NGCC) at the University of Nottingham Ningbo China. She also serves as an expert advisor to its Sustainable Finance Expert Group for the United Nations Global Compact. With more than 20…