Why China should reassess how it rewards young scientists Talent schemes helped to propel China to the forefront of global science. But the system places undue emphasis on prestigious titles as a means to secure career prospects, putting pressure on young researchers. By Ming Li

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-026-02525-1?utm_source=Live+Audience&utm_campaign=1c8e108e31-nature-briefing-daily-20260814&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-33f35e09ea-50432164 China’s research sector needs to reassess how it incentivizes early-career researchers to relieve some of the immense pressures they face, argues vaccine researcher Ming Li. The current system funnels resources to researchers selected by prestigious talent-acquisition schemes and measures prestige based on titles, commonly called academic ‘hats’, that can only be gained through these programmes. The system should separate talent titles from resource-allocation processes, and set consistent career-advancement rules to nurture a research environment that focuses on tackling difficult research questions, not just publication rates, Li argues.