Dr Xin Xu is a Senior Departmental Lecturer in Higher and Tertiary Education at the University of Oxford, Deputy Director of the Centre on Skills, Knowledge, and Organisational Performance (SKOPE), and an Ordinary Fellow of Kellogg College.
Her research explores the changing roles of tertiary education and research, and how they interact with wider social, cultural, political, economic and technological changes. She draws on critical, comparative, and cross-cultural perspectives, with extensive empirical research on China and the UK and their connections with the wider world. Across her work, she is committed to equity, diversity, and justice. Her research has been funded by the ESRC, Research England, the Sutton Trust, SRHE, BAICE, and the University of Oxford, among others.
In particular, Xin’s work focuses on three interconnected areas:
- Tertiary education policy and practice, including higher education, skills, and lifelong learning
- Research on Research, including research cultures, assessment, professionals, and ecosystems
- International and global dynamics of higher education, including internationalisation, academic mobility, global knowledge systems, and geopolitics
Xin also values contributing to and building communities through editorial work, collaboration, and wider academic service. Her co-edited books include the Handbook of Meta-Research (with Alis Oancea, Gemma Derrick and Nuzha Nuseibeh; Edward Elgar, 2024) and Changing Higher Education in East Asia (with Simon Marginson; Bloomsbury, 2022), which received an Honourable Mention in the 2024 CIES Higher Education SIG Best Book Award. She is a Coordinating Editor of Higher Education and a Book Series Editor for Palgrave Studies on Chinese Education in a Global Perspective.
Xin’s research has generated wider public and policy impact. Her research and commentaries have appeared in Nature, Times Higher Education, The Conversation, HEPI Blog, and University World News. She has also contributed research evidence and expertise to policymaking and public debate in the UK and internationally.
At the Department of Education, she leads the MSc in Education (Higher Education) pathway, convenes the core module Global Higher Education, and supervises DPhil and MSc dissertations. She is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA), and has co-led the development of the Neurodivergent Education for Students, Teaching & Learning (NESTL) Toolkit, a practical resource for supporting neurodivergent-inclusive teaching and learning. The project was Highly Commended in the University of Oxford Vice-Chancellor’s Awards 2026.
Xin received her DPhil in Education from the University of Oxford and has studied at Tsinghua University, Peking University, and Heidelberg University.
More about Xin’s work can be found on her personal website.
DPhil Applications
Please note that Xin is not accepting applications from prospective DPhil or visiting researchers for the next academic year.
