Recently, there has been a tragic incident at Zhejiang University where a young associate professor fell to his death, sparking profound discussions among the public regarding societal pressure and academic competition. Despite this, various parties related to Zhejiang University have maintained a discreet stance on the matter.
On August 4th, an incident of falling from a building occurred at the Zijingang Campus of Zhejiang University. According to several netizens on social media posts, the individual who fell was a young teacher from the School of Biological Systems Engineering and Food Science at Zhejiang University, aged only 35 years old. The official website of Zhejiang University indicated that the teacher’s last name was Du, holding the title of associate researcher and doctoral supervisor, specializing in cutting-edge fields such as agricultural robots and biomimetic soft robots.
Reported by Jiemu News, Zhejiang University officials, departments, unions, and colleagues have collectively remained silent on the matter, citing excuses such as “inconvenience during summer break” and promising “notifications will be issued later”.
Following the news of the teacher’s passing, speculation on the cause of his death has circulated online. Some insiders revealed that Professor Du graduated from Zhejiang University of Technology with a bachelor’s degree and continued his academic journey to earn a doctorate at a 985 university in Zhejiang, eventually choosing to teach at the same university. Many netizens believe that his fall was a result of tremendous work pressure and evaluation anxiety.
According to publicly available information, the deceased joined Zhejiang University in 2020 under a contract as an “associate researcher.” Unlike the pre-employment model of “promotion or exit,” this position seems more like a “postdoctoral extension”: within a six-year tenure, passing evaluations is necessary to enter the school’s “Hundred Talent Program” track; failing to meet the standards results in the natural termination of the contract.
The passing of Professor Du has once again brought the academia’s “promotion or exit” system into the spotlight. This system aims to motivate young teachers to achieve high levels of teaching and research results within a certain timeframe (usually 3-6 years), otherwise risking the possibility of leaving the school.
A friend of Professor Du, Professor Wang, lamented on his social media about the situation: “Universities treat teachers like mules, demanding them to plow the fields (teach), produce milk (research), and grind the mill (secure funding).”
Some netizens point out that this statement aptly articulates the multiple pressures faced by current young university teachers. They not only have to fulfill heavy teaching duties but also need to publish papers in top-tier journals, apply for research funding, supervise graduate students, where any deficiency can potentially affect the final evaluation results.
Analysis from some netizens suggests that the current academic environment is extremely competitive, leading to a culture of overwork and “competition to thrive.” Prolonged periods of excessive workload combined with inadequate rest can easily trigger mental stress, potentially leading to mental breakdowns. The decision of the 35-year-old young associate professor, who was in the prime of his academic career, to end his life in this manner is deeply lamentable.
Currently, there has been no official report on this matter. Many netizens are urging relevant authorities to investigate, uncover the truth, and provide closure for the deceased and his family.