Liu knows a PhD means status and money, but she realises it is just not for her
2-MIN READ2-MINFran Luin BeijingPublished: 6:05pm, 26 Sep 2026A Chinese doctoral graduate in medicine left her promising hospital job to embrace a “less meritocratic” lifestyle as a part-time freelancer.
Liu Zihan, 31, delivers food, performs at a pub, sells breakfast, and explores a variety of part-time jobs that captivate her interests while providing for her living expenses.
Before leaving her full-time employment in February, Liu served as a psychiatrist and postdoctoral researcher at a Grade 3A hospital in Zhuhai, in southern China’s Guangdong province. This hospital is in the highest, most prestigious tier of the national healthcare classification system.
Liu characterised the first 30 years of her life as “meritocratic.” She grew up in one of the most competitive provinces, Hebei in northern China, and studied for a year at Hengshui High School, which is nationally renowned for its military-style discipline.
