The Time Inheritors

How Time Inequalities Shape Higher Education Mobility in China

Reveals the role of time in reproducing inequalities as students navigate rural-to-urban, cross-border, and transnational higher education.

Winner of the 2026 Best Book Award presented by the Higher Education Special Interest Group of the Comparative and International Education Society

Can a student inherit time? What difference does time make to their educational journeys and outcomes? The Time Inheritors draws on nearly a decade of field research with more than one hundred youth in China to argue that intergenerational transfers of privilege or deprivation are manifested in and through time. Comparing experiences of rural-to-urban, cross-border, and transnational education, Cora Lingling Xu shows how inequalities in time inheritance help drive deeply unequal mobility. With its unique focus on time, nuanced comparative analysis, and sensitive ethnographic engagement, The Time Inheritors opens new avenues for understanding the social mechanisms shaping the future of China and the world.

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