Recruitment

We are recruiting funded PhD Students and RAs at the School of Creative Media, City University of Hong Kong. Further details below or view here.

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We’re recruiting multiple fully funded PhD students and research assistants at the School of Creative Media, City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK). The School is led by Prof Espen Aarseth and hosts many world-leading researchers working on and with games and beyond from many different (inter)disciplinary perspectives.

You will work with Leon Y. Xiao as part of the newly established Creative Media Policy Observatory. PhD students and research assistants will collaborate with an international team on established projects to gain knowledge and skills. You will also design and lead your own independent research. We hope recruited research assistants will transition into PhD positions, like ‘pre-docs’ in North America.

Preference will be given to empirical research projects on video game law and regulation, including but not limited to:

• Gambling-like monetization mechanics, such as loot boxes and gacha.

• Screen time and restrictions on gameplay access.

• Advertising regulations (e.g., misleading ‘fake’ ads).

• Consumer protection (e.g., effects of virtual currency on spending behaviour).

• Gamified and gambling-like mechanics in livestreaming and online shopping.

• Companies’ compliance with regulations (or lack thereof).

• Regulators’ enforcement of regulations (or lack thereof).

• Age verification as applied to video games.

• Fandom practices in relation to in-game purchases (e.g., theorycrafting).

• Labour practices in the video game industry (e.g., crunch).

• Industry self-regulation, platform rules, and moderation practices.

• Emerging video game markets (e.g., Southeast Asia and MENA).

• Data protection and internet regulation (e.g., EU GDPR and Digital Services Act).

Other game studies topics (e.g., tabletop games like Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering) and research on game-adjacent products (e.g., blind boxes, card packs, livestreaming, and gambling), with a strong empirical basis will also be considered, as will other creative media issues more broadly (e.g., music streaming, influencers, cultural policies, child protection, and online harms).

Engagement with open science practices (e.g., preregistration and public sharing of data and analysis) is expected.

Funded PhD Students

For PhD students, an internationally competitive stipend (~US$28,764 per annum) is provided for up to four years (expected start date: Fall 2026 onwards). Alternatively, you also have the opportunity to apply for the prestigious Hong Kong PhD Fellowship Scheme, which if successful, would provide a world-beating stipend of over US$43,000 per annum. Generous research, conference, and open access publishing funding will also be made available.

We are looking for consistent academic excellence, a postgraduate degree from a world-leading university in a relevant field, research experience, and, ideally, an emerging publication record. You must also meet the minimum entrance requirement of CityUHK. Please visit the University admission page for updates and details: https://www.cityu.edu.hk/pg/research-degree-programmes.

Research Assistants

For research assistants (expected start date: Summer 2025 onwards), we also provide an internationally competitive salary and opportunities to support career development, e.g., conference presentations and co-authoring publications. Remote opportunities may be negotiated. You should have an undergraduate degree from a world-leading university through which you demonstrated academic excellence.

Application Process

Please send an expression of interest containing a brief research proposal (two pages max) alongside your CV with the subject line ‘CityUJA + [your name]’ to: leon.xiao@cityu.edu.hk. Please also request any reasonable adjustments.

About City University of Hong Kong

City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK) is a dynamic university located in the heart of Hong Kong. As a publicly funded institution, our goals are to pursue high levels of excellence, promote innovation and nurture creativity with the aim to improve people’s lives. In a city where East meets West, our vision is to become globally recognised for professional education, one that emphasises the mutual enrichment of different cultures and intellectual traditions, and for research that makes a real difference. 

About the School of Creative Media

The School of Creative Media is recognized to be an international centre for discovery and innovation in Asia. Here creativity is nurtured as a cornerstone of art tech development for Hong Kong in the 21st Century. Within this hub of creativity, students attain the technical, artistic, and intellectual skills that enable them to take positions of leadership and innovation in a global society and economy. There is no better place for young people to train in digital media, to discover and develop their creative abilities, and to give meaning and shape to our futures.