Susan L. Shirk is an American
political scientist
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...
and China specialist currently serving as a research professor at
University of California, San Diego
The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego in communications material, formerly and colloquially UCSD) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in San Diego, California, United States. Es ...
School of Global Policy and Strategy. She was Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the
Bureau of East Asia and Pacific Affairs at the
U.S. State Department from 1997 to 2000 during the
Clinton administration
Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following his victory over Republican in ...
.
Early life and education
Shirk received a BA in
political science
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...
from
Mount Holyoke College
Mount Holyoke College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in South Hadley, Massachusetts, United States. It is the oldest member of the h ...
in 1967, a MA in
Asian studies
Asian studies is the term used usually in North America and Australia for what in Europe is known as Oriental studies. The field is concerned with the Asian people, their cultures, languages, history and politics. Within the Asian sphere, Asian ...
from
UC Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkele ...
in 1968, and a PhD in political science from
MIT
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...
in 1974. She also attended Princeton's Critical Languages Program from 1965 to 1966.
She first traveled to China in 1971 as a member of the
Committee of Concerned Asian Scholars
The Committee of Concerned Asian Scholars (CCAS) was founded in 1968 by a group of graduate students and younger faculty as part of the Opposition to the Vietnam War, opposition to the American participation in the Vietnam War. They proposed a "rad ...
.
Career
Shirk is the Ho Miu Lam Endowed Chair of China and Pacific Relations in the
School of Global Policy and Strategy at
UCSD
The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego in communications material, formerly and colloquially UCSD) is a public land-grant research university in San Diego, California, United States. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing ...
and Director of the
Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation
The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego in communications material, formerly and colloquially UCSD) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in San Diego, California, United States. Es ...
. She formerly directed the Northeast Asia Cooperation Dialogue, a track II diplomatic initiative.
Awards
Shirk is the recipient of the 2024
Association for Asian Studies
The Association for Asian Studies (AAS) is a scholarly, non-political and non-profit professional association focusing on Asia and the study of Asia. It is based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States.
The Association provides members with an Ann ...
' Distinguished Contributions to Asian Studies Award.
Selected books
*''Overreach: How China Derailed Its Peaceful Rise,'' 2022. ISBN 978-0190068516.
*''China: Fragile Superpower: How China's Internal Politics Could Derail Its Peaceful Rise'', 2007. ISBN 978-0195373196.
*''How China Opened Its Door: The Political Success of the PRC's Foreign Trade and Investment Reform'', 1994. ISBN 978-0815778530.
*''The Political Logic of Economic Reform in China'', 1993. ISBN 978-0520077072.
*''The Challenge of China and Japan: Politics and Development in East Asia'', 1985. ISBN 978-0030717994
*''Competitive Comrades: Career Incentives and Student Strategies in China'', 1982. ISBN 978-0030717994.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shirk, Susan L.
United States Department of State officials
American women diplomats
University of California, San Diego faculty
Mount Holyoke College alumni
MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences alumni
University of California, Berkeley alumni
1945 births
Living people
American women political scientists
American political scientists
21st-century American women
American sinologists