Using English at an international doctoral workshop: A three-level field analysis

China’s engagement in the globalising field of higher education has been manifested in various forms of international collaboration with overseas universities. The engagement in cooperation and competition in the international education market add dynamics and nuances to the praxes of Chinese scholars. Setting its scene at an international doctoral workshop hosted at a Chinese university, this chapter analyses the experiences and perceptions of a cohort of native Chinese speaking workshop participants, with a particular focus on their use of English at the doctoral workshop. Drawing on Bourdieu’s three ‘necessary moments’ for field analysis, the chapter considers the doctoral workshop as an example of globalising higher education in China, debates the use of English as a socially anticipated and accepted academic lingua franca, and analyses the responses of emerging and junior Chinese scholars to the position of English in international academia.