|
The history of School of Materials Science and Engineering (SMSE) can be dated back to 1954, when Department of Metallic Technology (DMT) was set up. In 1962 and 1982, DMT was renamed Special Metallurgy Department and Department of Materials Science and Engineering. Until 2002, School of Materials Science and Engineering was formally founded. SMSE is one of the units of first-level disciplines authorized to grant doctorate’s degrees and has one postdoctoral exchange center. SMSE has 3 second-level disciplines for doctorate, namely Material Physics and Chemistry, Material Processing Engineering (The former two are state priority disciplines, the latter is Hunan provincial priority disciplines.) Now SMSE has set up 5 departments, such as Department of Materials Physics and Chemistry, Materials Department, Department of Materials Processing Engineering, Research Institute of Materials Chemistry (being prepared), Laboratory center, Research and Cultivation Center of New Materials, being relied on by Education Ministry non-ferrous materials science and engineering priority laboratory and Hunan provincial non-ferrous metal and rare metal Materials science and engineering priority laboratory.
SMSE is one scientific research school, which counts among its rich array of academic staff and has now over 120 personnel, among which are 4 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1 special “ the Yangtze Scholar Prize Plan” professorship, 27 doctorate supervisors, 34 full professors, 33 associate professors and a great number of returned overseas teachers. Over 50% of the faculty have obtained doctorate degrees, among which have gone on to become the senior officials in key academic organizations at home and abroad and has set up international cooperative research relationship with foreign universities and scientific research institutions, namely USA Massachusetts Institution of Technology, University of California, British Cambridge University, University of Birmingham, University of Nottingham, Royal technical College of Sweden, Check Moss Polytechnical University, German Aachen Polytechnical University, University of Toronto of Canada, Australia Melbourne University, Japan Nagoya University, University of Akita Northeastern University, Russia Moscow University, Russian Light-alloy Research Institution. In these years, SMSE has obtained numerous key and significant projects funded by the nation and international exchange projects—“Project 863”, “Project 973”, “National Sci-Tech Brainstorm projects”, “Military Projects”—with the every year outlay of Sci-Tech 7 amounting to 13 million yuan(RMB), making outstanding contributions to the fields of aviation, spaceship, navigation, orbit, communication, electronic information and nation defence, which has been awarded 4 national prizes, 30 provincial and ministerial prizes. In recent years, SMSE has established an influential base for scientific researching and cultivating MSE talents.
At present, the student population in SMSE includes 1344 full-time students, among which are 90 doctoral candidates, 174 master candidates and 1080 undergraduates. The quality of undergraduates cultivation has made much improvement and become a priority base for high-level talents cultivation. The rate of employment of undergraduates following graduation from SMSE exceeds 98% in these years, and that of passing post-graduate entrance exam is 40%. Numerous post-graduates and undergraduates study abroad after graduation and doctors become the central figures in a wide range of fields－some are in trade, some are senior officials ,some are prestigious experts . In order to stimulate students’ devotion to the Sci-Tech causes, SMSE awards several different prizes-“112 Prize”, “ZhangTong Prize”, including “SME Prize”, “Diamond Prize” and so on.
In the fields of undergraduates’ teaching, SMSE has registered more than 10 educational reform items of state, CSU and HuNan province, formulated a complete set of training patterns according to the requirements of first-class disciplines, which has set up two specialities -Metallic Engineering (including Heatment of Metallic Materials, Materials Processing, Composite Materials etc.), Materials Physics and strengthens the education to broaden the students’ view, purity the mind and improve the sense of science and humanities , Art , Management , Computer and Life Science in elective courses. To make full use of educational resources, SMSE have founded newly two comprehensive experimental instruction—“Undergraduate in R & D”, “Undergraduate in Innovated Experiments”, which will last 1.5 year with the assistance of specified teachers, aiming at the cultivation of students’ ability to innovate and practice.
Two kinds of courses are for SMSE undergraduates— fundamental courses (Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Mechanics, English, Machinery, Computer and electro-engineering and electro-technology) and profession courses (Basis of Materials Science, Modern Physics, Solid Physics, Materials Physics, Materials Chemistry, Theory of Materials Processing, Method of Materials Technology, Analysis and Research ways of Materials, Traditional Materials and Production, Advanced Materials Research and Development). SMSE graduates can engage well in the research and exploration on MSE fundamental questions in the new fields, R&D for high-tech materials, diagnosis of materials breakdown and invalidity, management of materials production technology and Sci-Tech research in modern entrepreneur and research institutions. Excellent students will have chances of being guaranteed to postgraduate or doctorate degrees.
|