The School of Materials Science and Engineering of UPC has first-level disciplines authorized to offer doctoral/master’s degrees of material science and engineering, is authorized to offer material engineering professional degree, and has also established material science and engineering postdoctoral research station. There are five undergraduate programs, namely, material shaping and control engineering, material science and engineering, material physics, material chemistry, and new energy materials and devices. The School boasts distinctive advantages and features in the direction of new energy materials and oil and gas equipment materials, and is in the leading position nationwide. The materials science ESI ranks in the top 1% of the world, the engineering science is selected into the ESI global top 1‰, and the overall level of disciplines ranks first in the country. The School currently has 98 full-time academics, including 31 professors, 41 associate professors, and 22 doctoral supervisors. It has leading talents in the National “Ten Thousand Talents Program”, leading talents in science and technology innovation from the Ministry of Science and Technology, 100 talents from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, New Century Outstanding Talents from the Ministry of Education, 11 Taishan Scholars, and 5 Taishan Scholars innovation teams; there are 2 Elsevier most cited Chinese researchers Clarivate highly cited researchers, and 2 Elsevier most cited Chinese researchers. The School has currently established 5 scientific research platforms at national, provincial and ministerial level and 3 teaching platforms at the provincial and ministerial level and above; possesses 1 Excellent Engineer Education and Training Program at ministerial level, and 3 first-class undergraduate programs at provincial level.
Over the years, the college has cultivated 5,516 undergraduates and 871 postgraduates. Since 2016, the employment rate of graduates has remained at around 95%, and 30% are employed by Fortune 500 companies. Since 2016, it has undertaken 249 scientific research programs such as national key research and development programs and key projects of the National Natural Science Foundation, with the total funding reaching RMB 85.98 million. Significant achievements have been made in the field of oil and gas equipment and energy, and the economic benefit generated has accumulated to be RMB 236 million. 651 high-level papers have been published in international scientific journals such as Adv. Mater., Energy Environ. Sci., J. Am. Chem. Soc. and so on, including 37 highly cited papers. 183 invention patents have been authorized. The School has won 6 teaching and research awards at provincial and ministerial level, including first prize of Shandong Province Natural Science Award. Stable cooperative relations have been established with 44 internationally renowned universities such as Harvard University and Oxford University. In the past 4 years, the School has sent 242 teachers and students to study abroad and hired 8 overseas visiting professors. Besides, it has established cooperative relationships with more than 20 companies including Sifang Locomotive, Shengli Oilfield, and CHAMBROAD, and built 23 internship training bases.
The materials science and engineering undergraduate program, which has been rated as the national first-class undergraduate program and passed the engineering education certification of the Ministry of Education, has been initially included in the Sino-foreign cooperative school program. The materials science and engineering majors are approved to enroll 2 classes (60 students) per school year. There are currently 141 students in school, and 187 students have graduated from 2016 to 2020. The employment rate from 2016 to 2020 is 94.55%, 98.46%, 100%, 96.49% and 96.77%, respectively, and the higher-study rate is 30.90%, 53.85%, 33.93%, 35.10%, and 53.22% respectively. The number of students studying abroad after graduation has stabilized at about 5 students per year. As a new major in materials science and engineering (for Sino-foreign cooperative school), the School will integrate superior faculty resources, and focus on the training goals in the direction of new energy and nanomaterials to ensure that it is compatible with the Materials and Nanotechnology Engineering professional courses and faculty of the Polytechnic University of Milan. The material science and engineering major covers a wide range of materials research features from nanomaterials to metal materials, including 6 major professional directions, namely, energy storage and conversion materials, functional thin film/porous materials, new materials welding technology, material corrosion and protection, metal failure and surface engineering, and materials design and multi-scale simulation. In terms of professional training, the materials science and engineering major (Sino-foreign cooperative school) under plan covers core undergraduate teaching courses including mathematics, physics, chemistry, materials science, and engineering technology, etc., so that students can apply their expertise in mathematics, natural sciences, engineering fundamentals and other professional knowledge to solve complex material engineering problems. In terms of faculty, this major has 10 professors, 15 associate professors, and 4 lecturers. More than 90% of the faculty members have overseas study or visit experience, and are fully capable to offer professional courses in English.
