History and Mission
The School of Resource and Safety Engineering was one of the initial engineering schools of Chongqing University found in 1929. It was named the Department of Mining and Metallurgy Engineering in 1935 and the main disciplines included mining and metallurgy. After that it was re-named the Department of Mining Engineering in 1955 along with the establishment of mining engineering discipline. Later in 1987, it was retitled as the Department of Resource and Environmental Engineering due to the foundation of the discipline of mining environment and then the name was changed to College of Resource and Environmental Engineeringin1992followed by the department adjustment of Chongqing University.In2000, it was renamed the College of Resource and Environmental Science in accordance with the combination of Chongqing University with other universities. Now, the College establishes two departments (i.e., Departments of Mining Engineering, and Safety Engineering) after the construction of the Department of Safety Engineering in 2019.
The School of Resource and Safety Engineering committed to meeting the strategic needs of the country for mineral resources exploitation and utilization, geological disaster control and environmental pollution control. It provides a professionally-oriented education and a technologically-stimulating environment for researchers as well as the developments and collaborations with the industries and overseas universities. The School is developing into an integrated platform involving education, research, practice, management and industrial applications, for efficient social service provision and international cooperation and communication.
Faculty and Staff Scientists
The School is staffed by an international faculty of academics who are strong in teaching as well as research and professional experiences. Of the faculty members, 86% have earned doctoral degrees, and 48% obtained their degrees from foreign institutions or studied in abroad over ten months. Meanwhile, 45% of them have honorable titles including academician of Chinese Academy of Engineering, the Chief Scientists of 973 Projects, Winners of the National Outstanding Youth Fund, National Expert with Remarkable Contributions, Specialist Enjoying the State Council Special Allowance, Winners of the Millions Candidates from New Century Talents Project, Cheung Kong Scholars, Par-Eu Scholars, Bayu Scholars and High-level Talents of Chongqing. Except for courses teaching for undergraduate and graduate students, these academics are also active in research collaboration with industrial organizations, offering engineering consultancy, conferences, seminars and short courses for the benefit of the industries.
Student Cultivation
Student cultivation aims to train and educate professional mining and safety engineers. The School provides a number of practice-oriented courses to ensure the students well prepared for their challenging careers. The courses are designed to provide the requisite breadth and depth so that the students can further pursue a career in the design and construction of mining engineering, safety engineering projects and systems, as well as in research developments. Lectures and tutorials complemented by laboratory sessions, design projects, practical training, industrial visits and seminars would equip the students with the principles and practical aspects of their areas of studies. Meantime, many field practice projects have been established with enterprise and public institution to pledge students to be involved in various engineering activities upon graduation.
In order to cultivate students with global views, the School has established exchanges and cooperation with many top-class universities, organizations and enterprises in terms of mutual visits, collaborative scientific research and joint education programs. For example, the school has signed “1+2” collaborative master education project with the Germany's Clausthal Technical University for senior students. The selected students could obtain bachelor degree of Chongqing University and master degree of Clausthal Technical University after a one-year study in Chongqing University followed by a two-year study in Clausthal Technical University.
Each year hundreds of the most talented students are matriculated, many of them have become outstanding figures in various fields such as scientific research, governmental agency, enterprise and public institution after graduation.
Disciplines and Research Platform
The School has four first-level disciplines for Doctoral Degree Authorization including Mining Engineering, Safety Science and Engineering, Mechanics, Engineering and Ecology, three post-doctoral centers for Mining Engineering, Mechanics, Environmental Science and Engineering, one state key discipline of Mining Engineering and two key construction disciplines (i.e. Projects 211, Safe Exploitation and Utilization of Coal).
To further facilitate specialization in the areas of professional training, research and technology transfer, there are six centers and institutes within the School, including Institute of Engineering Physic in Mine Engineering, Environmental Engineering Research Institute, Institute of Petroleum Resources Exploration and Development, Research Center for Integrated Resources Utilization Projects and National Virtual Simulating Testing and Teaching Demonstration Center. And, five laboratories within the School are well-equipped with state-of-the-art facilities to support teaching and research, including State Key Laboratory of Coal Mine Disaster Dynamics and Control, Chongqing Engineering Laboratory For Coalbed Gas Drainage Technology and Equipment, Provincial Key Lab for the Exploitation of Energy and Mineral Resources and the Environmental Damage and the Engineering Hazard Harness, Key Laboratory of Pollution Prevention and Recycling of Chongqing City. Among them, the State Key Laboratory of Coal Mine Disaster Dynamics and Control has become an important base across the country for cultivation of high-level talents in the field of coal mine disaster dynamics and control. Now, the school has an experimental area of 6,800 square meters and 3000 sets of equipment. Among these equipment, 30% are independently developed by its own techniques.
Research Fields and Achievements
Research of the College is particularly targeted to mineral resources exploitation and utilization engineering, geological disaster control and safety engineering, environmental pollution control and recycling, which are respectively playing the leading roles at domestic and overseas dominions. During the period of 2012 to 2017, over 100 projects have been granted by China’s major funding agencies, including 4 projects supported by the National Key Basic Research Program of China (i.e. 973), 4 projects supported by the Key Program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China, 2 projects of Hi-tech Research and Development Program of China (i.e. 863), 1 of Creative Research Groups of the National Natural Science Foundation of China, 1of Innovative Research Team of the Education Ministry of China, as well as a number of projects supported by key and/or major funding programs at provincial and local levels. More than 700 peer-reviewed articles and 12 scientific monographs have been published in this School and 130 national patents has been awarded. The school’s achievements have been evidenced by lots of awards it has won which include the second prize of National S&T Progress Award, the second prize in the Technological Invention Award from the Ministry of Education, the first prize in the Chongqing S&T Award and the Higher Education Teaching Achievement Award granted by the Chongqing Municipal Government.