The Institute is among the first batch of institutions authorized by the state to grant master’s degree. It began to offer MA programme in the 1960s and PhD programme in the year 1986 and established Post-doctoral Research Station in 1990. In the year 2000 it was listed as the major training base of PhDs of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Currently, the Institute has three Category I disciplines, namely chemistry, chemical engineering and technology, materials science and engineering with equal emphasis given to science and engineering. The postgraduates graduated from the Institute either work or continue their studies in America, Britain, Japan, Germany, institutes of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tsinghua University, Peking University, etc. There is one member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, 16 Ph. D supervisors, more than 30 with the professional title of research fellow or with professional titles equivalent to research fellow, more than 100 with the professional title of associate research fellow or with professional titles equivalent to associate research fellow among the graduated postgraduates. Some of them have become the academic leaders in their own field.
The Institute now has one member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, 30 Ph, D supervisors and 45 master supervisors. In addition, through the cooperative training of postgraduates with large and medium-sized enterprises, institutions of higher education and research institutes, the Institute has invited a group of experienced experts to join the faculty team.
According to the statistics of October, 2005, there were 299 students in their MA programmes, 8 postdoctoral researchers, more than 20 postgraduates and PhDs who have applied the degree with the same educational level as the regular graduates or postgraduates. The number of the above-mentioned people is about 300 in total and they make up the major force of the mobile scientific research personnel. It is planned to enroll 50 candidates for doctor degree, 40 candidates for master degree and 3 to 5 postdoctoral researchers each year. As far as those with the same educational level as regular graduates who apply for the master’s or doctoral degree, the number of candidates to be enrolled is not limited.
The Institute has offered its own MA Program curriculum since 1987 and up till now a relatively mature system of MA Program curriculum has been formed. During the whole course of the program, special emphasis has been given to the training of basic skills for scientific research, practical ability, independent working ability and innovative ability. With all these it strives for highly qualified graduates.
The Institute has taken great effort to create favorable scientific research facilities, living conditions and a beautiful researching park for students. It has attracted talents by high-leveled scientific research programs, relaxed scientific research atmosphere and high salary. During the course of the training, the principles of human-oriented, academic freedom, encouraging innovation have been strictly abided by. Students are educated to establish the concept of value and outlook on life which are consistent with the national interests and form high academic morality while doing research. With the comprehensive advancing of the overall innovation, the Institute will continuously learn from the institutions home and abroad which have already accumulated abundant experiences to make the quality of postgraduates’ training gradually equal to that of developed countries.
In 1993 the Institute won the title of “Advanced Collective of Education” of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. In 1995 in the evaluation of the 21 Category I discipline MA programmes in the northwestern region by the Council for National Academic Awards, the physical chemistry discipline won the first place, the organic chemistry discipline the second, the analytic chemistry discipline the third. Joint Training of PhDs with Large and Medium-Sized Enterprises and Applied Research and Development Institutions complied by the Institute won the second prize for the education management work of the CAS in 1997. In 1999 the Institute was listed as the Advanced Collective of the CAS for the enrollment work. In 2002 it won the title of “Advanced Collective” in Gansu Province for postgraduates enrollment work and in the same year it won the title of “Advanced Collective” of the LICP for the management of postgraduates.
One of the postgraduates graduated from the Institute has won the special fund for CAS President Award and more than 40 won awards of the CAS and ministerial awards.
From the year 2002, the graduation certificate and degree certificate of the postgraduates trained by the Institute have been granted by the Graduate University of the CAS.
