From November 25 to 26, the “International Forum of Chongqing University for Outstanding Young Talents” sponsored by Chongqing University in an effort to attract high caliber young talents for its “Double-First-Rate” construction is held at Huxi Campus of CQU. More than 170 outstanding young scholars from 19 countries and regions such as the UK and the USA attend the Forum to have academic exchange and seek for joint development. The sponsor offers a maximum annual salary of 1.2 million yuan, to attract outstanding young scholars and top industrial talents to join Chongqing University.
In September 2017, Chongqing University was included in the program of construction of world-first-rate universities and world-first-rate disciplines by the Ministry of Education (the “Double-First-Rate”). There are a total of 36 Type-A universities and colleges in China that have been brought under the “Double-First-Rate” program.
Talents are inevitably the core of construction of “Double-First-Rate”. As such, Chongqing University is hungry for talents. From 2013 onwards, CQU has been allocating budget of 100 million yuan to talent introduction every year, with no cap. In addition, the “International Forum of Chongqing University for Outstanding Young Talents” is being held after more than half a year of preparation, in an effort to build an academic exchange platform for outstanding young talents from home and abroad and establish extensive contact and partnership. The ultimate purpose is to attract more outstanding young talents to be involved in the “Double-First-Rate” construction of Chongqing University.
There is one main forum and 21 sub-forums. In the two days, more than 170 outstanding young scholars from 190 countries and regions such as the USA, the UK, Australia and Singapore (young scholars aged below 35 account for 87% of the total; scholars with oversea study experience or working experience account for 83%) have attended the Forum and have had “heated discussion”. Attendants of the Forum have had in-depth discussion and communication in related cutting-edge scientific areas including nanocomposite, precision medicine, quantum mechanics, water environment and clean energy.
“The Forum is part of the Intelligence Introduction Program of Chongqing University and is a reflection of the determination of Chongqing University to introduce talents.” The related responsible person of CQU points out that Chongqing is currently implementing the “Eight Strategic Action Plans”. In particular, the strategic action plan for innovation-driven development led by intelligence and the strategic action plan for strengthening the municipality with talents and prospering the municipality with science and education both show the hunger of Chongqing’s government for talents and emphasis on innovation. Chongqing University, as a university of central and western China, should seize the opportunity of “Double-First-Rate” construction, integrate resources and exert the platform integration advantages, in a bid to cultivate and introduce a number of top-level, precision and advanced talents and create an encouraging environment where everybody is let to display his talents fully.
Let the wise birds choose the tree it will nest on
-An exclusive interview with Wang Shilong, vice president of CQU, by Chongqing Daily
The report of the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China point out that China should implement the strategy of reinvigorating China through human resource development. In another word, China should cultivate and create a number of top-level innovation teams, strategic scientific and technological talents, leading scientific and technological talents and young scientific and technological talents with international horizon.
What is the planning of Chongqing University after being brought under the world-first-rate university program of the Ministry of Education? What is the reason for Chongqing University to hold the “International Forum of Chongqing University for Outstanding Young Talents” on November 25? What preferential policies have been introduced by CQU to attract talents? The journalist of Chongqing Daily asked Professor Wang Shilong, vice president of Chongqing University, those questions during an exclusive interview.
Chongqing Daily: Talents are undoubtedly the dominant factor for “Double-First-Rate” construction. I was wondering what the planning of Chongqing University is with respect to talent construction.
Wang Shilong: Chongqing University was founded in 1929 and has a history of 88 years. It was successively included in the “211 Program” and “985 Project” and “2011 Program”. This year, it was included in the world-first-rate university construction program of the Ministry of Education (type-A).
It has been the long-cherished wish of Chongqing University people to build Chongqing University into a world-first-rate university with characteristics of China. This has now become the obligation of CQU people of the current generation.
The importance of talents is evident. We have to implement the talents developing strategy in depth, and build a top-rate teaching body. Only through this way could we carry out “Double-First-Rate” construction in stages and in steps and build CQU into a world-first-rate university with characteristics of China.
The first step is to expand the scale of teaching body in a targeted way. Chongqing University currently has several faculties including Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Faculty of Social Science, Faculty of Sciences, Faculty of Engineering, Faculty of Built Environment, and Faculty of Information Technology, and 35 schools. There are 97 undergraduate programs and more than 47,000 current students (among which there are more than 20,000 postgraduates and doctoral candidates), and more than 2,600 full-time teachers.
The optimal student-teacher ratio is 16:1. This means that the number of full-time teachers of CQU is not enough. As such, from 2017 onwards, Chongqing University will expand its teaching body. Considering the number of retiring teachers, Chongqing is going to introduce about 200 teachers every year in the 3 years to come and it is expected that the number of full-time teachers of CQU will reach 3,000 by 2020. By that time, the total number of full-time teachers will meet the development need.
Chongqing Daily: What is the plan of CQU to introduce top-level talents with the total number guaranteed?
Wang Shilong: We have a plan. The talent structure of Chongqing University will be like a pyramid. We will reasonably adjust the structure of the teaching body and create an innovative building mechanism of teaching body. It is anticipated that in 2020, the number of top-level talents will have drastically increased. The teaching body will have been improved substantially in terms of age, academic level, international development, academic source, and competitiveness.
As part of the “Double-First-Rate” construction, and considering the international frontier, and national and local development requirements and its own advantages and characteristics, Chongqing University has developed 3 discipline groups, including “smart energy”, “advanced manufacturing” and “new-type mobilization”, as the core competitiveness in building the world-first-rate university.
Focusing on “key disciplines”, Chongqing University will introduce academic leading talents from domestic and foreign academicians, including the “Yangtze River Scholar of the Ministry of Education”, the “National Natural Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars” and “the Recruitment Program of Global Experts of the Organizing Department of the Central Committee of CPC”, outstanding young talents such as winners of “Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars of National Natural Science Foundation”, “the Young Yangtze River Scholar of the Ministry of Education” and the “Young Thousand Talents Program Scholars of the Organizing Department of the Central Committee of CPC” and “Outstanding Young Talents under the 10,000-Talent Program of the Organizing Department of the Central Committee of CPC (“Four-Youth”), or talents equivalent academic levels, as part of the intelligence introduction.
Chongqing Daily: It is reported that Chongqing University is offering appealing treatment to the top-level talents?
Wang Shilong: Chongqing University is indeed offering favorable treatment to academicians, top-level talents and academic leaders. For example, the annual salary offered to academicians is 1.2 million yuan. The annual salary offered to scholars under the “Yangtze River Scholar” Program, winners of the “National Natural Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars” and the experts under the “Recruitment Program of Global Experts” is 800,000 yuan. The annual salary for other outstanding young talents is hundreds of thousands yuan, apart from the settling-in allowance and scientific research fund and the right to buy social security housing for talents.
More importantly, for Chongqing University, academic level is not the only criterion. For example, talents that are not “Yangtze River Scholars” may be given considerable payment if the materials submitted by them convince Chongqing University that they are equivalent to “Yangtze River Scholars”. Likewise, talents without the title of professor may also be offered the appropriate payment if the University believes they are adequate.
Chongqing University is hungry for talents. From 2013 onwards, CQU has been allocating budget of 100 million yuan to talent introduction every year, with no cap. However, we never spent them all, because it is really difficult to find outstanding talents, in particular the top ones like academicians.
Therefore, we need to combine talent introduction with talent cultivation and we should choose and cultivate promising outstanding young talents. This is why we are holding the “International Forum of Chongqing University for Outstanding Young Talents”. Our purpose is to attract more outstanding young talents from home and abroad to Chongqing and allow them to know more about the city. Through academic exchange, channels for cooperation in disciplinary research and talent cultivation will be established. We are open to all outstanding young scholars who are willing to work for Chongqing University, based on which we will carry forward the targeted introduction and cultivation of talents.
Chongqing Daily: For talents, treatment might not matter the most. What else is Chongqing University relying on to attract those top talents?
Wang Shilong: You are right. Treatment is not the most important factor. The most important factor is a development platform we provide.
Chongqing University was and is still well-known for its advantageous disciplines such as electromechanical engineering, energy, materials, information, biology and building. In particular, 10 first-class disciplines including architecture, electrical engineering and civil engineering rank among the top 10 nationwide; 5 disciplines including engineering science, material science, chemistry, computer science and clinical medicine rank among the top 1% ESI disciplines globally. Lately, the engineering discipline came in the top 1‰ among the ESI disciplines, which is by no means easy. Therefore, Chongqing University possesses a favorable discipline advantage foundation and an academic platform.
As the only municipality in west China and one of the key central city, Chongqing University is situated at the intersection of construction of the Yangtze River Economic Belt and the construction of “the Belt and Road”. In recent years, the GDP growth rate of Chongqing has been raking the first place among all Chinese cities, with innovative industries developing rapidly. Given the rapid development of economy and upgrading and transformation of industries, the demand of Chongqing for innovative entrepreneurship talents is also growing drastically.
“Studying academics, cultivating talents, prospering the country and revitalizing the society” is the tenet followed by Chongqing University for its operation. As a university directly under the Ministry of Education, Chongqing University has been devoted to cultivating talents and serving social and economic development, and is in need of more outstanding young talents.
In recent years, Chongqing University has launched the “100-talent Program” and the “Backup Top Talent Program” and has attracted a number of outstanding young talents to join the University from home and abroad. I’m a native of Hunan Province and I have worked in Chongqing for many years. I truly love the mountains and rivers and my career here. There are many other persons in Chongqing University like me, who came from other places and have now settled in Chongqing, such as Zhou Xiaoyuan from the School of Physics, Tang Wenxin from the School of Materials and Engineering, and Ding Xuanming from the School of Civil Engineering. They have all achieved certain success in Chongqing University and are now having a happy family.
“Wise birds choose the tree it will nest on”. Chongqing University is open to all outstanding young scholars from home and abroad, with its ability to identify talents and courage to use talent.
Outstanding young scholars talking of Chongqing
Wang Zhengjin, a post-doctor at Harvard University
I’m a native of Wuxi, Chongqing and obtained my bachelor, master and doctor’s degrees at Xi’an Jiaotong University. Now I’m carrying out my post-doctoral research at Harvard University.
My research area is solid mechanics and soft materials, and my research mainly focuses on the relation between the body tissue and mechanical property. The research findings may be applied in areas such as Internet of Things and mobile medical care and health. Related materials may also be used for development of shale oil and shale gas, which have a promising development in Chongqing.
Chongqing is my hometown. Though I’m now at abroad, I always pay attention to the rapid development of Chongqing. My research area coincides with the strategic emerging industries in Chongqing and there are many preferential policies and favorable scientific research conditions in Chongqing. I’m willing to come back to the hometown to work.
Kong Fantao, a post-doctor at the French National Center for Scientific Research
I’m a native of Shandong and I’m engaged in research of green and clean energy of marine microorganism. Clean energy is a key strategic research area of China. Seaweed is hailed as the third-generation biological energy fuel. It can not only be used as clean energy, but can also be used to manufacture cosmetics, health care products and tableware.
I obtained my bachelor and master’s degree in Harbin and my doctor’s degree in Japan. I’m now carrying out my post-doctoral research at the French National Center for Scientific Research. I previously had contact with the research team of the School of Bioengineering of Chongqing University. They were also utilizing the seaweed for treatment of municipal sewage and development of biological energy and they are hoping to learn from the latest international experience and are expecting me to join them.
The “International Forum of Chongqing University for Outstanding Young Talents” is currently being held. I have visited the labs and library of Chongqing University and know something about it. I love Chongqing. It’s an inclusive and international city. I will surely have a brilliant future if I work here.
Zhou Yihang, director of Medical Physics Research Department, Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital
I’m a native of Shapingba, Chongqing. I obtained my bachelor’s degree from the School of Communication Engineering of Chongqing University and obtained my master and doctor’s degree in the USA. Now I’m engaged in applied research of MRI technology.
The learning experience at Chongqing University has made me an ambitious and aspirant person, and it let me know that academic research is never an easy task. Several affiliated hospitals have been recently established and inaugurated by Chongqing University. This means that Chongqing University will concentrate efforts on medical research in the future. MRI involves a number of areas that are worthy of in-depth study. I have been working and studying abroad and in Hong Kong for many years and I would like very much to work for Chongqing University if given the chance.
Li Yang, professor from the School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, CQU
I’m a native of northeast China. In 2012, I was recruited by Chongqing University under the “100-Young-Talent Program” when I was still a doctoral candidate at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. I still remember that on that day, some professors from Chongqing University were holding the oversea job fair and I, together with several other Chinese students, was lucky enough to dine with them. At that time, I became connected with Chongqing University. Later, I was recruited by Chongqing University under the “100-Young-Talent Program”.
Chongqing University offers scientific research fund of 2 million yuan and settle-in allowance of 200,000 yuan to talents recruited under the “100-Young-Talent Program”, which are generous even compared to those offered by most of the universities in China.
After I came to Chongqing University, the University has offered great help with my scientific research. In the past 5 years, the team has synthesized medicines special medicine for ovarian cancer and anti-inflammatory analgesic Carprofen, with the new path to multi-functionalization of efficient benzene ring as the core. I have published 3 papers of my independent research findings on top international journals in the chemistry sector. I’m continuing with my pursuit for my scientific research dream step by step here at Chongqing University, so to speak.
Link to the original report: http://epaper.cqrb.cn/html/cqrb/2017-11/27/006/cqrb20171127006.pdf
