Three major petroleum universities make it into the “Double First-Class” list, while the traditional “Petroleum Huangpu Military Academy” fails to qualify, left behind

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Three petroleum-related universities made it onto the list of institutions involved in the “Double First-Class” initiative, with increased efforts being made to attract talent. The Paper, September 21, 2017, 21:32:22. On September 21, the list of universities and disciplines designated as world-class under the “Double First-Class” initiative was released; China University of Petroleum (Huadong), China University of Petroleum (Beijing), and Southwest Petroleum University – these three petroleum-related universities were included in the list of institutions focusing on the development of first-class disciplines. Among them, China University of Petroleum (East China) and China University of Petroleum (Beijing) have petroleum and natural gas engineering as well as geological resources and geological engineering listed as \"first-class disciplines\", while Southwest Petroleum University has petroleum and natural gas engineering as its listed discipline. It is worth noting that China University of Petroleum (Huadong) and China University of Petroleum (Beijing) are both former 211 universities, and the two institutions maintain a close relationship (China University of Petroleum originated as Beijing Petroleum Institute, the first petroleum-related higher education institution in New China; it now operates independently in both Beijing and Shandong). The Party secretary who took office at China University of Petroleum (Beijing) in January this year is the former president of China University of Petroleum (East China). In mid-May 2017, leaders and experts from the two universities held a series of meetings in Qingdao over three days to discuss the efforts related to building \"double first-class\" institutions, and to delve into the strategies and plans needed for such development. According to official reports, such large-scale and high-level joint seminars between the two universities have been rare in recent years. In April, the Center for World University Rankings (CWUR) released the 2017 global university subject rankings, with the Petroleum Engineering program at China University of Petroleum (Beijing) ranking first and that at China University of Petroleum (East China) ranking third in the world. The “Geological Resources and Geological Engineering” programs at these two universities, along with those at China University of Geosciences, have been recognized as first-class disciplines, which demonstrates their strength. Southwest Petroleum University was jointly established by CNPC, Sinopec, CNOOC, and Sichuan Province; it is not a 211 university, yet its research capabilities should not be underestimated. In the petroleum discipline ranking released by the aforementioned World University Rankings Center, Southwest Petroleum University ranks eighth in the world. The school has a long history; according to its official website, in March 1958, high-volume oil flows emerged from three exploration wells located in Dongguan of Nanchong, Wusheng of Guang’an, and Daying of Suining, an event that shocked the whole country. General Yu Qiuli, the Minister of the Petroleum Industry, went to Nanchong to launch the major petroleum drilling campaign in central Sichuan. In order to accelerate the development of oil and gas resources in Sichuan and to train technical personnel for the development of the oil and gas industry in the Southwest cooperation zone, **it was decided to establish a second petroleum university, with its location set in Nanchong, an important city in northern Sichuan where the command headquarters for the oil exploration efforts in that region is situated. Starting in 2002, Southwest Petroleum University gradually moved its main campus to Chengdu, which improved the educational environment there. The fact that Southwest Petroleum University has been included in the \"Double First-Class\" initiative despite not being part of the 211 or 985 programs brings significant benefits to this petroleum-related institution with a history of nearly 60 years and located in the southwestern region of China. It is worth noting that the development trajectory of China University of Petroleum followed a similar path: in 1969, Beijing Petroleum Institute moved to the Shengli Oil Field near the Yellow River estuary in Shandong Province and was renamed East China Petroleum Institute; at that time, the area was still a barren saline-alkali land ； In 1981, a graduate school was established at the original site of Beijing Petroleum Institute; 7 years later, the institution was renamed China University of Petroleum, gradually developing a teaching structure with campuses in Beijing and Dongying in Shandong Province. In 2011, China University of Petroleum (Huadong) moved from Dongying, where the Shengli Oil Field is located, to Qingdao. In fact, even before the official list issued by the Ministry of Education, various petroleum-related universities had already been gearing up to contribute to the development of the \"Double First-Class\" initiative. On September 4, China University of Petroleum (Huadong), in an effort to further accelerate the development of its academic disciplines and achieve its goal of becoming a high-level research university with world-class petroleum disciplines and coordinated development across multiple fields, announced public recruitment for directors of four schools: the School of Information and Control Engineering, the School of Computer and Communication Engineering, the Institute of Marine Science and Engineering, and the Institute of New Energy. On the afternoon of September 21, a teacher in charge of recruitment at the school told The Paper that this open recruitment process for deans was the first of its kind at the institution, with the aim of attracting more talent to prepare for the development of a \"double first-class\" university. Many high-level talents have already come to apply for positions. Southwest Petroleum University has invested heavily in recruiting talent. According to the school’s talent recruitment policy (provisional) issued in 2017, for the most outstanding talents who are successfully recruited (such as members of the Academy of Sciences and Engineering, or talents selected under the “Ten Thousand Talents Program”), a one-time settlement allowance of 2 million yuan can be provided, along with 5 million yuan for research initiation and laboratory construction (3 million yuan for humanities and social sciences). These individuals are also entitled to office and laboratory space of no less than 300 square meters, as well as an annual salary of no less than 1 million yuan. The school even promises to arrange employment for their spouses, within its authority (either through transfer or long-term employment).