Geology is a comprehensive discipline that studies the material composition, internal structure, and external characteristics of the Earth, as well as the interrelationships between the different layers of the Earth, and the evolution history of the Earth. The geology is divided into the following 5 main subject directions: mineralogy, petrology and mineral deposit geology; geochemistry; paleontology and stratigraphy; structural geology; sedimentology (including paleogeography).

I. Cultivating Objective

The program aims to cultivate high-level scientific and technological talents who understand Chinese culture, politics, economy and history, with certain level of Chinese language mastery; who possess strong dedication to work, responsibility sense, pioneering and innovation spirit; who observe laws and disciplines, have good moral quality and academic accomplishment, and are sound in body and mind; who possess the ability to learn, discover and solve scientific problems and conduct academic exchanges, and have teamwork spirit; who have mastered a solid wide fundamental theories and profound and systematic specialized knowledge in the geology (including petroleum geology) and are familiar with the basic experimental techniques and skills; who have a deep understanding of academy, academic research and academic norms, and are able to undertake relevant geological works (including petroleum geology), conduct and organize scientific researches in the discipline independently.

II. Training Direction

Mineralogy, Petrology, Mineral Deposit Geology

Mineralogy, petrology, and mineral deposit geology study the geological characteristics, spatial distribution law, chemical composition, structure, source area, and genesis of the earth and planetary materials, such as minerals and their natural aggregates (rocks, ores). The subject direction in our school is mainly based on sedimentary rock research, and has unique features in study of lithofacies paleogeography in oil and gas bearing area, mineral petrology in oil and gas reservoir, volcanic reservoir and main control factors, as well as genetic theory of related solid mineral deposits.

 

Geochemistry

Geochemistry is an interdisciplinary discipline of geology and chemistry. It studies the distribution, distribution, and migration law of elements (and their isotopes) and compounds in the evolution history of the Earth (including some celestial bodies), and reveals the chemical composition, chemical action and chemical evolution of the Earth (including some celestial bodies). The subject direction in our school is mainly based on the combination of multiple experimental methods and basic oil and gas geology theories. It uses geochemical methods to solve the series of problems in the hydrocarbon accumulation process, especially the accumulation in areas with complex oil and gas distribution, and has obvious characteristics in accumulation in high mature evolution areas and gas-source correlation.

Paleontology and Stratigraphy

Paleontology and stratigraphy are based on the analysis of the form, structure, ecology, classification, evolution, geohistorical distribution, etc. of various types of fossils preserved in the strata and multidisciplinary comprehensive research methods to conduct stratigraphic division and correlation, establish regional stratigraphic framework, and restore the paleogeography and paleoenvironment. The subject direction in our school has special features and certain advantages in study of the classification and correlation of sedimentary environment and stratum in oil and gas-bearing areas, changes of palaeoenvironment, especially the relationship between the Paleozoi organic reef evolution and oil-gas, the paleoclimate in the Upper Yangtze Plate area from Late Permian to Early Triassic, the changes of palaeoenvironment, and trace fossils.

Structural Geology

Structural geology is to study of the formation, morphology, and genetic mechanism of deforming tectonic action of geological bodies in the lithosphere, as well as their mutual influence, temporal and spatial distribution, and evolutionary laws. The subject direction in our school involves fields such as three-dimensional structural digital modeling, analysis and prediction of fracture systems based on three-dimensional tectonic reconstruction, and has special features in the aspects of structural geometric quantitative analysis, digital simulation of structural geometric deformation, and production of balanced geologic sections.

Sedimentology (including Paleogeography)

Sedimentology (including palaeogeography) is a discipline that studies the material composition, structure, classification, formation mechanism, and distribution law of sediments and sedimentary rocks in the sedimentary sphere on the earth's surface. The subject direction in our school is based on the relevant theories such as sequence stratigraphy, sedimentary petrology, comparative sedimentology, tectonic-sedimentology and palaeogeography to reconstruct paleogeography of sedimentary basins and explore the formation and distribution law of sedimentary minerals, especially oil and gas reservoirs, and has formed unique features in study of the formation mechanism of carbonate rock sedimentology and relevant high-quality reservoirs.

III. Basic Requirements

Basic Qualifications

The master students in this discipline should have a rigorous academic attitude, excellent scientific research style, good academic ethics, strong innovation spirit and consciousness, and good team spirit.

 

Academic Qualifications

Master students in this discipline should have a good foundation in mathematics, physics, chemistry and English, as well as a good knowledge of geology, geophysics, petroleum geology exploration, solid mineral exploration, geophysics exploration and development, etc. They should be familiar with the development trend and the frontier of the discipline, as well as the knowledge of geology related disciplines.

Master students in this discipline should systematically learn a certain subject direction among the mineralogy, petrology, mineral deposit geology, paleontology and stratigraphy, structural geology, geochemistry and sedimentology (including lithofacies paleogeography), carry out relevant researches, master the basic theories, indoor and field work skills of the subject direction, and be able to use the basic research methods in this direction. Based on the scientific selection of subjects of academic dissertation, the master students should be able to apply the existing knowledge accumulation, theoretical methods and scientific research technology to carry out researches so as to further deepen the understanding of the subject direction.

 

Ability Qualifications

The master students of this discipline should have the ability to independently engage in scientific research, technological innovation and organizational management. They should have the ability to use English in their oral communication, professional literature reading and research paper writing.

 

IV. Academic Duration and Cultivation Methods

Academic Duration

The study for master students in this subject is set for 3 years and the maximum duration of study is 5 years.

Cultivation Methods

The student should master a certain level of Chinese language through the study of Chinese language and general study about China. They should have a general understanding of Chinese culture, politics, economy and history.

The tutor shall, in accordance with the regulations on academic degrees and the training program, teach each graduate student according to their respective aptitudes, formulate a practical training plan for each student, inspect and supervise their course study, guide the students regarding the topic selection of theses, literature retrieval, research, scientific research, thesis writing and defense for academic degrees. At the same time, the tutor shall regularly check the students regarding political thoughts, professional study, work, scientific research, etc.

The responsibility of tutors shall be strengthened. The tutor is the first responsible person for the training of graduate students and has the responsibility of leading the students at the frontiers of disciplines, guiding their scientific research methods, and teaching them academic norms. Exchange and sharing of talents between scientific research institutes and enterprises should be strengthened, a team of part-time and full-time tutors shall be formed, and the role of tutor team shall be stressed.

V. Cultivating Procedures

Curriculum Study

The curriculum study implements the credit system. The discipline master student must complete a minimum of 20 points in the specified number of years. The curriculum and the credit allocation are detailed in the syllabus.

Practice

Research practice and experiment exploration is the important link to cultivate master students, and it is an important means for training master students' innovative thoughts and application ability. The main practice procedures of postgraduate cultivation in this major include:

Opening Report and Defense

The opening report shall be a detailed demonstration of the significance of the topic selected, the main research contents, the expected objective, the research methods, the implementation plan, the schedule, etc. The opening report shall be read and defended at the opening defense panel meeting, and those who pass the defense may enter the paper research stage.

Dissertation Defense

Master's degree paper shall comply with the provisions of thePresentation of Theses and Dissertations (GB/T 7713.1-2006). The paper needs to embody the theoretical knowledge and skills, analysis and problem-solving ability, and the ability of integrating theory with practice, which serves to prove the ability of scientific research and the workload of the paper. Those who pass the defense may enter the degree grant proposal phase, and those who fail the defense may apply for a second defense after six months.

 

Degree Paper

Literature Review Report

In order to cultivate master students' ability to acquire cutting-edge knowledge and consult literature, foster their academic identification capabilities, and ensure topics selected are cutting-edge and groundbreaking, the master students must complete literature review and have a detailed understanding of research trends in related fields at home and abroad before master dissertation proposal. Literature review should include the main theories, methods, achievements, representatives and representative works (papers), development direction, issues to be solved, etc..

Literature review is the basis for the selection of topics. The student needs to read considerable domestic and foreign literature with no less than 100 papers, of which at least 1/3 should be foreign literature. The full text of the review should be no less than 10,000 words. The literature review should include:①tracing the source of the questions raised, defining the core concepts and key words;②systematically introducing the innovative viewpoints, ideas, research methods and technical routes of previous studies;③reviewing the advancement of previous research results and their defects and deficiencies, and finding out important scientific or engineering technical issues worthy of study;④putting forward the student's own viewpoints and research ideas in a reasonable way to form the basis for the argument of master dissertation.

Standards

A dissertation shall be written in English but the abstract must be translated into Chinese. Chinese writing of dissertation is encouraged. Dissertation defense shall be conducted in English, and defense in Chines is encouraged. Other requirements for dissertation writing and defense are carried out in accordance with related school regulations.

VI. Curriculum System and Setup

Basic Theory (8 Credits)

Basic theory course accounts for 6 credits, including public basic theory and mathematical physics basic theory, to meet training of ideological education, foreign language ability and mathematical physics basic knowledge.

Major Basics (4 Credits)

Major basic course accounts for 4 credits for completion of training of basic theories of petrology, sedimentology and basin analysis.

Compulsory Major Course (4 Credits)

Major core course accounts for 4 credits for completion of training of basic theories of geochemistry, structural geology, ore-forming regularity and prediction.

Optional Major Course (4 Credits)

Optional major course accounts for 4 credits for completion of training of geology, sedimentology and other knowledge systems.