REHOVOT, ISRAEL—April 2, 2015—An analysis of the average success rates for all European Research Council (ERC) grants awarded during the 7th Framework Programme (FP7), 2007 – 2013, gave the Weizmann Institute of Science the top score: it has had 35% of its ERC grant proposals approved, while in comparison, the Israeli average is 18%, and the success rate of all ERC proposals is around 10%. And in absolute numbers of grants – a metric that puts the Institute in direct competition with much larger institutions – the Weizmann Institute was number six, with a total of 82 grants worth nearly €150 million (more than $165 million).

These figures were recently published in the ERC Scientific Council’s 2014 Annual Report on activities and achievements. ERC grants are awarded to the top European research institutes and universities, and have been provided to researchers in almost 600 research entities from 30 different countries.