MOST OF EXCELLENT RESEARCH IN SLOVAKIA IS PRODUCED AT COMENIUS UNIVERSITY
Bratislava, 10 March, 2025 – Comenius University Bratislava (CU) produces the highest-quality scientific output of all higher education institutions in Slovakia. This is based on data from the Ministry of Education, Research, Development, and Youth of the Slovak Republic, which recently allocated a new subsidy to universities for the first time, based on excellent research output. Out of the total subsidy amount of €2,196,000 in this round, CU received €1,188,000, representing 54.10%.
The ministry assessed excellent output in four international databases:
- Publications in the Nature Index – the world's most prestigious scientific journals
- Highly cited publications in the Web of Science (WoS) database – publications ranking in the top 1% most cited in their field worldwide
- European and American patents – registered with the European Patent Office or the United States Patent and Trademark Office
- European Research Council (ERC) grants
In terms of publications in the Nature Index (for the period from 1 November, 2023, to 31 October, 2024), 76.22% of research outputs from Slovak universities came from CU faculty members. Among highly cited outputs in the Web of Science databases (until 31 January, 2025), CU researchers accounted for 36.64%. In the patents category for the same period, CU held a 54.17% share. In the fourth category (ERC grants), there were no outputs from Slovakia during the evaluated period.
"I am proud that we have achieved such exceptional results in this evaluation. It is the outcome of systematic support for science at Comenius University, particularly through funding for excellent research teams, CU grants for full-time doctoral students, and the introduction of postdoctoral fellowships. This confirms that emphasizing quality and international research collaboration leads to global recognition and visibility. We do not want to be just Slovakia’s oldest, largest, and best university – our ambition is to be among the universities that contribute excellent research on a global scale," said Jozef Masarik, Vice-Rector for Science and Doctoral Studies.
The fields in which Comenius University achieved excellent research results include physical sciences, chemistry, biological sciences, mathematics, medical sciences, psychology, and Earth and environmental sciences.
"In the scientific community, we prioritise cooperation, and we see even competing institutions more as partners. Nevertheless, I am proud that, out of the 20 public universities in Slovakia, researchers at Comenius University generated the majority of all research output in our country. In the Nature Index category, our university contributed an impressive 76.22% of the total publications. I sincerely thank our research teams for their immense dedication and outstanding achievements, often under challenging conditions while simultaneously fulfilling their teaching responsibilities. I hope that this new form of subsidy will serve as both motivation for continued top-level research and inspiration for others," emphasised CU Rector Marek Števček.
Starting in 2025, Ministry of Education has introduced a new financial instrument to support excellent scientific research at Slovak universities. This is an immediate, automatic, and ongoing reward system for outstanding scientific achievements and innovations. Three times a year (31 January, 31 May, and 30 September), the ministry collects data from international databases and automatically allocates funds to universities based on their results.
According to the ministry's methodology, universities are required to allocate half of the subsidy directly to the authors of excellent outputs and innovations, while the other half can be used to develop the excellent research institutions where these outputs were produced.
