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The UB is the leading university in scientific production in Spain

By 26 de October de 2005November 18th, 2020No Comments
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 26.10.2005

The UB is the leading university in scientific production in Spain

The Universitat de Barcelona (UB)(University of Barcelona) has the greatest scientific production in Spain, according to a report entitled "Bibliometric indicators of scientific activity in Spain – 2004", edited by the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT). This report was conducted by the research group "Scimago", headed by Félix de Moya, senior professor of Documentation and Vice-rector of New technologies at the University of Granada.


The report analyses Spanish scientific production using the publications on the databases of Thomson Scientific from 1995 to 2003 and provides a global perspective of basic aspects of science and research in this country. In the university sector, the UB heads the ranking in scientific productivity in Spain, with 17,013 documents (11.52 % of the total). The other universities with high positions include the Complutense University of Madrid (14,518 documents), the Autonomous University of Barcelona (10,096), the University of Valencia (9,400) and the Autonomous University of Madrid (8.705). The Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC) is ranked twelfth, with 5,007 documents (3.39 %), and is the first polytechnic institution in the table.

Universities in Catalonia accounted for 37,751 of 147,699 (25.56 %) publications in Spain in 2003. In the sector that comprises collaborative centres with the CSIC, the August Pi i Sunyer Biomedical Institute (IDIBAPS) heads the ranking, with 1,916 publications. This research centre was established by the UB, the Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, the Generalitat de Catalunya(Regional Government), the CSIC and Institute for Biomedical Research of Barcelona (IIBB).

The Catalan hospital system accounted for 31.2 % of the total scientific production in Spain, with 19,970 of the 63,838 publications (2003) produced by a total of 59 institutions throughout Spain. In the section encompassing hospital institutions, the ranking is headed by four Catalan institutions: the Hospital Clínic de Barcelona (6,425 publications), the Hospital Universitari de la Vall d’Hebron (3,358), the Hospital Universitari de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau (2,908) and the Ciutat Sanitària de Bellvitge (2,594) while the fifth position is held by the Hospital de la Paz (2,537) and the thirteenth by the Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol . The Hospital Clínic de Barcelona and the Ciutat Sanitària de Bellvitge are teaching hospitals ascribed to the UB.

The report emphasises that university centres continue to be the main motor of knowledge production in the country: during 2003 they accounted for 65.04 % of the total national production, followed at a distance by the health care sector (26.38%) and the CSIC (11.19%). Regarding the distribution of scientific production in Spain, large concentrations of production are found in Madrid and in Catalonia (52 % in 2003).

The report is a continuation of the study produced in 2004 (Bibliometric indicators of scientific activity in Spain: ISI Web of Science, 1998-2002) on scientific production in all fields of knowledge throughout Spain. The new edition of the report analyses national scientific institutions in all fields of knowledge. Taking into consideration the limitations of bibliometric indicators, the report also examines the patterns of inter-regional, inter-institutional and international collaboration in order to identify the current status of the science system.