The Severo Ochoa Programme targets those centers–be they existing university departments or institutes, public organizations’ research centres, or stable units that meet the requirements of the calls– that carry out cutting-edge basic research and are among the world's best in their respective areas. Networks of centres or units are excluded.

The centres or units that apply to this programme must demonstrate that their research fulfills the programme’s requirements for excellence and that they:

• Have a high level of competitiveness and impact in their field of activity on the world scientific scene.
• Submit their research activities to periodic scientific assessment by external and independent scientific committees.
• Carry out their research activities under a strategic programme designed to generate pioneering knowledge.
• Attract, select and train human resources at the international level.
• Maintain active collaboration and exchange agreements and exchange at the institutional level with high-level research centers.
• Work to boost knowledge transfer and dissemination to society.

Accreditation as a Severo Ochoa center or unit of excellence has a duration of four years and includes:

• One million Euros per year for each of the centres in this period. This funding has a high degree of flexibility and its use should be determined by duly justified strategic criteria for the accredited center.
• Priority access to other initiatives of the Secretariat of State for Research, Development and Innovation to promote research, provided that the pertinent principles of transparency and competition are observed.
• A boost to the reputation and social and scientific recognition of each centre that strengthens it as a candidate for patronage, among other benefits.

Each “Severo Ochoa” centre or unit of excellence must have a Scientific Director, who is not necessarily the director of the institution. The Scientific Director must be highly respected by his peers for research that meets the highest standards as well as having a significant capacity for leadership in the management of research.

 “Severo Ochoa” centres or units of excellence must be centres of reference and clear examples of the quality and relevance of the pioneering scientific research carried out in Spain, and as such should serve to lead and energize our research system as a whole and boost its international profile.

The second call of the Severo Ochoa programme was published in the Official State Gazette on 11/07/2012. The deadline for applications is August 6, 2012.

The evaluation and selection of process Severo Ochoa centres and units of excellence is based on the centre's activity over the past five years (2006-2010), assessing, among other things, scientific production; participation in projects with competitive funding and, especially, the results obtained in the European Union’s IDEAS Programme; the track record history and leadership capacity of the of the centre or unit’s scientific director and principal investigators; the centre’s structure and organizational model of the centre and its human resources strategy; and its international position and collaboration with top-level centres and its degree of international openness as well as its ability to attract the most prestigious researchers in its field.

The Scientific Committee and external experts also evaluate: (a) the research programme, (b) the human resources programme and (c) the evaluation and monitoring plan for the next four years (2013-2016).

Of a total of 61 proposals evaluated in the first phase and after a rigorous selection process conducted in two phases, the centres that have been accredited as a Severo Ochoa Centres of Excellence, as listed in the final resolution of this first call, are:

Institute of Photonic Sciences (ICFO)

www.icfo.es

Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona)

www.irbbarcelona.org

Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC)

www.bsc.es

Graduate School of Economics (Barcelona GSE)

www.barcelonagse.eu

Institute for Mathematical Sciences (ICMAT)

www.icmat.es

National Centre for  Cardiovascular Research (CNIC)

www.cnic.es

National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO)

www.cnio.es

Institute of Astrophysics. Canary Islands (IAC)

www.iac.es

Chairpersons of Scientific Committes:

• R. HUBER, Nobel Laureate, Max-Planck-Institut fuer Biochemie
• R. MYERSON, Nobel Laureate, Chicago University
• S. TING, Nobel Laureate, MIT

Members of Scientific Committes  and Experts involved in the evaluation of Severo Ochoa 2011 call:

«Life Sciences»:

• A. DRIESSEN, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute (NL)
• A. FERRANDO, CUMC, Irving Cancer Research Center (US)
• A. GLOVER, Chair in Molecular and Cell Biology U Aberdeen (UK)
• A. MARTINEZ ARIAS, Dep. Genetics, University of Cambridge (UK)
• A. PFEIFER, Dpt. Pharmacology & Toxicology (DE)
• A. RUIZ I ALTABA, Genetic Medicine and Development, University of Geneva Medical School (CH)
• A. VIDAL-PUIG, Department of Chemical Biochemistry, University of Cambridge (UK)
• B. HERRMANN, Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics (DE)
• C. IBAÑEZ, Karolinska Institutet (SW)
• C. MARTIN, John Innes Centre (UK)
• C. STERN, UCL Research Department of Cell and Developmental Biology (UK)
• E. RIMM, Harvard Medical School Program Director in Cardiovascular Epidemiology (US)
• F. MINGOZZI, Children's Hospital Of Philadelphia Abramson Research Center (US)
• F. ZABALA, Johns Hopkins University (US)
• G. GIRIBET, Harvard University (US)
• G. NEUHAUS, Institute of Cell Biology, U. Freiburg (DE)
• G. RIBA, INRA, Deputy Director and Research Director (FR)
• H. HOFER, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (DE)
• J. M.  BECKERS, University of Liege (BE)
• K. BEYREUTHER, Zentrum für Molekulare Biologie der Universität Heidelberg (DE)
• L. FADIGA, U of Ferrara (IT)
• M. BACCARINI, Center for Molecular Biology at the Max F. Perutz Laboratories, U of Vienna, (AT)
• M. VON BERGEN, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (DE)
• N. ANDREWS W, University of Maryland (US)
• N. BARTON, Institute of Science and Technology (AT)
• P. GENSCHIK, Institut de Biologie Moléculaire des Plantes/CNRS (FR)
• P. MADEDDU, Bristol Heart Institute (UK)
• P. REBOUL, CNRS-Nancy University (FR)
• R. HUBER, Nobel Laureate, Max-Planck-Institut fuer Biochemie
• S.KNAPP, Natural History Museum (UK)
• T. HUDSON, Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (CAN)

«Mathematics,  Experimental Sciences and Engineering»:

• A. FERREIRA, Universidade Porto (PT)
• A. GRUNBAUM, U of California Berkeley (US)
• A. ISERLES, U of Cambridge (UK)
• A. KLEYN, Leiden Institute of Chemistry (NL)
• A. LEHMANN, University of Freiburg (DE)
• A. SAVOY-NAVARRO, APC Laboratory, Université Paris Diderot (FR)
• B. MEIJER, Eindhoven University of Technology (NL)
• D. GULDI, Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (DE)
• E. BAUER, Vienna University of Technology (AT)
• E. CAMPBELL, University of Edinburgh (UK)
• E. GIACOBINO, Kastler-Brossel Laboratory CNRS (FR)
• E. MENDEZ, Brookhaven National Laboratory (US)
• E. MOLINARI, Universitá Modena (IT)
• F. De SCHRYVER, K.U.Leuven (BE)
• G. HORVAI, Budapest University of Technology and Economics (HU)
• G. VESER, University of Pittsburgh (US)
• H. BRISMAR, Royal Institute of Technology (SE)
• I. CIRAC, Max-Planck-Institut für Quantenoptik (DE)
• J. DUDLEY, FEMTO-CNRS (FR)
• J. TOWNS, NCSA Illinois (US)
• K. ZYCZKOWSKI, Center for Theoretical Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences (PL)
• M. ALCARAZO, Max-Planck-Institut für Kohlenforschung (DE)
• N. BARTON, Institute of Science and Technology (AT)
• N. HITCHIN, Oxford University (UK)
• O. ELDHOM, University of Bergen (NO)
• P. CONSTANTIN, University of Chicago (US)
• P. OMLING, Swedish Research Council (SE)
• Q. PANKHURST, London Centre for Nanotechnology (UK)
• R. CALABRESE, Universitá degli Studi Ferrara (IT)
• R. DILLMANN, Karlsrhue U. (NL)
• R. GUZMAN VILLORIA, MIT (US)
• R. SORRENTINO, Universitá Perugia (IT)
• R. TERLEVICH, University of Cambridge (UK)
• S. DE JONG, IMAPP (NL)
• S. GÜNTER, Max-Planck-Institut für Plasmaphysik (IPP) (DE)
• S. L. BERNASEK, Princeton University (US)
• S. TING, MIT (US)
• T. BRAZIL, University College Dublin (IR)
• T. HENNING, Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie (DE)
• W. HOOGLAND, Universitetit van Amsterdam, (NL)

«Humanities and Social Sciences»:

• R. MYERSON, Chicago University (US)
• B E. HONORE, Princeton University (US)
• D. OSBORN, University of Manchester (UK)
• D. PEARCE, New York University (US)
• J. W. SCOTT, Institute for Advanced Studies, Princeton University (US)
• M. ROSENZWEIG, Yale University (US)
• P. PITA BARROS, Universidade Nova de Lisboa (PT)
• R. WICKHAM, Oxford University (UK)
• Y. NYARKO, New York University (US)