At the end of 2013, the number of prestigious ERC (European Research Council) grants awarded to VIB members reached 24. Europe also bestowed the HR Excellence in Research label on VIB in recognition of its excellence-driven HR management. In 2013, VIB scientists generated groundbreaking new knowledge that resulted in 168 publications in top-ranked journals (top 5%), 69 of them in the top ranked journals in the field (top 1%).