 The University of Barcelona is the principal centre of university research in Spain and has become a European benchmark for research activity, both in terms of the number of research programmes it conducts and the excellence these have achieved.According to the 2011 CYD Report, it is the highest-placed Spanish university in terms of scientific output, with a total of 15,290 papers published between 2006 and 2010, also leading the ranking of Spanish universities in terms of percentage of papers published in high impact journals.It has 106 departments and more than 5,000 full-time researchers, technicians and research assistants, most of whom work in the 243 research groups as recognized and supported by the Government of Catalonia.