The Weizmann Institute
It's not what you know but who you are.
- Dr. D. Zaifmann, President of the Weizmann Institute
The Weizmann Institute of Science (WIS) is a world-renowned research center that concentrates on its Feinberg Graduate School for the education of young scientists. This program is for masters students only. Additionally, through diverse programs and activities including the International Summer Science Institute (ISSI), 33,000 undergraduate and high school students gain insight into scientific research every year.
The history of the Weizmann Institute began in 1934 when Chaim Weizmann, a famous chemist and later the first President of Israel, founded the Daniel Sieff Institute. To honour Weizmann, the institute was named after him 15 years later.
When it was founded, there were only twelve employees; today, there are 2,600 employees in 17 departments. A key factor of success is, as Dr. D. Zaifmann, the current director of the institute, told us, that scientists are free to decide what they want to research. This way, the institute is always involved into new research trends.
The creativity and excellence of scientists such as Ada Yonath (2009 noble prize winner for her work on the structure and function of the ribosome), as well as the appreciation of the Weizmann Institute as a central research institution in Israel, make many of the Institute's projects marketable, despite its orientation towards basic research. Examples reach from a drug against MS to electronic encrypting systems.
As the Weizmann Institute has an international reputation, it is very multicultural; 150 of its 250 research teams are led by foreign scientists from all around the World. In 2011, the Institute was named the best academic working place worldwide by The Scientist.
Besides the intellectual research atmosphere and the achievement of outstanding scientific accomplishments, the Institute offers a further point of attraction: 0.38 of the 1.1 square kilometers of the Institute's campus are covered with charming gardens spotted with sculptures, fountains and beautiful architecture.