Masaryk University (MU), established in 1919, is the second largest university in the Czech Republic and one of the key leaders in the higher education sector. Scientific research, one of the top priorities, has helped MU to secure a leading position in national and international competitions for research grants. This has resulted in considerable financial investments in its new campus, thus enhancing the university´s research and teaching capacity and allowing for the development of tools for the transfer of knowledge as well as improved support for research and innovation. At present, offering over 1,300 study programmes in the field of natural sciences, medicine, informatics as well as humanities, social studies, law and economics, MU may be considered a pioneering institution in the practical application of research results, particularly in biotechnologies, plasma technologies and information communication technologies. MU currently operates a number of units and research facilities which may be considered unique in the Czech Republic and even internationally, both in terms of their concept and of their equipment. These include e.g. the Central European Institute of Technology, specializing in the fields of life sciences, advanced materials and technologies and combining basic and applied research; the Centre for the Study of Toxic Substances, focusing on the development of chemical and toxic tools monitoring the quality of the environment; the National Centre for Biomolecular Research, studying macromolecules, their complexes and behaviour, or the R D Centre for Low-Cost Plasma and Nanotechnology Surface focusing on applied research of plasma sources and plasma surface modifications. Other units conducting research in a wide array of fields have likewise produced internationally recognized results with hundreds of projects, including analyses of information and communication system security, research into the economics and management of companies in a globalized environment, and studies of the impact of traumatic childhood on further development.