Building a community of research software engineers

If the UK is to continue to be a major research leader, effort and resources must be invested in our research software engineers (RSEs). In recognition of this, a meeting of local RSEs was held at the Bayes Centre in September.

The aim of this meeting was to help build a self-sustaining community in Edinburgh that will be able to support its members and create a sense of community. Also, as with the wider national effort, to gain recognition for those who produce software as a research output, and establish a recognised career path within academic institutions. This effort is not limited to the University of Edinburgh: Heriot-Watt University and some commercial companies within Edinburgh are also involved.

But what is a research software engineer (RSE)? Many people in research organisations around the world combine expertise in programming with an intricate understanding of research. These people are research software engineers. Although this combination of skills is extremely valuable, RSEs often lack a formal career path, particularly in the academic system, because there is no easy way to recognise their contributions, reward them, or represent their views.

The UK RSE Association was formed in response. It believes:

• Career evaluation and progression structures need to be changed to better match RSE careers

• The value of research software should be recognised and its development placed on a par with research outputs

• The importance of RSEs to researchers, institutions and funders should be demonstrated.

Next steps

Next year the Association will be transformed into a charitable incorporated organisation – the Society of Research Software Engineering. This will allow the community to do more for the benefit of its members, supporting RSEs in all aspects of their role, from access to training and technical expertise, career progression advice and community events such as conferences and workshops.

Find out more

Society of Research Software Engineering: https://www.society-rse.org

RSE Association: https://rse.ac.uk

To become involved with the Edinburgh local group, contact Mario or see:

Slack https://ukrse.slack.com/ (join #edinburgh)

Mailing list Ed-rse-community@jiscmail.ac.uk

GitHub https://cerse.github.io

Twitter https://twitter.com/cerse7

Mario Antonioletti, EPCC m.antonioletti@epcc.ed.ac.uk