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Swiss Research Software Engineering

​What is a Research Software Engineer? 

 

Research Software Engineers (RSEs) are people who design, write and maintain software that is used to support or undertake research. There is no single definition, and it is intentionally inclusive. You may consider yourself being an RSE if you can answer at least one of the following questions with a “yes”:

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  • I like programming as much as science, and maybe a little bit more. 

  • I use programming expertise to advance research. 

  • I apply software engineering skills and practices to research to create more robust, manageable, and sustainable research software.

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For more information, see definitions from various sources: RSE@ETHZ, US-RSE, The RSE’s Toolkit.

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For a list of potential benefits being an RSE, see Ten reasons to be a research software engineer.

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EnhanceR and Swiss RSE

 

Research Software Engineers are crucial to EnhanceR's mission, because RSEs use programming expertise to advance research, whether as researchers, full-time software engineers, or those in-between. By supporting RSE communities, EnhanceR can therefore support and enhance the quality of research through collaboration, expertise and the development of robust, sustainable research software.

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Following the introduction to the RSE concept by Simon Hettrick at the EnhanceR Symposium 2023, there is a growing interest in creating and sustaining a network for Swiss RSEs. With initial help from EnhanceR, local communities have started to self-organize within Swiss research institutions. At present, such RSE communities are actively developing within ETHZ and EPFL.

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However, many more institutions could benefit from creation of local communities. EnhanceR aims to support such initiatives, with the eventual goal of creating a nationwide RSE network. ​

Call for RSE Ambassadors

EnhanceR aims to accelerate community building efforts by providing funding for RSEs that want to engage as RSE Ambassadors.

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RSE Ambassadors advocate for and support the Research Software Engineer community. They play a crucial role in raising awareness about the importance of research software engineers in academia and research institutions. RSE Ambassadors facilitate networking and collaboration within the community. They also engage in organizing meetings, outreach activities, sharing best practices and help to increase the visibility of the RSE community in Switzerland.

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In 2025, EnhanceR ran a call for applications for RSE Ambassadors. After discussions and recommendations from the ETH-RSE community, the following candidates were selected:

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  • Simon Dürr, HES-SO Valais

  • Viktor Kovtun, UniBE

  • Ilya Misyura, FHNW

  • ​Andrei Plamada, UZH

  • James Runnalls, Eawag

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EnhanceR looks forward to working with the Ambassadors on bootstrapping a representative, Swiss-wide RSE community.

 

We thank everyone for their applications, as the response for the call exceeded our expectations. For candidates that were not selected, their interest in RSE was noted and they will be included in further networking efforts.

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