Who is the Network For?

We are trying to build a network of people working in or alongside digital Research Technical Professional (dRTP) roles. We aim to work with a wide range of professionals whose work supports, enables, or advances research through digital tools, data, infrastructure, or expertise. If this sounds like something you are interested in, please sign up to our mailing list.

📬 Sign up to our mailing list to stay in touch!

Network members might identify as any of the following, although this is not an exhaustive list!

• Bioinformatician or Computational Scientist
• Data Engineer
• Data Scientist, Analyst, AI or Machine Learning Specialist
• Data Steward or Data Manager
• DevOps Engineer or Cloud Architect
• Digital Humanities Technologist
• Digital Librarian or Archivist
• HPC or Research Computing Specialist
• MLOps Engineer
• Project or Community Manager, Coordinator or PRISM in a technical research context
• Research Computing Facilitator
• Research Software Engineer (RSE)
• Software Maintainer or Open-Source Contributor
• Systems Administrator or Infrastructure Specialist, Research Infrastructure Engineer (RIE)
• Technical Research Support Officer

This wide scope is intentional. The dRTP community is diverse, and many people work across disciplines or don’t fit neatly into one role. By keeping our network inclusive, we can better reflect the realities of digital research, where collaboration across skill sets is essential.

DisCouRSE is designed to support leadership and career development across these boundaries, helping individuals grow and institutions value their technical professionals more effectively.

Whether you’re looking to move into a leadership role in the future, already an experienced leader, or somewhere in between, you’re welcome to join, contribute to, and benefit from the network.

Are we missing a dRTP role from the list above? Please let the DisCouRSE team know!

Project Goals

• Promote inclusive, cross-sector leadership
• Build flexible and recognised career pathways
• Strengthen community collaboration and networks
• Develop and share best practices in digital research infrastructure
• Train cohorts of dRTP leaders who will collaborate to enhance the UK research environment