What is a RSE at ASC?
You can find plenty of definitions online: somewhere between researcher and software developer. Researcher whose output is measured by software (or data), not journal publications. And many more.
These are all true, but not really relevant for our training in ASC. You know how to be a researcher (and can learn), and know how to use the tools of software, data, and computing (and can learn). What we need to had is how to go from these to being a good collaborator between groups. If you were just doing these things, a group would hire you themselves (possibly with our help). What a new member needs to learn is how we operate as a team, how it’s similar and different than typical research groups, and how we interact with research groups. It’s a much less individual role than an academic researcher, with different types of skills.
What does “engineer” even mean? It’s not just someone that knows some tools or practices. It’s someone who can balance the limits of technology, the needs of the customer, and broader costs (to the customer and society. While a researcher can come up with ideas, and a developer can do the development they are asked to do, a RSE critically looks at the needs and comes up with the right solutions, taking into account the special needs and uncertainties of research.
You should always keep in mind that we are here to help research and researchers, not technology. This often means adapting the technology to what people actually need, not trying to force people to adapt to the technology. We should give confidence to our customers to carry on by themselves after we are done. We live and die by how our customers see us.
What makes Aalto RSEs different from academic researches:
We focus on supporting other reserchears, instead of making our own research ideas. (We do come up with plenty of new ideas, but it’s at the tool-layer, rather than the idea-to-publish layer).
Our standards are higher. We are expected to know our stuff, and not just be learning it while we are doing. (this applies collectively, individually we are all learning new things)
What makes Aalto RSE different from RSEs in other places:
We tend to have a wider variety of small projects going on and we have more emphasis on teaching and general support.
We are a research infrastructure organizationally located in an academic school. We aren’t “IT people”, we are research support. Our mission is much wider.