The increasing reliance on software in modern research has created a growing demand for a new professional profile: the Research Software Engineer. As scientific methods become more data-driven and computationally intensive, the development, maintenance, and sustainability of research software have become critical success factors across disciplines. Traditional study programs often fail to fully address this intersection between software engineering and domain-specific research, making dedicated educational pathways essential.
To address this need, a new reference curriculum for a Master’s program in Research Software Engineering (RSE) has been developed. The initiative is coordinated by Dr. Julian Dehne, supported by the Klaus Tschira Stiftung and the deRSE e.V.. The curriculum aims to systematically prepare graduates for a professional field that combines advanced software engineering expertise with a profound understanding of scientific domains.
Research Software Engineers operate at the interface of science and software development. As highlighted in the curriculum draft, the complexity of research software has increased significantly, while existing disciplines alone do not sufficiently cover the required competencies. The RSE profile responds to several developments:
Graduates are expected to pursue careers both within academia and in industry, where hybrid roles combining domain expertise and software engineering are increasingly demanded.
To accommodate different educational backgrounds and career goals, the curriculum proposes two complementary study tracks:
Track 1: Computer Science Background This track is designed for students holding a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science. It focuses on deepening software engineering competencies and applying them to research contexts. Students build upon existing knowledge and specialize in topics such as advanced software development practices, quality assurance, and research-oriented software design.
Track 2: Interdisciplinary Track This track targets students from non-computer science disciplines. It integrates foundational software engineering education with a strong embedding in a specific research domain (e.g., natural sciences, social sciences, or humanities). The goal is to enable domain experts to develop and maintain high-quality research software while maintaining their disciplinary focus.
Both tracks share a common core but differ in emphasis: Track 1 emphasizes advanced informatics competencies, whereas Track 2 centers on interdisciplinary integration within a specific research domain.
The curriculum is currently in a draft stage under review by committees of the Gesellschaft für Informatik. Further information and updates are available at: https://gi.de/aktuelles/projekte/rse-master
Concrete course content and teaching methods will be further developed and piloted in the upcoming summer term, including:
These courses will serve as a foundation for translating the curriculum framework into practice.