Ecosystem scientist working at a field plot
Field scientists walking through a research site
Scientist working at a wetland monitoring station
Researchers collecting samples from a boat
Scientist using field monitoring equipment
Scientists taking measurements in an agricultural field

Strengthening and Training for Research Infrastructure Staff

A European framework for skills, training, mobility and career recognition across research infrastructures.

From fragmented skills to
connected careers

Why ST4RIS

European Research Infrastructures rely on highly skilled technical staff. Despite this central role, RI technical staff face fragmented training opportunities, unclear career pathways, limited mobility, and insufficient recognition in institutional human resource strategies.

ST4RIS addresses these challenges by developing a co-designed, interoperable training and career development framework for RI professionals, contributing to a more coherent and sustainable European research infrastructure landscape.

Training

Modular training framework

Adaptable across disciplines and infrastructures, aligned with European standards and recognised across research infrastructures.

Recognition

Certified learning pathways

Get your skills recognised and certified through structured pathways aligned with European standards across all participating RIs.

Mobility

Cross-infrastructure mobility

Explore opportunities across research infrastructures and borders through a dedicated mobility programme for technical staff.

Career Paths

The ST4RIS Atlas

Plan, grow and advance your career using a gamified approach, a unified access point for skills, training, and opportunities.

Voices from the field

🔬
“The types of workshops or courses presented to me are limited and are often rather inconvenient, and I need to seek them out myself. I don't always know what courses are relevant to me or what is even available.”
Lab technician, limnology
🌲
“The job title is sometimes a challenge in itself. It is extremely broad and is used within every field of natural sciences. Contacting colleagues with the same title for help often does not lead to a solution since they have completely different backgrounds.”
Research engineer, forest ecology
💧
“In my current position within research infrastructure, I have felt that I have started to approach the 'roof' of what I can learn at my job. I don't see a long future here if I can't find opportunities to grow and develop my skills.”
Lab technician, limnology

Upcoming activities

Event

ST4RIS @ BioGeoMon meeting

Umeå, 8–12 June

Pilot survey on user needs for information dissemination

Event

ST4RIS @ ICOS meeting

Lund, 15–17 September

Survey to poll user needs

Achievement

ST4RIS Kick-off meeting

Helsinki, 6–7 October

Stay tuned for updates

Get involved / RI Networking

ST4RIS invites research infrastructures, technical staff, and policy stakeholders to engage with its activities. We want to know how to best share information on upcoming training opportunities and project developments.

Help us maximise our reach by taking this 3–5 minute survey. Your input directly shapes how ST4RIS communicates and grows.

Take the survey

Contact: contact@st4ris.eu

About / Consortium

ST4RIS is delivered by a pan-European consortium of universities, research infrastructures, and expert organisations. The project is coordinated by the University of Helsinki.

University of Helsinki (UH)

Swedish University for Agricultural Sciences (SLU)

Lund University (LU)

Hemholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ)

Masaryk University (MUNI)

University of Tuscia (UNITUS)

National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and Environment (INRAE)