Description
SPECIFY is an extremely robust and adaptable system for managing biological and geological collections. SPECIFY enables users to customize the collection management software environment for the needs of their institution and collections, making workflows more efficient and user friendly. However, with great adaptability comes great complexity. This workshop is intended for advanced SPECIFY users to better understand the system and its capabilities to maximize their SPECIFY instance to its fullest.
A four day workshop. The workshop will start by discussing foundational concepts of SPECIFY setup options and explore the implications of the decisions made during this step. The workshop will continue into more advanced topics including data and record relationships, bulk data entry, bulk data modification, system customization, data querying, data export, and more.
Trainers
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Theresa Miller (https://orcid.org/0009-0002-0186-0216) is the Membership and Fulfillment Officer at the SPECIFY Collections Consortium (SCC). She has Master of Arts degrees in Archaeology and Public Affairs. She has worked for SPECIFYfor over 15 years, supporting hundreds of collections and collection personnel to bring their collections data into SPECIFY from varying systems. She has consulted with collections staff from hundreds of institutions around the world on the most efficient way to import and export their data according to their collection’s workflows and requirements. |
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Grant Fitzsimmons (https://orcid.org/0009-0002-5293-3761) is the Technical Support Manager at the SPECIFY Collections Consortium. Over the past four years, he has been instrumental in supporting hundreds of collections globally, facilitating the migration of hundreds of thousands of biological and geological records into the SPECIFY platform. Working closely with collection managers and staff across the world, he specializes in designing effective data management workflows and troubleshooting complex technical challenges. His role focuses on providing tailored support and building robust solutions that connect diverse institutional needs with SPECIFY’s powerful capabilities. |
Dates of Training period
9 – 12 Dec 2025, 40 hrs
Location
National Museum of Natural History (CSIC), Madrid
Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales
c. José Gutiérrez Abascal 2
28006 Madrid
Buses: 7, 12, 14, 27, 40, 45, 147, 150. Metro: lines 7 and 10 (station: Gregorio Marañón). Train: Nuevos Ministerios
Course’s language
English
Target audience
People with administrative or database management roles for Biodiversity or Earth Science collections and ample experience with the Specify management system from institutions that are using or in the processes of adopting Specify as their collections’ management system. Especially those individuals that supervise training users and collection managers.
Fee
250 € (includes lunch for the 4-day duration + coffee);
80 € for online participation
Waivers or a reduction in the registration fee may be available if additional funding is secured
Registration deadline
Friday 31st October 2025
Mode of trainees’ assessment
Assigned hands-on exercises
Case problem-solving
Participant quota (min and max number of trainees)
15–25
Types of training/ Implementation method
- Theoretical modules/Online and in-person lectures
- Practical experience / face to face
Training Course learning outcomes
- Trainees will leave the workshop with in-depth knowledge of how to set up, customize, and utilize SPECIFY’s functionality and tools to the greatest advantage.
- They will learn how to leverage SPECIFY to make their data more findable, accessible, and manageable.
- They will be able to tackle problem solving of some complexity in an immediate way, in some cases without needing to resort to SPECIFY CC personnel, or will act as more effective liaisons with Specify CC Help Desk in communicating issues they cannot resolve.
- Trainees will be well suited for training other users, data entry personnel and collection managers on the SPECIFY CMS within their own institutions.
Certifications provided
- SPECIFY CMS Collection Data Administrator
- Certificate of Attendance by CETAF DEST with equivalent to 1,6 ECTS/ECVET Units (European Credit system for Vocational Education and Training)
What trainees need to bring
- Laptop with functioning connectivity (preferably via Eduroam)
- Optional: a functioning web test instance of your SPECIFY database, open and accessible (at least to you)
More details: dest@cetaf.org