Training course · Make · Research & Science

Make for Researchers

Automation with Make (formerly Integromat) and AI modules: build scenarios, routers and AI steps while keeping data protection in check.

Duration
2 days (14 hrs)
Format
Online or on-site
Language
German or English
Participants
open dates or exclusive for your team
Certificate
Certificate of attendance

Overview

“Make for Researchers” is a hands-on course for roles such as Doctoral candidates, Research associates and postdocs and Professors and research group leaders. Rather than learning Make in the abstract, you work on tasks from your daily routine – with examples, exercises and templates from Research & Science.

Make, formerly known as Integromat, is a visual automation platform that lets you connect applications and automate recurring processes without writing code. Over two days you will learn to build scenarios systematically, from triggers and modules through routers and filters to iterators, aggregators and data stores. You will understand how data flows through a scenario, how to reshape it with functions and how to keep an eye on operations consumption.

The second focus is AI. You connect language models through Make’s AI modules and provider integrations to classify text, extract information from emails and documents, draft replies or enrich content. You learn to catch errors with error handlers, test scenarios and document them clearly. Finally, you address data protection topics such as hosting region, data processing agreements and data minimisation, so that your automations can be run safely within your organisation.

Academic work is shaped by literature reviews, data analysis, grant writing and publication pressure. Generative AI can help at every stage: navigating and summarising the literature, sharpening research questions, writing analysis code, polishing manuscripts and preparing funding applications. AI agents can automate recurring steps such as data cleaning or cross-checking references. At the same time, AI touches core questions of research integrity: who is an author, how is AI use disclosed, how do you prevent fabricated references? Researchers therefore need more than prompting tricks – they need a methodologically sound, transparent and reproducible way of working with AI tools.

The course is delivered live – either online in a virtual classroom or on-site in our training rooms in Munich, Salzburg, Berlin, Augsburg, Hanover, Bremen, Stuttgart and Kaiserslautern. We can also run it exclusively for your team.

Who is this course for?

  • Doctoral candidates
  • Research associates and postdocs
  • Professors and research group leaders
  • Research offices and grant managers
  • Corporate R&D teams

Typical challenges we address

  • An ever-growing body of literature that is hard to keep up with
  • Heavy writing load for proposals, reports and papers
  • Data analysis that requires programming skills
  • Uncertainty about AI rules set by journals, funders and universities

What you will be able to do

  • You can build Make scenarios independently using triggers, routers, filters and data transformations.
  • You can process lists and records with iterators, aggregators and data stores.
  • You can integrate AI modules for classification, extraction and text generation into your processes.
  • You can safeguard scenarios with error handlers, validation and human approval.
  • Use AI for literature work and writing without breaching research integrity standards.
  • Produce traceable analysis code with AI support and document it reproducibly.
  • Disclose AI use transparently in line with journal, funder and institutional requirements.

Course outline

Day 1

Module 1 Fundamentals: scenarios, modules and data flow
  • Interface layout, scenario editor and execution history
  • Triggers, actions and searches: module types and their role in a scenario
  • Understanding bundles, mapping and data types and using them deliberately
  • Choosing between schedules, webhooks and instant triggers
Module 2 Logic: routers, filters, iterators and aggregators
  • Using routers and filters for branching and conditional flows
  • Splitting lists with iterators and combining them with aggregators
  • Applying text, date and maths functions to transform data
  • Using data stores and variables for interim values and duplicate checks
Module 3 AI building blocks in Make
  • Connecting language models via AI modules and provider integrations
  • Automating classification, structured data extraction and text generation
  • Building prompts from scenario variables and processing output as JSON
  • Combining AI agents in Make with tools and scenarios as actions
Module 4 Integrations, error handling and testing
  • Connecting common business applications and any API via the HTTP module
  • Applying error handlers such as Resume, Ignore, Break and Rollback
  • Validating AI output and routing unusable results to a person
  • Testing scenarios, optimising operations and documenting them for the team

Day 2

Module 5 Data protection, governance and operations
  • Assessing hosting region, data processing agreements and data flows to AI providers
  • Applying data minimisation and pseudonymisation within scenarios
  • Managing connections, teams and permissions across the organisation
  • Defining approval steps, monitoring and ownership for live operation
Module 6 Practice lab: Research & Science
  • Navigating the literature
  • Sharpening research design
  • Writing analysis code
  • Revising manuscripts
  • Preparing grant proposals
  • Analysing qualitative data
Module 7 Data protection, quality & transfer to daily work
  • Codes of research integrity apply: AI cannot be an author, its use must be disclosed and all references must be checked against the original. Personal research data, for example from studies involving participants, is subject to the GDPR and ethics approvals; unpublished results and peer reviews must be treated as confidential.
  • Ground rules for safe AI use in your team
  • Checking results: facts, sources, tests and the four-eyes principle
  • Personal action plan for the next 30 days
  • Open questions, outlook and resources for further learning

Practical scenarios from your field

Navigating the literature

AI summarises abstracts and full texts, extracts methods, samples and findings into comparison tables and helps formulate search strings for scholarly databases – every source is then verified in the original.

Sharpening research design

Research questions, hypotheses and operationalisations are stress-tested with AI as a critical sparring partner to spot gaps, confounders and alternative explanations early. Control conditions and limits to generalisability are discussed as well.

Writing analysis code

Researchers without deep programming skills use AI to produce Python or R scripts for data cleaning, statistics and visualisation, documenting them clearly to ensure reproducibility.

Revising manuscripts

AI supports language editing, structuring and shortening of academic texts, checks terminology for consistency and helps draft responses to reviewers without taking over authorship. Your argument stays your own.

Preparing grant proposals

Funding guidelines are turned into checklists, work packages and milestones are structured, and sections such as impact plans or lay summaries are drafted in several versions.

Analysing qualitative data

Interview transcripts and open-ended responses are pre-coded and grouped thematically with AI; researchers review, refine and document the coding frame according to established methodology. Inter-coder checks remain essential.

Prerequisites

You should be comfortable with common office and cloud applications and have some experience with AI assistants. No programming skills are required. Experience of academic work in a discipline; programming skills are helpful but not required.

Technical requirements

You will need a laptop with an up-to-date browser and a Make account; the free plan covers most exercises. API access for a language model is set up together during the course.

Data protection & compliance

Codes of research integrity apply: AI cannot be an author, its use must be disclosed and all references must be checked against the original. Personal research data, for example from studies involving participants, is subject to the GDPR and ethics approvals; unpublished results and peer reviews must be treated as confidential.

Suggested dates

All dates are suggestions – your preferred date is always possible.

  • Mon, 23 November 2026 – Tue, 24 November 2026 Online Request
  • Tue, 1 December 2026 – Wed, 2 December 2026 Augsburg Request
  • Wed, 16 December 2026 – Thu, 17 December 2026 Online Request
  • Wed, 13 January 2027 – Thu, 14 January 2027 Kaiserslautern Request
  • Thu, 21 January 2027 – Fri, 22 January 2027 Online Request
  • Mon, 25 January 2027 – Tue, 26 January 2027 Bremen Request

Frequently asked questions

Is Make the same as Integromat?

Yes. Integromat was renamed Make and substantially developed along the way. The core principle of visual scenarios made of connected modules remains, while a redesigned interface, many new integrations and AI building blocks have been added. If you used Integromat in the past, you will quickly feel at home and discover the new capabilities on the course.

How do I keep operation costs under control?

Every module that runs consumes operations or credits, and AI calls also use quota with the respective model provider. On the course you learn to design scenarios so that filters apply early, unnecessary runs are avoided and data is processed in batches. This keeps your automations economical and predictable as volumes grow.

Can Make be used in a GDPR-compliant way?

In principle yes, provided you set up the framework deliberately. This includes choosing the hosting region, signing a data processing agreement, reviewing connected AI services and applying data minimisation. On the course you work through these points with a checklist and learn to filter or pseudonymise sensitive data within scenarios.

Can I use AI to write my PhD thesis?

That depends on your doctoral regulations and institutional policies. AI is often permitted for language editing and brainstorming if its use is disclosed and your own intellectual contribution remains clear. In the course you learn to document use properly and assess common grey areas with confidence.

How do I avoid fabricated references?

Language models can produce plausible-sounding citations that do not exist. Work with tools that query real databases, ask for DOIs and verify every source in the original. The course demonstrates a workflow that combines AI-assisted searching with reliable reference management.

How much does “Make for Researchers” cost?

The course costs a flat €949 plus VAT per participant – whether online or on-site. This includes 2 training day(s) with a live trainer, course materials, a lab environment and a certificate of attendance.

Can I suggest my own date?

Yes. Our suggested dates are just a guide. In the request form you can always describe your preferred date or period in free text – we check availability and confirm within one working day.

Is the course online or on-site?

Both are possible: live online in a virtual classroom or on-site in Munich, Salzburg, Berlin, Augsburg, Hanover, Bremen, Stuttgart or Kaiserslautern. We can also run the course exclusively for your team.

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