RePEc Genealogy FAQ

This service is relatively new, so there are not yet frequently asked questions. The following questions and answers seek to address issues people may have with the RePEc Genealogy.
What is the RePEc Short-ID, and where can I find it?
The RePEc Short-ID is a universal identifier for a person across all RePEc services. It is created by registering with the RePEc Author Service and also used for authentication in this and other services. To find someone's RePEc Short-ID, you can either look it up at EconPapers or IDEAS. It is always of the form pxxnnnn where xx are two letters and nnnn are one to four digits. You can also search for Short-IDs using this tool.
I want to add a student who is not registered in RePEc. How can I do this?
Sorry, students need to be registered.
I want to add an advisor who is not registered in RePEc. How can I do this?
Advisors are not required to be registered. However, without the RePEc Short-ID that comes with registration, no genealogy page is created for them.
The person I want to link is not registered and deceased. What can I do?
You can create a registration for a deceased person. All you need is a different email address than the one you are registered with. It is then a good idea to notify the RePEc Author Service about the status of this person, as deceased authors are centrally administered.
I am a graduate program administrator and want to add our alumni to the RePEc genealogy. How can I do this?
You can do this through this form. You will notice that you need to authenticate yourself with a RePEc Short-ID which you are unlikely to have. You can create it here. There is no facility to upload spreadsheets into the system (see below, though).
Why do my contributions not show up?
For technical reasons, there is a short delay for the publication of changes to the database.
What are orphan advisors?
These are advisors who have not been linked with a RePEc Short-ID, but there name has been instead entered in free text. They may have a Short-ID, either it was overlooked or they registered with the RePEc Author Service after their addition to the RePEc genealogy. One consequence is that they do not have a dedicated page in the genealogy. If you know such cases, you can help link them. A list of orphan advisors is available here.
What is a terminal degree?
This is the highest academic degree a person has attained, or in the case of a current student, is going to attain. Typically, this is a doctorate or a PhD. For some economists, it may be a Master's or less if they have no further degree.
What is an advisor?
This is the person that guides a student through the process of writing the thesis required for a terminal degree. In most cases, this person also signs the paperwork.
What about the second advisor?
In some cases two advisors share the load of guiding a student. They are officially listed as co-advisors on the thesis. In such a case, both can be listed. It is understood that they shared equally the supervision.
And what about a third advisor?
The database is not set up for this very rare circumstance. It is not the intention to list all committee members.
In the entry form, are all fields required?
No. But if no field is filled, no genealogy entry will be created.
Where can I see a list of all graduates from a department?
Find the department's entry at EDIRC.
Where can I find a list of publications from graduates of a program?
Find the department's entry at EDIRC. Note that this list is refreshed once a month.
How do I delete an entry?
You cannot. In the very peculiar circumstances where this would necessary, email the website manager. This can happen, for example, when an entry was created for person who is not in the database or withdrawn from the RePEc Author Service.
Can I give you a database to feed into the RePEc Genealogy?
If it is substantial, yes it can be dealt with as long as people are listed with their RePEc Short-IDs. This needs to be worth our time, though.
What is the longest filiature?
A filiature is a line starting with an advisor and then proceeding to successive students. You can find it on the statistics page.
Which advisor has had the most students? And the largest genealogy tree?
See the statistics page.
Is the collected data used for evaluation purposes?
Yes, for advisors and departments (latter over past 10 years).