Research Data Plans

A Data Management Plan (DMP) typically describes what research data will be created during the course of a research project, how it will be created, plans for sharing and preserving the data and any restrictions that may need to be applied. A DMP may ask you to consider things such as:

• What type of data you will collect
• How and where you’ll store that data
• Who will have access to it
• How you’ll address any legislative requirements
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• Any agreements about ownership of the data between collaborators
• How, where and when you’ll share your data at the end of the project

Managing the data over the whole project is very important for the success of your research and having a plan on how you’ll manage that data is equally important. Having a DMP will also help ensure all of the elements of research data FAIR principles are present – Findability, Accessibility, Interoperability and Reusability.

Useful resources on Data Management Planning

• UK funder requirements for Data Management Plans [webpage] Downloadable templates based on the requirements of UK Research Councils and other charitable or health funders.
• US funder requirements for Data Management Plans [webpage] A summary of requirements from the NSF, NIH and other key funders in the USA.
• DCC Checklist for a Data Management Plan [PDF, 3 pages] A list of 13 questions and associated guidance, that represent the main issues to come up in Data Management and Sharing Plans. The Checklist is used as a generic template in DMPonline, and is presented when no funder or organsiational requirements are applicable for the user.
• How to develop a Data Management and Sharing Plan [PDF, 8 pages] A guide by the Digital Curation Centre that outlines typical funder requirements for DMPs and the types of considerations to make when responding.

Example Data Management Plans

• RIOjournal Data Management Plan collection [webpage] A selection of DMPs published in the Research Information and Outcomes journal.
• Technical plan submitted to the AHRC [PDF, 7 pages] A DMP submitted by a researcher from the University of Bristol, also including comments from the reviewers.
• Two social science DMPs [PDF, 7 pages] Example plans from researchers at the University of Leeds, shared as part of the Leeds RoaDMaP training materials.
• Colorado School of Mines examples [webpage] A variety of US example DMPs from Mines and elsewhere.
• NSF data management plans [webpage] 5 DMPs submitted to the NSF, shared by the DataOne initiative.
• Further examples are available on the DCC website.

Useful guides on Research Data Management in general

• Research Data MANTRA [online resource] An online training course designed for researchers or others planning to manage digital data as part of the research process. The course includes a number of software practicals on using SPSS, R, ArcGIS and NVivo.
• Managing and Sharing Data: best practice for researchers [PDF, 36 pages] A guide by the UK Data Service covering a range of topics including data formats, documentaion, ethics, copyright and data sharing.
• How to Cite Datasets and Link to Publications [PDF, 12 pages] A guide by the Digital Curation Centre giving practical guidelines on how to cite data and the different tools and infrastructure that can be used to support data citation.
• How to License Research Data [PDF, 16 pages] A guide by the Digital Curation Centre that outlines different types of licenses, the pros and cons of each and how they can be applied.
• How to Appraise and Select Research Data for Curation [PDF, 8 pages] A guide by ANDS and the Digital Curation Centre on how to select which data to keep for long-term preservation, sharing and reuse. The guide puts forward several criteria to aid selection decisions.