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Research Data Management

What is a Data Management Plan?

What is a Data Management Plan?

A Data Management Plan (DMP), sometimes called a Data Management and Sharing Plan (DMS), outlines how data will be handled and stored during and after research. They are often required by funding agencies (check your funding agency here). Regardless of whether you seek funding, having a data management plan is best practice to ensure proper data handling.

  • Description of types of data, samples, and physical collections you will be creating.

  • Standards you will use for your data and the metadata that will describe it.

  • Policies for sharing, accessing, and re-using your data.

  • Methods for archiving and preserving your data.

 

Data Management Checklist

Contact your liaison librarian to schedule a consultation for assistance with writing a data management plan. The following questions will help you think about how best to manage your data and how to prepare the content of your data management plan.

Data Production
  • What type(s) of data will be produced?
  • What file format(s) will the data be saved as? Are those file formats proprietary? Will they degrade?
  • Will the data be reproducible?
  • Do you need tools or software to create/process/visualize the data?
Data Size
  • How much data will it be, and at what growth rate?
  • How often will it change?
Data Usage
  • Who will potentially be using your data both now and later?
Data Retention
  • How long should it be retained? (e.g. 3-5 years, 10-20 years, permanently)
Privacy and Security
  • Any special privacy or security requirements? (e.g., personal data, high-security data)
Data Sharing
  • Any sharing requirements? (e.g., funder data sharing policy)
  • Have you chosen a repository in which to archive your data?
Data Management Plan
  • Does your funding agency require a data management plan in the grant proposal?
Data Documentation
  • How will you be documenting your data and project?
  • What directory and file naming convention will be used?
  • What project and data identifiers will be assigned?
  • Is there a schema, ontological, or other metadata standard in your field for sharing data with others?
Storage and Backup
  • What are the strategies for storage and backup of the data?
Publication
  • When and where will the work be published?
Responsibility
  • Who in the research group will be responsible for data management?
  • Who controls the data (PI, student, lab, CSB and SJU, funder)?
 

DMP Resources