Data Management and Sharing Plans

This guide will take you through each of the elements you need to consider when creating a data management and sharing plan.

• Data File Naming & Management: Considerations and practices to good data and file naming and management, and how to select sustainable file formats.
• Data Documentation & Organization: Best practices for organizing your data and keeping documentation on your project.
• Data Security & Ethics: How to keep your data secure and maintain privacy and confidentiality.
• Data Storage & Sharing: Information on data storage options and how to share your data.
• Writing a Data Management & Sharing Plan: Provides information on what to include in a DMSP and using the DMPTool to create one. 
• Getting Help: Need help or want to make an appointment to chat? Here's how to email. 

Data management is the process of collecting, organizing, describing, sharing, and preserving data. Start planning for how you will manage and share your data early in your research process to: 

• Save you time by considering what you will do with your data right from the beginning, as well as plan for how you with document, organize, secure, store and share your data at the project conclusion.
• Comply with legal and funder requirements - having a DMP is often required by funding agencies.
• Increase the visibility and impact of your research by making your data searchable and citable.
• Support open access and foster new research by preserving your data and making it accessible to other researchers.
• Prevent catastrophic failure and/or loss of research data.

Learn about FAIR Principles that guide the ideals behind data management and sharing plans. 

Looking for guides on other data related topics? Check out these: