Data Management Plan

DMP

What is a Data Management Plan (DMP)? 

A DMP   is a requirement of most research funders. It is simply good research and scientific practice to consider how data will be managed before, during, and after research. A Data Management Plan (DMP) is a formal document that outlines (1) the data you expect to generate or reuse (2) how you will handle those data during and after a research project, and (3) how you will preserve and share your data after the end of our project.

The DMP is also an evolving document that can and should be adjusted as your research progresses.

1. DMP helps you to know the requirements

  • DMP helps you to take knowledge about policies (governments, funders, institutions): FAIR principles, open access, etc.  
  • DMP helps meet funder and journal requirements.
  • DMP helps you to determine requirements (legal, ethical, security or other): Do you need ethical clearance? How will you deal with sensitive data? Is your research resulting in a patent

2. DMP helps you to plan

  • DMP helps you to be continuously conscious about gathering, sharing, and preservation of data throughout the lifetime of your research project: DOI, metadata, file versioning, README documents, repositories, licensing, etc.
  • DMP helps you and your colleagues to preserve the continuity of planned research: What if your team member decides to leave?

3. DMP helps you to further advance research output

  • DMP helps you and your colleagues to build on previous research, contribute to ongoing research and therefore open new avenues for innovation: committing to the openness of data means easier citation, easier collaboration, etc.
  • And so on…

How to create a DMP?

The best way to create a DMP  is to use a default template to guarantee the necessary cohesion. We recommend using by using the online planning tool which provides templates for all funders who require a plan.

Questions you will need to cover in your DMP include:

  • What data will you collect or create (origin, type, format, and volume)?
  • What documentation and metadata will accompany the data (to be able to interpret the data in the future)?
  • How will you manage any ethical (personal data, experiments on humans or animals, dual use) and/or legal (copyright, IPR) issues/restrictions?
  • How and where will you store and back up the data (access and security)?
  • Which data will you preserve and share, and where (criteria)?
  • Which data will be shared, and how?
  • Who will be responsible for research data management?

Think about these questions in advance.

  1. Consult the guidelines (UAntwerpen user name and password required to access the information) to help you fill out your information. You can also check the DCC’s guide on the process of developing a data management and sharing plan. The guide outlines practical guidance on how to meet the requirements. It should be of relevance to researchers and those supporting them within higher education.
  2. Do not forget to check the section on Legal issues and Scientific Integrity  to check whether you need to comply with specific requirements.
  3. Check also our section on Funding Agencies  Requirements to find out more about the funder’s policies regarding DMP.
  4. Update the template regularly during the project based on actual experiences.

Consider your budget

When planning your researchdata management, you should already have an idea of data management costs. Nowadays, data management costs are usual research expenditures and should be accounted for in the project budget. A DMP can help you budget the costs in advance, especially for projects collecting and managing large amounts of data.

Key questions to be asked to estimate the costs:

  • What is the cost of the server and/or cloud space if you need more storage (other than provided by the institution)?
  • Do you need a licensed software?
  • Do you need software for the encryption of confidential data before transfer?
  • Do you need a dedicated data manager? 

For help, check this simple activity-based costing tool at UK Data Service Costing.

Consider  ethics, privacy, IP, valorisation, and Nagoya

Ethics

Consider whether ethical issues concerning the creation and/or use of the data (e.g. experiments on humans or animals, dual use and misuse) will arise during your research. Do you need to apply for ethical clearance from one of the Ethics Committees of the University of Antwerp?

Visit the Ethics Screening web pages to learn more about the ethics committees and contact the Ethics Team about specific issues.

Privacy

Will you be working with human participants?

Consider which personal or sensitive data will you have access to, is it essential for your research to have access to certain data, how will the access to the personal or sensitive data you collect be limited, will you (pseudo-)anonymize your data or work with a coding key, how will you guarantee data security, how long will you keep the personal or sensitive data after finishing your research, etc. Make a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) at the start of your project.

Consider whether and how you will obtain informed consent from the participants concerning data access, preservation, and sharing.

Visit the Privacy Office pages to learn more about privacy and principles of GDPR or contact the privacy commission with specific questions.

IP

Do your data have potentially commercial values? Obtain an overview of the various owners of the research data as early as possible and, if necessary, conclude the necessary contracts.         

Will you work in a collaboration with other research groups, institutes, or companies? Make a third-party agreement to limit the dissemination or exploitation of the data.

For support, visit the Valorisation Office website and consult IOF or valorisation managers and the legal department.

Nagoya Protocol

Do you intend to acquire or utilize genetic resources (accessed directly from the country of origin or via third parties)? You must exercise due diligence to meet legal requirements on ABS.

Consult our web pages for a complete explanation concerning the Nagoya Protocol issues at Nagoya Protocol.

Further questions and issues?

Consult our web pages on ethics, privacy, IP, valorisation, and the Nagoya Protocol at Legal issues and Scientific Integrity.