About Research Data Management

In recent years there has been rapid growth in research data produced by Higher Education institutions across the world. The EU, the UK and Scottish government recognise the need to better manage these data in order to make the best possible use of them.

Key funders of research at the University have also acknowledged this change and are now incorporating requirements for research data management into funding criteria. The University is required to comply with these expectations and develop and implement an institutional research data management (RDM) policy and plan by 2015.

Funders increasingly require that in addition to the finished product or research in the form of published articles, the underlying datasets be made available as primary research outputs for reuse by other researchers. Good data management incorporates management of data at every stage of the data lifecycle, covering data capture; storage; preservation; access; reuse; and where appropriate, disposal.

Compliance with the expectations of funders will be vital in ensuring researchers continue to secure funding for future research projects. The University will provide the necessary guidance in this process and a consultation process is underway to ensure staff have the opportunity to communicate their needs and concerns with research data management to inform policy development and plan for implementation.

A draft policy document on RDM has been discussed at College research committees and the Committee for Research Income Generation and Commercialisation, where it has been approved in principle. Work is now underway to develop a RDM plan, which will determine how the policy will work in practice.

To more closely assess how the institutional policy will work in practice a pilot project will run from December 2012-2013 with the School of Natural and Computing Sciences (NCS). The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) is a key funder for NCS and one that is requiring the earliest adoption of an institutional policy. The pilot will therefore focus on EPSRC funded projects in the first instance, however this policy will be applicable to all staff engaged in research.