LibGuides: Data Management: How to Craft a Data Management Plan

Many funding agencies are now requiring researchers to create data management plans (DMPs), which some funders may call data management and sharing plans (DMSPs). These documents detail how data will be handled during and after a research project and get researchers thinking about data organization, formatting, metadata, accessibility, and preservation issues early in the research process. DMPs typically specify:

what data will be gathered
how it will be acquired and processed
whether and how research data will be preserved and shared upon the completion of the research.

It will likely also include information about:

formatting
quality control
privacy concerns
accessibility
analysis
metadata generation
intellectual property rights and conditions for use.

The following tools can be used by researchers to craft data plans and determine the best way to manage their data during and after a research project.

DMP Tool Free tool that helps researchers create data management plans for specific funding agencies. Plans are sharable via a private URL. Users must create an account to use the tool. Select "None of the above" from the drop-down menu of institutions on the account creation screen.
CKAN CKAN is the Open Knowledge Foundation's open source data management system that makes data accessible by providing tools to streamline publishing, sharing, finding and using data. It also provides users with ways to see when new data or changes are made in areas that they are interested in.

The below guides can help researchers consider important questions about managing data.

ICPSR Data Management Plan Resources and Examples Resources, templates, tools, and guidance regarding data management plans from the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research.
Digital Curation Centre Data Management Planning Checklist The Digital Curation Centre's Data Management Planning Checklist is designed to help researchers maintain, preserve and add value to the research data produced throughout a project's lifecycle.
Stanford Data Best Practices A guide from Stanford University detailing some of the components necessary for solid data management practices. Visit the linked pages for detailed information that will help you keep your data well-organized.
Columbia University DMP checklist

Sample NSF DMPs from UCSD These examples from UC San Diego proposals are intended to provide a starting point for the development of other proposal-specific Data Management Plans. Please keep in mind that these examples are project-specific. PIs are encouraged to submit draft DMPs well in advance of the proposal deadline to ensure compliance.
DMP Templates from Columbia University Templates of data management plans for NSF, DOE, NOAA, and more
Data Management Plans Created with the DMPTool (RIO) This collection contains data management plans (DMPs) created with the DMPTool – a free online application that helps researchers build data management plans for specific U.S. funding agencies.
Example: DMP for an approved R03 application to NIAMS
McMaster University's Data Management Plan Database This database gathers examples from across the world including DMPs from the Digital Research Alliance of Canada, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Qualitative DMP Competition, DataOne, Digital Curation Centre, Liber, the Working Group on NIH DMSP Guidance, and UC San Diego Research Data Curation into one searchable, open-access platform.
US DOT Public Access Data Management Plans