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March 21, 2022 Research data management – an introduction Slides provided by the DaMaRO Project, University of Oxford Research Services
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April 19, 2023
Research data management – an introduction
Slides provided by the DaMaRO Project, University of Oxford
Research Services
Research Services
What is research data management?
Research data is all the information you make use of in your research
Structured data (in databases, tables, etc.)
Unstructured data (in textual sources, images, audio recordings, personal notes, emails, etc.)
Data management is how you organize, structure, and care for this
Storage, backing up, and data preservation
Preparing material for analysis, or to share with others
April 19, 2023Research data management – an introduction
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Research Services
Data management basics
Be proactive – start early and think ahead
Take time to look at your existing ways of dealing with information
Do they meet your current needs? Can you find what you need when you need it?
Are files and data suitably labelled to aid retrieval?
Will they continue to do so for the duration of your research project?
What about after that? What do you need to do to enable further use of the data – by you or by others?
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Research Services
Funding bodies’ requirements
Funders are increasingly requiring researchers to meet certain data management criteria
When applying for funding, you may need to submit a technical or data management plan
You may be asked to make your data available through an archive
SHERPA JULIET provides a useful summary of funding bodies’ policies
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Research Services
Storage and backing up
How are you storing your data for the duration of your project? What’s your back-up plan?
The HFS service offers free back-up to postgraduates and university staff
Do you have access to space on a departmental server?
Synchronization software can help if you work on multiple computers
Dropbox is popular – though others exist
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Research Services
Data management tools
Are you using the best tools for the task in hand? Don’t struggle on with the wrong software or technique just
because it’s what you know
If you’ve ever thought ‘I wish I could…’, maybe someone else has, too – and has written some software to make it possible
Tools exist to do a huge range of jobs – to help organize and analyse information, annotate Web pages, PDFs, or images, and much more
Discover new tools via the Research Skills Toolkit website
You could also ask colleagues for recommendations, or search for online reviews
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Research Services
Longer term goals
If you return to your data in a year or two, will it still be intelligible?
Does the format make it clear what everything means? Are there abbreviations that need explanation?
Is the data adequately documented? Where did it come from? Who created it? What changes have been made to it? Is any additional information needed to place the data in
context? Are there any restrictions on how it can be used?
What’s your long term storage plan?
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Planning for data sharing and curation
Data sharing is… Good practice – helps make the most of data
Good for you – improve your citation rate
Now required by most major funders
Preserving and sharing data is much easier if planned for from the beginning of a project
Is the data in an appropriate format? Does it have the relevant documentation and metadata?
Are there confidentiality or IP issues?
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Research Services
Depositing your data
Consider depositing data in a repository or archive A straightforward way of ensuring long-term curation
There are many subject-specific repositories
In 2013 Oxford will launch two new services DataBank – an institutional digital data archive
DataFinder – a catalogue of datasets
Email [email protected] for information or advice
Bodleian Libraries can also advise on metadata and data standards, and can issue DOIs
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Research Services
Training
The IT Learning Programme offers courses on a wide range of software
Also database design, working with digital images, Web publishing...
Look out for courses specifically focusing on data management
The Graduate Training site and the Skills Hub (both on WebLearn) detail other training opportunities
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Advice and support
The OU Research Data Management website provides guidance and information about services
IT Services’ InfoDev team for technical issues
Departmental IT support teams
IT Services’ NSMS offers paid-for services
Bodleian Libraries for curation and metadata issues Ask your subject librarian for discipline-specific help
The Digital Curation Centre is a national body which can provide advice on sharing and preservation
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Finally...
See time spent on data management as an investment Spend a little time now to save more later
It can be a good task for times when you’re feeling tired and uninspired
But remember that it’s supposed to save time, not occupy it!
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