5 Things to Keep in Mind While Writing Your Data Management Plan

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Are you one of those researchers who need write a Data Management Plan (DMP) for the upcoming SNSF project funding deadline? You can find the most important information, links and templates on our website. Our services include reviewing Data Management Plans, so if you would like us to give you tips on how to improve your Data Management Plan before submission or if you have any questions, just contact us via email (data@ub.uzh.ch).

Additionally, we have put together a list of 5 things to keep in mind that can make the writing process easier and more successful for you.

1.  Keep it clear and simple.

Keep the DMP simple and easy to understand. Choose tables and bullet points over writing full paragraphs. We suggest providing a table with all your datasets in chapter 1.1. Tipp: it is not possible to generate tables in the mySNFform. However, you can copy tables generated in Word, paste them into the mySNF form and edit them there.

2. Avoid the most common mistakes.

In our experience, the most common reasons the SNSF asks a researcher to revise their DMP are the following:

Problem A: data are not shared openly, not shared at all, or shared under a license that is too restrictive, e.g. CC-BY-NC. Choose a  CC-BY or CC-BY-SA license instead if you are using Creative Commons Licenses.

Problem B: no or no appropriate data repository is mentioned. Make sure to mention a FAIR-compliant repository. You can always change your choice during the course of your project, as long as the repository remains FAIR-compliant. There is more information on appropriate repositories on our website.

Problem C: an embargo is applied to the data, i.e. the data is not shared at the time the associated article is published. The SNSF expects researchers to publicly share the data underlying an article at the time of publication. Data that do not directly underlie a publication do not have to be shared.

3. Make it plausible.

The DMP is not part of the scientific evaluation of your proposal, but it has to be plausible. The expert assessing the scientific proposal and the DMP are not the same person. Therefore, it is important to design the DMP in a way that it can be read and understood independently of the scientific part of the proposal.

4. Remember: nothing is set in stone.

The DMP can be updated during the course of the project. As long as the funder requirements are fulfilled you have the freedom to change the repository, the data types and processing methods at any time.

5. Consider applying for extra money.

In chapter 4.4 you are asked whether you are going to use a non-commercial repository. If you answer YES, the SNSF will contribute up to CHF 10,000 to the costs of data sharing. If you answer NO, the SNSF will only contribute financially to data management, but not to the costs of uploading data to a (commercial) repository. Remember that preparing data for sharing will cost time; you can use the money to cover this.

We wish you much success with your application.

Melanie Röthlisberger, Team Open Science Services