Visibility, acceptance and use of DMPs for universities of applied sciences and universities of applied sciences
SAN-DMP
Data management plans (DMPs) are essential guidelines that help researchers manage data appropriately, prevent data loss and enable long-term re-use – yet they present particular challenges for universities of applied sciences and universities of applied sciences due to a lack of structures and collaboration with industry partners. The research project aims to investigate the specific needs and challenges of various stakeholder groups at universities of applied sciences (FHs/HAWs) in order to develop evidence-based recommendations for action and concrete implementation scenarios for the adoption of DMPs.
| Project lead: | Prof. Dr Stefan Schmunk |
| Project team: | Andreas Schieberle |
| Duration: | March 2022 to February 2023 |
| Funding body: | Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR), grant reference: 16FDFH203C |
| Participating institutions: |
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There are numerous definitions of what data management plans are, what purpose they serve, and what other people (can) achieve with them. The University of Vienna puts it very succinctly: data management plans (DMPs) are guidelines designed to help researchers handle data appropriately within the context of a project and to enable its re-use; furthermore, they also help to prevent potential data loss. Through targeted questions, they encourage reflection on responsibilities, the management of financial and human resources, legal issues, metadata and formats, etc., thereby providing greater clarity in the handling of data.
DMPs ensure that data remains discoverable, understandable and reusable in the long term, making them key documents for research data management (RDM). To date, these have only been published as standalone documents in isolated cases, even though a large number of funding bodies already require DMPs at the application stage. This presents universities of applied sciences (FHs) and universities of applied sciences (HAWs) with major challenges. As awareness of RDM is not yet particularly widespread at many UASs/HAWs, there is often a lack of structures such as advisory services and infrastructure, as well as a lack of best-practice examples. Furthermore, academic disciplines that are not represented at universities, or are represented to a lesser extent, cannot draw on an active specialist community that, amongst other things, develops discipline-specific standards.
In addition, universities of applied sciences (FHs/HAWs) carry out a large number of projects in collaboration with partners from the professional world, for example from the (regional) business sector or public administration, which have their own requirements and certainly have (legal, competition-related, administrative and economic) reservations regarding the publication of data or DMPs.
To counteract this, the first step must be to create greater transparency regarding DMPs, for example through best-practice examples that specifically address the needs of universities of applied sciences, thereby providing guidance for new research projects, particularly those carried out in collaboration with commercial enterprises. This will also make it more attractive for researchers to engage with FDM and to invest the additional effort required for a DMP in their research project.
The aim of the proposed project is to investigate the needs and challenges relating to DMPs faced by the various stakeholder groups at universities of applied sciences/to explore the needs and challenges relating to DMPs through a methodologically sound evaluation process, with a view to developing evidence-based recommendations for action and concrete implementation scenarios for DMPs as a key tool to support FDM.
