NIH Data Management and Sharing Plan
This guide will assist researchers with learning more about the current NIH Data Management and Sharing (DMS) Policy, finding information about planning and managing your data throughout its lifecycle, and preparing data management plans required for funding proposals.
Key Things to Know
What does it mean? Beginning January 25, 2023, ALL grant applications or renewals that generate Scientific Data must include a robust and detailed plan for managing and sharing data during the entire funded period.
Why does it matter? To bolster research rigor and reproducibility, accelerate discovery, provide access to high-value datasets, promote data reuse, and expedite translational science.
What are the requirements? Information on data storage, access policies/procedures, preservation, metadata standards, and distribution approaches. You must provide this information in a data management and sharing plan (DMSP).
What are UT Health San Antonio processes and resources? All UT Health SA faculty can now obtain assistance with reviewing or writing a data management and sharing (DMS) plan by contacting the no-cost Data Management & Sharing consultation service provided by the Clinical Research Informatics division. Either email (informatics@uthscsa.edu) or complete the online request form at https://deb.uthscsa.edu/ProjectTracking/Library/pub/project_request.jsp.
To have a successful NIH DMSP you need to know:
What is in a Data Management Plan?
A data management plan (DMP) describes how the scientific data will be collected, organized, documented, stored and shared, and who is responsible for what.
What are the new NIH requirements?
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has released its new Data Management and Sharing Policy after a 5-year cycle of community input and revisions. It will take effect on January 25, 2023. All research, funded or conducted in whole or in part by NIH, that results in the generation of scientific data are required to submit and adhere to an approved data management plan.
- Final NIH Policy for Data Management and Sharing
- Supplemental Information to the NIH Policy for Data Management and Sharing: Elements of an NIH Data Management and Sharing Plan
- Supplemental Information to the NIH Policy for Data Management and Sharing: Allowable Costs for Data Management and Sharing
- Supplemental Information to the NIH Policy for Data Management and Sharing: Selecting a Repository for Data Resulting from NIH-Supported Research
- NIH Data Sharing Policy Comparison – understand the key differences between the 2003 Data Sharing Policy and the NEW Data Management and Sharing (DMS) Policy.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) issued a Dear Colleague Letter: Effective Practices for Data, on May 20, 2019. The purpose of this DCL is to describe – and encourage – effective practices for managing research data, including the use of persistent identifiers (IDs) for data and machine-readable data management plans (DMPs).
How do I get started on my NIH DMP?
We encourage research faculty and staff to view the NIH Scientific Data Sharing website for important information including:
- Writing a DMS Plan
- Planning and Budgeting
- Data Sharing Approaches
- DMS Policy Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Go to the NIH Grants & Funding Data Management and Sharing Plan Format Page to find the DMS Plan format page (PDF), which can be used to prepare the plans required in applications subject to the Data Management and Sharing (DMS) and/or Genomic Data Sharing (GDS) policies for due dates on or after January 25, 2023. Instructions for developing a data management and sharing plan are included in the FORMS-H version of the NIH Application Guide (research; career development).
View recordings of the NIH two-part webinar series.
What about the budget? Can I include DMP costs?
The NIH recognizes that costs will incur when making data accessible and reusable. There is a list of allowable and unallowable costs that may be included in the budget portion of an application to the NIH.
NIH Budget information regarding DMP can be found in links below:
Where can I find examples of other DMPs?
General NIH Examples (pre-2023 policy):
- DMSP Examples – NIH
- Directory of data management and sharing plan examples – Compiled from researchers, institutions, libraries, and workgroups who shared their data management plans online from 2012-2022 to help researchers comply with the 2023 NIH policy. Includes multiple funders and will not be updated. – Arizona State University
UT Health San Antonio Examples:
Where and how do I share my data?
Some funding opportunities designate particular data repositories (or sets of repositories) to be used to preserve and share data.
For data generated from research for which no data repository is specified, researchers are encouraged to select a data repository that is appropriate for the data generated from the research project and is in accordance with desired characteristics.
See Supplemental Information to the NIH Policy for Data Management and Sharing: Selecting a Repository for Data Resulting from NIH-Supported Research for more information.
- Open NIH-supported domain-specific repositories that house data of a specific type or related to a specific discipline;
- Other NIH-supported domain-specific resources, including repositories and knowledgebases, that have limitations on submitting and/or accessing data; and
- Generalist repositories that house data regardless of type, format, content, or subject matter.
Where can I get help with my DMP?
UT Health SA Campus Assistance:
- Department of Population Health Studies, Clinical Research Informatics Division
- Office of Vice-President for Research
- UT Health San Antonio Research web page
- Office of Sponsored Programs
- UT Health San Antonio IT Research Computing Support
- For general questions about the NIH DMS Policy, contact the Data Management and Sharing Working Group at DataMngmtandSharing@uthscsa.edu
Other resources:
