Subject guides: Research Data Management (RDM): Data Management Plan (DMP)

Click the image above to start building your Research Data Management Plan

A Data Management Plan is a document that specifies how research data will be handled both during and after a research project.

It identifies key actions and strategies to ensure that research data are of high quality, secure, sustainable, and – to the extent possible – accessible and reusable.

Treat your DMP as a living document.

Create it before or in the early stages of research, and update it where necessary during the project.

You may not know all the answers at the start, but circumstances may change.

Many public research funders and ethics committees require a data management plan to be submitted as part of their application.

What to include in DMP

A good DMP takes into account the applicable regulations and data policies and considers the whole research data lifecycle.
It typically addresses the following topics:

What data will be collected, and how.
How data will be documented.
How any ethical and legal issues will be dealt with.
How data will be stored and backed up during research.
Any plans for preserving (some of the) data beyond the project's end.
Any plans for sharing or providing access to (some of the) data.
Who will be responsible for data management, and what additional resources may be required.
What to cover in your DMP may also depend on your funder, who may provide their own DMP template.

Charles Darwin University recommends completing the RDM and Primary Materials Checklist as part of the DMP and provides a full DMP template