Research Data Management Guidance - Advising

Overview

Our Data Management consultants are able to meet with researchers to understand first-hand the specifics of your research project and to tailor data management best practices to your particular funding proposal. This service is offered free of charge and is a simple, direct and interactive way to get up to speed on data management practices. Consultants and researchers will work together to gather and document the information necessary to develop a one to two page data management plan.

Advising sessions may cover:

• Funding Requirements
• Data Management Best Practices for:
  • Organizing Data (best practices, file plans, software)
  • Storing and Preserving Data (MSU storage options, external repositories, file formats)
  • Documenting Data (barebones documentation, metadata standards)
  • Sharing Data (publishing data, ensuring access, licensing data, citing data)

How it works

Generally, a faculty researcher will contact Digital Scholarship Services as a follow-up to one of our presentations, or . We will ask a few questions either face-to-face, over the phone, or by emailing the Digital Scholarship Lab to get a better idea of the team we can assemble to best assist the researcher during our one-hour consultation session. After we have assembled the advising team, we will schedule a time to meet with the researcher. During this consultation session we will interview the faculty member about the parameters of their research project, answer questions, and assist in developing and/or editing an outline Data Management Plan. We hope the researcher will leave with a draft of arguments, language, and justifications that will be helpful as the researcher writes the data management narrative. Finally, we are happy to provide feedback on the final draft of the Data Management Plan as a follow-up to the consultation session.

Something to consider

The consulting advice provided by the Michigan State University Libraries (MSUL) is to be considered only as advice based on experience working with researchers on data management planning. Consulting service rendered by MSUL carries no expressed or implied guarantee of successful grant application. Furthermore, this service is to be used with the understanding that MSUL is not rendering legal or compliance advice on specific matters. If you have specific questions or concerns, MSUL recommends that you consult with appropriate legal counsel and grants administration advisors with respect to your individual situation. Though MSUL provides advice on writing of data management plan, users of this service are expected to be the sole responsible party for the writing of their own grant proposals. In order to provide thorough advice that is tailored to individual projects, it is highly recommended that users of this service contact Digital Scholarship Services at least 2 weeks prior to the grant proposal submission deadline.