NIH Data Management and Sharing Plan: Home

Effective January 25, 2023, the NIH Policy for Data Management and Sharing requires that investigators and institutions:

• Plan and budget for the managing and sharing of data
• Submit a DMS plan for review when applying for funding
• Comply with the approved DMS plan

NIH's Data Management and Sharing Policy Overview provides a summary of the policy and is a good starting point. 

For the full policy, see 2023 Final NIH Policy for Data Management and Sharing

NIH's Scientific Data Sharing website contains a wealth of resources to support the development and implementation of data management and sharing plans. Top resources include the following:

• Research covered under the policy: summary of how NIH handles the sharing of proprietary data
• Tools for planning and budgeting: data management and sharing plans and what costs can be included in a proposal
• Data management guidance: best practices in data management.
• Resources for sharing scientific data: data sharing approaches and information on selecting a data repository
• Informed consent for secondary research with data and biospecimens: considerations and sample language.
• Policy FAQs

NIH also provides information about other data sharing policies:

• Genomic data sharing policy
• 2003 data sharing policy (applicable to proposals submitted before January 25, 2023)

Rice's Policy on Research Data Management (#308) provides Rice-specific guidance on managing and sharing research data.

One of the requirements of the new policy is a clear and effective data management and sharing plan. Fondren Library provides researchers access to the DMP Tool, which provides data management plan templates that can be customized for an investigator's project. 

To get started, logon to the DMP Tool website using your Rice email for SSO. Within the site's Help area, there is a Quick Start Guide that orients you to the tool. 

When creating a new plan for an NIH proposal, select NIH-GEN DMSP (Forthcoming) as the primary funding organization to access a template that provides guidance and recommended language consistent with the new NIH policy. 

We recommend keeping "DMPTool" as a source of guidance within the "Select Guidance" area of the Project Details page. Rice resources and supplementary recommendations (where applicable) also appear in the guidance section of the template.

Some DMP elements depend heavily on the specifics of a research project and the nature of the data being collected. As you develop your plan, consider the following:

• How large is the dataset? 
• What level of security will data storage require?
• With whom will be the data be shared during the project? After the project?

Rice's Information Technology department provides information about data storage options at Rice. Please contact the Center for Research Computing to discuss your needs and possible solutions as you are developing your DMS plan.

These slides accompany the November 2022 webinar.