Research Data Guide

Managing research data

Benefits of managing and opening RD

  • Meeting funding body grant requirements
  • Ensuring research integrity, quality and reproducibility
  • Increasing citizen´s trust on research
  • Increasing  research impact and visibility
  • Saving time and resources 
  • Enhancing data security and minimizing the risk of data loss
  • Preventing duplication of effort by enabling others to use your data
  • Complying with practices conducted in industry and commerce
  • Sustainability Read more
  • Improving innovativeness 

Read more Data, Scientific; Astell, Mathias (2017): Benefits of Open Research Data Infographic. figshare. Figure. 

UOulu data helpdesk

As open as possible, as closed as needed

Openness level of data sets can be open or closed and anything between

  • Open access: Anyone can access. Sometimes a name and email may be requested before access is granted
  • Managed access: Users may need to register and also be approved before access is granted. Approval may depend on the status of the user or their answers to questions  (e.g. objective of the research)
  • Secure access: Data is released only through certain secure mechanism (e.g. accessing to remote server)
  • Closed access: Megadata publicly available but the data not  accessible to users
  • Time-limited embargo blocking the access

Source: Rice, R. C. (2016). Data librarian's handbook. London: Facet Publishing.

It is always reasonable to create and publish metadata (data about data).