U.S. National Science Foundation Data Management
As you complete the data management plan section of your U.S. National Science Foundation grant application, BaylorITS Research Technology has provided either reference resources to assist you in writing the response to each question or sample text referencing technology resources available to you at Baylor University.
Note: Please do not copy the content in the questions below into your data management plan. Use the references or sample text to assist you in developing the response.
Blank Template (.docx) Anonymized Example (.docx)
Data Management and Sharing Plan. Proposals must include a document of no more than two pages uploaded under “Data Management and Sharing Plan” in the supplementary documentation section of research.gov. This supplementary document should describe how the proposal will conform to NSF policy on the dissemination and sharing of research results (see Chapter XI.D.4), and may include:
the types of data, samples, physical collections, software, curriculum materials, and other materials to be produced in the course of the project;
the standards to be used for data and metadata format and content (where existing standards are absent or deemed inadequate, this should be documented along with any proposed solutions or remedies);
policies for access and sharing including provisions for appropriate protection of privacy, confidentiality, security, intellectual property, or other rights or requirements;
policies and provisions for re-use, re-distribution, and the production of derivatives; and
plans for archiving data, samples, and other research products, and for preservation of access to them.
Data management and sharing requirements and plans specific to the Directorate, Office, Division, Program, or other NSF unit, relevant to a proposal are available on the NSF website. If guidance specific to the program is not available, then the requirements established in this section apply.
Simultaneously submitted collaborative proposals and proposals that include subawards are a single unified project and should include only one supplemental combined Data Management and Sharing Plan, regardless of the number of non-lead collaborative proposals or subawards included. In such collaborative proposals, the Data Management and Sharing Plan should discuss the relevant data issues in the context of the collaboration.
Proposers who feel that the plan cannot fit within the limit of two pages may use part of the 15-page Project Description for additional data management information. Proposers are advised that the Data Management and Sharing Plan must not be used to circumvent the 15-page Project Description limitation. The Data Management and Sharing Plan will be reviewed as an integral part of the proposal, considered under Intellectual Merit or Broader Impacts or both, as appropriate for the scientific community of relevance.
A valid Data Management and Sharing Plan may include only the statement that no detailed plan is needed, for example, if no data, samples, physical collections, software, curriculum materials, or other materials are to be produced in the course of the project. However, such a statement must be accompanied by a clear justification.
It is important to determine unique data management plan requirements that may vary by NSF Directorate. Please review the NSF Data Management Plan – Directorate and/or Division Guidance for additional information.
Baylor researchers are encouraged to identify data storage options for their research. Visit the BaylorITS Research Technology website for additional information on available data storage options.