Research data

Research data has a broad definition and includes primary and secondary data or other evidence that justifies the observations or findings of the research project. Research data can be collected through a variety of means and it may exist in physical or electronic format. Examples include specimens collected, survey results, artefacts, transcripts, test responses, photographs, algorithms and more.

The ARC and NHMRC both require funding recipients to have a Data Management Plan (DMP) in place prior to commencing a project. Completing a DMP through the DMP Planning Tool in Service One complies with these requirements and can be exported for submission to funders.

The Intellectual Property Policy outlines IP ownership of research data and indicates that IP in data produced by university staff belongs to Flinders University in the absence of a written agreement to the contrary. Higher degree students retain IP in the research data they create, unless the IP was expressly assigned to the University as per the Student Research IP Procedures.

Consider if any contracts were entered into with sponsors or other collaborating institutions as the ownership may be shared with them.

You will need to determine ownership in order to complete a Data Management Plan.

IDS provide an overview of approved research data storage services, for both active data and storage of finalised data. External platforms and hosting services (unless hosted by a research partner) are not to be used for storing research data.

Once a dataset is finalised, it can be shared publicly by uploading it to ROADS (Repository of Open Access DataSets), in addition to retaining it in its existing storage location.

The publisher may provide a mechanism for you to share your research data. Flinders also provides researchers and higher degree students the option of publicly sharing a completed data sets by uploading it to ROADS (Repository of Open Access DataSets).
Publishers may also require that you select an open licence (which you can do through ROADS) in order to make the data reusable by others.

Completed datasets can be made public via uploading to ROADS (Repository of Open Access DataSets). ROADS allows you to generate a unique link called a DOI (Digital Object Identifier), enabling your data to be cited. ROADS can also generate a citation for yourself and others to cite your data. It is best practice to cite your research data in publications.

Different types of research data have different retention requirements.  At a minimum, data that supports a publication must be retained for 5 years from publication.  Some research data will need to be retained longer (including permanently). Retention periods are outlined in the Research Data Management Procedures. 

Creating and keeping an up-to-date Data Management Plan (DMP) assists in the research process by making it clear how research data should be handled before it is generated.

Grant funders, including the Australian Research Council (ARC) and National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), as well as many large international funders, require a DMP to be in place prior to a project commencing.

Flinders researchers (including HDRs) can create a Data Management Plan (DMP) using the DMP Planning Tool in Service One. To get access to the DMP Planning Tool, you will first need to submit a Service One form to request access.
Once access has been granted, you need to log out of Service One and log back in again. This only has to be done once and then you will be able to directly access the DMP Planning Tool. There is a DMP User Guide to assist with creation of your plan.

The best time to do a Data Management Plan (DMP) is at the beginning of a research project, however, you can start a DMP at any stage of your research. Your DMP is a living document and will change as your research project evolves.