All Open University researchers and research students funded by EPSRC are expected to:
Store data securely:
- EPSRC-funded research data must be securely preserved for a minimum of 10 years post-project.
- The faculties of Science and MCT can both provide long-term storage for digital data.
- The Research Data Management project is working to provide a solution for long-term archiving or research data for academics in other faculties. In the meantime, EPSRC-funded researchers from other faculties should find an external repository/archive into which they can deposit their data or maintain data in their own possession until these facilities become available.
- Non-digital data which has been adequately prepared may be put into University records storage; please send any requests to rdm-project@open.ac.uk
- For more information and advice on the long term storage of research data, visit the RDM intranet site.
Grant access to data
- You must create a record in ORO of any significant digital or non-digital data produced, within one year of creation. The record must provide access details – either a direct link to the data, or details of who to contact to gain access. More information is available on the RDM intranet site.
- Only under exceptional circumstances should access to supporting data be refused and this needs to be agreed by the EPSRC when the grant is awarded. Details of access restrictions must be included in the ORO record.
- A delay in access to data or an embargo period is acceptable if it is necessary to protect intellectual property that would otherwise be compromised.
- You must also include a short statement within published research papers describing how and on what terms any supporting research data may be accessed. Guidance on how to write this statement is available on the RDM intranet site
Anticipate the costs
- Ensure any costs associated with data management are included in EPSRC grant applications.
- Ask your faculty research administrator for advice on how to do this.