Horizon 2020 Data Management Plans

Modern research builds on extensive scientific dialogue and advances by improving earlier work. Moreover, the Europe 2020 strategy for a smart, sustainable and inclusive economy underlines the central role of knowledge and innovation in generating growth.

For these reasons, the European Union (EU) strives to improve access to scientific information and to boost the benefits of public investment in the research funded under the EU Framework Programme for Research and   Innovation Horizon 2020 (2014-2020).

(Guidelines on Open Access to Scientific Publications and Research Data in Horizon 2020 (pdf))

Requirements

At the bidding stage: From 2017 all project proposals must include a section on research data management which is evaluated under the criterion 'Impact'. Where relevant, applicants must provide a short, general outline of their policy for data management, including the following issues:

• What types of data will the project generate/collect?
• What standards will be used?
• How will this data be exploited and/or shared/made accessible for verification and re-use? If data cannot be made available, explain why
• How will this data be curated and preserved?

The data management section can be considered as a checklist for the future and as a reference for the resource and budget allocations related to data management.

During the project: The first version of the DMP is expected to be delivered within the first 6 months of the project and should be compliant with the template provided by the Commission (pdf)  (see Annex 1).

More detailed versions of the DMP can be delivered at later stages of the project. The DMP would need to be updated at least by the mid-term and final review to reflect the data generated and the uses identified by the research team, as the project matures and develops.

New versions of the DMP should be created whenever important changes to the project occur due to inclusion of new data sets, changes in consortium policies or external factors.