Data Management Plans & Grant Support

Maximize your grant success with ICPSR's support for data management plans and data sharing.

Writing a Data Management Plan 

Data management plans ensure that data are properly managed and may include information about the types and amounts of data to be collected, storage and sharing methods, safeguards to protect research participants, how data will be made accessible, and who can access them.

ICPSR provides the following DMP templates that researchers can use when writing their own plans:

Resources from other agencies and organizations:

Federal agencies are placing more emphasis on data sharing, with policies that require detailed data management and sharing plans (DMP). Agencies like the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) ask applicants to outline how they will store, manage, and share their data, select an archive, and budget for these services. Even if not required, having a DMP can help guide you through the research process. ICPSR is here to help researchers with every step, from preparing these plans to archiving data, making the grant process smoother and more manageable.

Register Your Proposed Study and Designate ICPSR in Your DMP 

You’ve decided you want to share your data with ICPSR. Now what? It’s easy! Just follow the steps listed below.

Step 1 – Register your proposed study with ICPSR by filling out the registration form.

Step 2 – Determine the best deposit option for sharing your data with ICPSR. ICPSR has many options for data sharing that are flexible based on the needs of your project, including:

  • ICPSR’s Member Archive: Data are curated by our staff and made available (free to member institutions, fee-based for non-members).
  • ICPSR’s Sponsored Archives: Data are curated by our staff and made available at no cost to all researchers; however, the inclusion of the data is subject to approval by the archive’s sponsor.
    • Researchers applying for NIH grants may be interested in archiving their data with one of ICPSR’s NIH-sponsored archives: DSDR, NACDA, or NAHDAP.
  • openICPSR: Data deposits from ICPSR members are self-published, not curated by our staff, and available as-is at no cost to all researchers.

Budgeting for Archiving Your Data with ICPSR

ICPSR offers a range of pricing for data archiving, from no-cost to paid options. Agencies like NIH often allow budgeting for data management and sharing, so we suggest including these costs when possible. If you need a cost estimate for ICPSR professional curation, follow the steps in the Budgeting for ICPSR Services document. After registering your study, ICPSR will contact you with an estimate if requested.

Other Grant Support

Need something else? ICPSR is here to help! See our FAQs on Data Management Plans for common questions. We also offer email, phone, and meeting support for grant applicants to discuss their data management and sharing questions. In addition, ICPSR provides the following grant support services:

  • Letters of support
  • Data management plan reviews

Please reach out to us at ICPSR-help@umich.edu for assistance.