Supporting the Research Data Management Journey of a Postgraduate Student at the University of St Andrews

Abstract

Most research funders have requirements for data management plans and open data to foster good research data management practices. In order to embed these practices in the postgraduate research (PGR) student journey we have introduced the requirement for a data management plan as part of the first-year progress review and the encouragement to make data underpinning theses publicly available. To support students through these processes we provide a suite of training workshops and are available for one-to-one consultations. User feedback and frequently asked questions are used to review and improve our support offering.

This brief report discusses the planning and implementation processes for data management plan requirement and encouragement of underpinning data. It dives deeper into the workflows, especially for the data deposit, and describes training and support available to students. Statistics on training uptake, data management plan submissions and annual trends for data deposit are also presented. The report concludes with lessons learnt and the team’s plans for the near future.