Publishing your data

Publishing your research data brings it into the public sphere. This supports Open Science and responsible research. It promotes global cooperation which feeds the general progress of science. 

The importance of data publishing

The Research Data Management policy of the University of Groningen promotes the publication of FAIR data. Publishing your data contributes to:

• Increasing the impact and visibility of your research
• Enabling global scientific collaboration and development 
• Avoiding waste of resources (time, energy, finances) with studies already conducted

• Supporting reproducibility and research integrity

The easiest way to achieve this is by publishing your dataset in a well-organized, trusted data repository. A data repository is a library of datasets, a managed digital storage location, with search and access facilities.

Benefits of publishing data in a repository

Repositories provide structured ways of describing your data (metadata), persistent identifiers, and long-term access. Publishing your research data in a well organized repository is a straightforward way to ensure your data is FAIR, meaning:

• Findable: Data can be easily discovered by humans and computers
• Accessible: The conditions for access are available and well defined
• Interoperable: Data can be integrated and shared across systems and platforms

• Reusable: Others can interpret and reuse your data for new research and reproduce your results

UG-supported data repository: DataverseNL

At the University of Groningen, DataverseNL is the general repository for publishing research data. DataverseNL is a Dutch research data repository that is a collaboration between DANS and affiliated Dutch universities and institutions, including the University of Groningen. 

DataverseNL allows researchers to deposit, share and publish their datasets either openly or with restrictions and meet funder and journal requirements. It applies the FAIR principles to your data in multiple ways. The most prominent aspects are:

• Findable: Datasets receive a persistent identifier (DOI), and the metadata is indexed by popular search engines like Google and Bing and harvested by repositories such as the Netherlands Research Portal
• Accessible: The dataset is described by its metadata and can be reached via a persistent identifier (DOI). Metadata is organized in an easy-to-read structure for both humans and machines and is openly available.
• Interoperable: The terms used in your metadata can be related to controlled vocabularies recognised by your research field. The platform allows you to upload future-proof file types.

• Reusable: The conditions for reuse are clear through a Creative Commons license or customized terms of use.

The University of Groningen takes responsibility for deposited data in DataverseNL and provides support to researchers affiliated with the UG and UMCG. DANS manages the technical infrastructure. DataverseNL is available to all University of Groningen researchers as well as the researchers from the University Medical Centre Groningen (UMCG).

Data curation and support

Before publication, datasets in DataverseNL go through a data curation process that involves both researchers and data stewards. This ensures that datasets are well structured, documented, and suitable for sharing.

Data curation includes:

• Reviewing metadata, file formats, and dataset structure
• Assessing data sensitivity
• Checking file integrity and organization.

• Advising on access conditions and licenses, also for data that needs restricted access.