Research data management

Find existing data resources

In addition to creating and collecting new data for your project, you can draw on a wealth of data already available to complement and enrich your own research. With proper attention paid to Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) and Data Protection & Ethics, you may be able to process existing raw data to create entirely new research outputs. Use the following guide and links to discover more about existing data resources.

How do I find and access existing data resources?


There are a growing number of digital repositories and data centres, each containing various content and covering a multitude of subject areas. The majority of them share openly with the public.

OpenDOAR (Directory of Open Access Repositories) maintains an online list of open access digital repositories and has a content search tool.

Data centres are online stores of discipline or subject specific data. There is currently no definitive list of available data centres but popular examples include:

 

You can also search the University of Sussex Research Data Repository Figshare.  This is a digital repository of multi-disciplinary datasets produced by Sussex academics.

How do I cite other people's data?


According to DataCite, the recommended format for a data citation is as follows:

  • Creator (PublicationYear): Title. Publisher. Identifier

You may also wish to include information from two optional properties, Version and ResourceType (as appropriate). If so, the recommended form is as follows:

  • Creator (PublicationYear): Title. Version. Publisher. ResourceType. Identifier

For citation purposes, DataCite recommends that DOI (Digital Object Identifier) names are displayed as linkable, permanent URLs:

Useful links: