5 Data management plan guidelines for thesis

At Jamk, a data management plan (dmp) is prepared as an appendix to the thesis plan. It is a concrete plan for handling (saving, sharing, archiving, destroying) the data in the different phases of the thesis. The content complements the thesis plan.

• Managing research data and preparing a data management plan are part of good scientific practice.
• The data management plan is an indication of a competence as a higher education student.
• With the help of the plan, the student prepares operating instructions for him/herself, how to handle the data during the thesis process. The student must solve these things in any case, the plan is tool for that!
• A data management plan drawn up in advance reduces the risk of loss or destruction of materials. The plan helps to identify risks related to data protection, for example.
• With the help of the plan, the student is able to anticipate and control the details related to ownership and usage rights, if the thesis is done for a commissioner or project.
• A plan drawn up in advance enables the utilization of data in further use.

Instructions and template for the data management plan

The structure of the data management plan (see below) follows the national model. Create a data management plan according to the student’s choice using either the Word template or with the DPM Tuuli data management planning tool. They both also contain instructions on how to prepare the plan and what is described in it.

The DMP Tuuli planning tool is used with Haka login. The first time, the ID must be registered, and Jamk University of Applied Sciences must be selected as the organization. In the future, the user can log in directly through Haka under Sign in with your institutional credentials. This is how you find the Jamk’s template: select Create a new plan, write Jamk University of Applied Sciences as a research organization, check the box No funder associated, and finally select the template of Jamk. The plan created in the program can be shared in different file formats and shared with other users, for example to the thesis tutor or another thesis author.

Structure of the data management plan

1. General description of data
2. Personal data, ethical principles and legal compliance
3. Documentation and metadata
4. Storage and backup during the thesis project
5. Archiving and opening, destroying or storing the data after the thesis project
6. Data management responsibilities and resources

Best practices for the thesis tutor

• The plan must be concrete and describe the solutions to the questions asked specifically for the thesis in question. The plan is an operating manual for the student.
• The instructions found in the DMP template are also to support the thesis tutor. Check there what should be described in the plan. The questions will be answered in the applicable parts. The intention is not to repeat the contents of the thesis plan.
• Processing personal data: Pay special attention to the fact that the student recognizes whether he/she is processing personal data in some form in the thesis. This results in the need for a privacy statement and adequate Informing research participants about the processing. The type of personal data also affects how the data can be stored and shared, for example.
• Consider the role of the commissioner, for example as the owner, user or archiver of the data. Have the research participants been informed correctly, who has the rights to the data and what will be done with it after the thesis is completed. Does the organization require a research permit?
• Master’s degree data storage for two years: The data of master’s degree theses must be stored securely for two years from the completion of the thesis. The data will not be anonymized or destroyed before this. This enables the data to be checked if necessary if there is reason to suspect fraud. The storage location is indicated in the data management plan.
• Data storage options are described in the thesis guide (chapter 4.4.5). What is important is a data-secure way of storing and sharing the data, as well as disposing of or storing the data properly after the thesis is completed. When saving, it is recommended to use the services offered by the organization instead of private user accounts.
• Basically, the data must always be anonymized if it is saved for further use after the work is completed. Note! The data of master thesis must be stored for a possible review for two years after the completion of the thesis in a data-secure manner. If there is still a need to store the data after that, anonymization is done at this stage. If the master thesis data is further used in other research, it is recommended to make an anonymized version for this purpose. Jamk is not responsible for archiving the thesis data.
• The length of the plan is approximately 1-3 pages.

Links

Data management plan and processing of research data (Thesis guide for students)

DMPTuuli (Data management planning tool)

Data Management Guidelines (The Finnish Social Science Data Archive , FSD): Detailed instructions for all stages of data management, e.g. informing the research subject, storage and disposal of material, rights, anonymization

What is persona data? (Data Protection Ombudsman)

Research permit at Jamk (jamk.fi)

_{Updated 24.10.2022 Elina Kirjalainen}