DMSP Review Service
DATA MANAGEMENT AND SHARING PLAN REVIEW SERVICE
RDMC offers an optional data management and sharing plan (DMSP) review service to support compliance with funding agencies’ data management and sharing policies. Members of the RDMC DMSP review team—data management, curation, and archiving experts with specialized knowledge of various disciplinary data types—will inspect the DMSP and provide specific recommendations for improvement.
DMSP Review Requirements
To assess DMSPs for policy compliance and feasibility of DMSP implementation, the RDMC review team requires access to two types of materials: documents that outline policy requirements and guidelines AND components of the grant proposal that describe in detail the data to be generated and/or used by the project.
Requests for a DMSP review must include the following materials:
- Link to the COMPLETED DMSP draft in the DMPTool
- DIRECT LINK to the funding agency’s data management and sharing policy
- Link to the notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) or program solicitation
- Copy of the grant proposal narrative that describes the project data
DMSP review requests that do not include full versions of or provide correct access to any one of these required documents will be declined with no further action until the request is resubmitted with all required materials included.
DMSP Review Request Deadlines
RDMC sets DMSP review request deadlines based on available staff. The current deadline for requesting a FULL DMSP review is 3 weeks prior to the sponsor deadline for proposal submission. Requests for a DMSP review submitted less than 3 weeks prior to the sponsor deadline will be given an EXPRESS DMSP review—a review that briefly inspects only the essential DMSP components and does not offer additional feedback for strengthening the proposal. Note that you cannot request an expedited DMSP review as a service option; the EXPRESS option is a pared-down version that we offer as a courtesy for last-minute review requests.
| At least 3 weeks prior to sponsor deadline | Less than 3 weeks prior to sponsor deadline | Less than 5 days prior to sponsor deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Full DMSP review (comprehensive inspection of all DMSP components and opportunities for resource referral and consultation) | EXPRESS DMSP review (inspection of essential DMSP components only) | EXPRESS DMSP review (fulfilled on a first-come, first-serve basis, pending RDMC staff availability) |
FULL vs. EXPRESS DMSP Review
There is no guarantee that a full DMSP review will result in sponsor approval. However, a full review greatly reduces the chances that your DMSP will not be compliant with funder requirements, which is a major reason for rejection. A FULL DMSP review can also help ensure that your planned DMSP implementation is feasible within the project budget.
| Key Components of the DMSP Review | FULL DMSP Review | EXPRESS DMSP Review |
|---|---|---|
| Basic Requirements The DMSP includes each required section/element in accordance with funder policy and guidance | ✓ | ✓ |
| Legibility The DMSP contains language that is coherent and relevant to the respective DMSP section | ✓ | ✓ |
| Repository selection The DMSP specifies the name of an established repository to be used for data archiving and sharing | ✓ | ✓ |
| Data description The DMSP presents sufficient, reasonable information about the data described in the proposal narrative and the necessary provisions for data management and sharing | ✓ | cursory only |
| Ethical/Legal issues The DMSP addresses any ethical or legal issues that may affect data access, sharing and/or reuse | ✓ | cursory only |
| Repository requirements The DMSP describes a data archiving and sharing strategy that corresponds to the services and requirements of the repository selected for data archiving and sharing | ✓ | ✗ |
| Standards and best practices The DMSP aligns with FAIR data principles and other prevailing data management and sharing standards and best practices | ✓ | ✗ |
| Resource referral (upon request) If necessary, DMSP feedback includes recommendations for tools, services, and other appropriate resources that support DMSP implementation | time permitting | ✗ |
| Consultation (upon request) 30-minute consultation with data management expert to review the DMSP draft and address any questions and/or issues after initial review | time permitting | ✗ |
| Final review (upon request) The revised DMSP is given a final review to ensure that suggested edits have been suitably incorporated | time permitting | ✗ |
Risks with an EXPRESS Review or NO Review
Denial of award. Some funders allocate funding only to those applications with complete, acceptable, feasible DMSPs. If a DMSP does not meet the funder policy and guidelines, the funder may deny the award pending revision and re-approval or reject the application outright.
Delay of award. If the DMSP cannot be approved without additional information to meet policy requirements, the funder may delay the award until a revised DMSP is submitted to the program officer and approved.
Post-award DMSP revisions. If the DMSP does not accurately reflect the actual project data and/or the resources required to manage and share project data, a revised DMSP and/or budget will need to be submitted to the funder for approval.
DMSP implementation challenges. If the DMSP does not fully consider the specific management and sharing needs of the data and/or does not align with standards and best practices, implementation of the DMSP as written may be difficult or unfeasible without project work plan and budget modifications.