The DMPTool is web-based and provides basic templates to help you construct a Data Management Plan. Using DMPTool, researchers can access a template, example answers, and guiding resources to successfully write a data management plan for any research project or grant.

Get Started with DMPTool:

  1. Go to https://dmptool.org
  2. Enter your Harvard email address in the "Sign in / Sign up" box and click "Continue"
  3. You should receive a prompt that "Your address is associated with: Harvard University (harvard.edu)"
  4. Click "Sign in with Institution to Continue" 
  5. Enter your Harvard Key credentials when prompted and click "Sign In"
  6. You should be successfully signed into DMPTool
     

Once logged in, you may create DMPs for your project using a template for your funding agency or Harvard University project.

  • Export your plan: Plans can be exported into Microsoft Word or PDF formats to include in a grant application.
  • Test plans: If you are just testing, there is an option to create test plans. There is a generic template if you wish to create a plan not associated with any funder.
  • Submit for review: Once you have created your plan, you may seek help from the Harvard Library. Review the Countway Library DMP Review Service or contact Harvard DMPTool Support.

The tool includes 42 templates for federal and private funders:

Create a Plan with the Biomedical DMP Template:

  1. Click “Create Plan” from the top menu
  2. Enter a project title for the research project you are planning
  3. Confirm “Harvard University” is the primary research organization
  4. Select the check box for “No funder associated with this plan or my funder is not listed”
  5. Choose the "Harvard Medical School Biomedical DMP Template"

DMPTool Video Tutorial

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Harvard Medical School DMP Template

Using the guidance from the NIH, the LMA RDMWG has published a template to help researchers create a data management plan for their biomedical data project. It is intended to provide organization-specific guidance for Harvard Medical School constituents to create a relevant and useful data management plan for their grants or other research projects. This is a funder agnostic template and can be used for a variety of grant types, and other Harvard communities. Download and use the Biomedical DMP Template from OSF.

 

Using the Harvard DMP Template:

  1. In the "Project Details" tab, ensure you have selected guidance from Harvard University and/or DMPTool.
     
  2. The "Contributors" tab allows you to add the project’s team members such as the Principal Investigator, Data Manager or Project Administrator. You can also add collaborators to invite specific people to read, edit, or administer the plan.
     
  3. In the "Write Plan" tab, you will see questions to help you write your plan for each DMP section. Use the Harvard example answers to assist you in identifying relevant practices for managing your data. It includes general examples that you can use to tailor appropriate answers for your grant application. These examples address key points that could be included in your DMP, and may or may not be applicable to your project. As a note, if there is an example that involves “consulting” with a group or department on campus, we highly suggest that you reach out to that group prior to completing your plan. Use the Guidance links and additional information to review important resources or policies that may pertain to your research project.
     
  4. In the "Research Outputs" tab, you can list potential research outputs you anticipate creating. For example, a dataset to be deposited in a repository, a methods protocol, or software.
     
  5. When you are ready to download your plan from the "Download" tab, it is most useful to download your DMP as a docx or text file. You may need to do some additional formatting in order to guarantee your plan meets the page limit when submitted with your grant application.
     
  6. Lastly, the "Finalize/Publish" tab allows you to set your plan visibility, and register your plan. Registering your DMP gives a unique identification number to your plan linking metadata for funders, institutions, and repositories, ultimating making your plan machine-actionable.

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