NIH Data Management and Sharing Policy: Overview

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has issued a new Data Management and Sharing Policy, effective January 25, 2023. This is the first major update to such a policy by NIH in a decade, so it's understandable that many researchers and institutions have questions about how these changes will impact their research methods, grant submission process, and publishing practices. The policy includes an expectation that researchers will maximize their data sharing activities, and ensure the deposit of their data into a public repository.

Whether you have a new grant or renewal deadline, or are simply interested in understanding the ongoing developments in medical/scientific research data, we've gathered resources in this guide to help you navigate the changes from this policy, as well as connect you with individuals, departments, and organizations which can help answer questions you might have. 

A central component to the new NIH Data Management and Sharing Policy is the inclusion of a Data Management Plan in all grant applications. A data management plan is a formal document in which a researcher describes what data they anticipate creating or analyzing, how they plan on using that data, where they plan on storing that data, and when they plan on making that data publicly accessible (or whether there are considerations that would affect sharing this data). 

As you use this guide, note that we're constantly working to update information and add new resources as the policy settles and we learn more about its impact. If you have questions not addressed in this guide or want to schedule a presentation for your group to learn more about the new NIH policy, please feel free to contact Anthony Dellureficio, Associate Librarian, Data Management Services.

NOTE: You may also want to review our separate guide for compliance with the NIH Public Access Policy for scientific publications.