Once you complete your research project, you may need to prepare your data for archiving and sharing. Publishing, sharing and disseminating your data requires careful consideration of issues around data sensitivity and privacy, copyright, and documentation. By depositing your data in SOAR, you are guaranteed a reliable place to archive the products of your research, making it easy to preserve and disseminate your scholarship for years to come. This page will cover:
Where should my data go?
If your discipline already has a repository in place for research data, consider depositing your data there first. Discipline-specific repositories are often better able to accommodate specific data archiving needs and may provide an ideal archiving solution for your research data. However, not all disciplines have a data repository. This guide provides a list of potential repositories for data archiving/sharing.
Even if your research isn't funded by an agency that requires you to archive your data, you still may wish to do so if you answer yes to any of the following questions:
Is your data...
If you do need to archive your data, SOAR may be the tool for you.
What is SOAR?
SOAR is a repository for various types of scholarship, including digital research data generated by CSUN researchers, students, and staff. SOAR provides long-term digital preservation and open access to data. All data in the collection are curated to increase potential for access and are assigned a permanent URL in the form of a handle (cf. handle.net). For more in-depth information about SOAR visit the ScholarWorks guide.
Learn how to prepare your data for deposit using our CSUN SOAR Data Submission Checklist (Word doc)
When should I archive my data in SOAR?
SOAR is intended for the deposit of CSUN created digital research data that is in a finished, distributable state. Data specialists in the library can collaborate with depositors to ensure that data is discoverable in a way that maximizes its potential for re-use. SOAR accepts a wide variety of of research data and file formats. However, some types of data -- such as protected health information and personally identifiable human subjects data, as stipulated by HIPAA and FERPA -- might not be appropriate for deposit.
What are my options for sharing data in SOAR?
Data deposited in SOAR can be accessible immediately, but depositors also have the option to control access for as long as necessary via limited login access or implementing embargo periods. Additionally, SOAR allows you to release your data and materials under a Creative Commons license (controlling who can use or modify your data), in the Public Domain (most open option), or without any license.
How do I deposit data in SOAR?
Step 1: You should review the criteria for depositing to SOAR.
Data must be:
Step 2: Then prepare your data files, gather appropriate documentation files, funder information, and have metadata ready (title, authors, abstract). You can also review best practices in preparation for archiving data files.
Step 3: Submit your data using SOAR's online deposit process. Follow the step by step procedure here [add link]
Why cite data? Giving appropriate attribution to research data improves data discoverability, signals the usefulness and fitness of data, provides citable contributions to the scholarly record, and supports long-term reusability. Many journals and publishers recognize the need to cite data in articles.
For more in depth information check this Data Citation Guide.
