New NIH Policy for Data Management and Sharing

MIT Libraries and our Institute partners are here to help!

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is implementing a new policy to further their efforts to improve the reproducibility and reliability of NIH-funded research through effective and efficient data management and data sharing practices. This policy, NOT-OD-21-013, is effective January 25, 2023, and it applies to “all research, funded or conducted in whole or in part by NIH, that results in the generation of scientific data.”

Policy key points of impact:

  • Requires submission of data management and sharing (DMS) plans at the time of application.
  • Requires compliance with the DMS plan as approved by NIH Institute, Center, or Office (ICO).
  • Strongly encourages the use of established repositories for the sharing of data.
  • Sets the expectation that data will be made accessible “as soon as possible, and no later than the time of an associated publication, or the end of the award/support period, whichever comes first.”

MIT’s Data Management Services has partnered with the Office of the VP for Research, Information Systems & Technology (IS&T), Office of Strategic Alliances and Tech Transfer (OSATT), MIT InfoProtect, and others to provide our MIT researchers with support to navigate this new policy and bolster our community’s data management and sharing practices.

NIH resources:

MIT resources:

Have questions or need help preparing for this new policy or tightening your data management and sharing practices? Contact Data Management Services with questions at data-management@mit.edu.