Selected Domain Repositories | General Repositories | FAIR Principles

Consider These Criteria When Selecting a Repository

When selecting a repository to deposit your data, consider:

  • Is the repository intended for your subject/research domain?
  • Does it provide persistent identifiers for deposited files?
  • Who can access the data, and how long will the data be preserved?
  • What license(s) does it support?
  • Is the repository integrated with other systems for finding, connecting data?
  • Who manages the repository (government, for-profit publisher, academic, non-profit, other organization)?

For more information about any of these criteria, please contact us.  

Selected Domain Repositories

Not sure where to start?

  1. Check with your research funder. NIH and some NSF data guidance documents include suggested domain-specific and general repositories. 
  2. Contact us and we will assist you in finding a repository that is right for you.

General Repositories

There are a number of general repositories, which are suitable when a domain repository does not exist for your data. We generally recommend using Iowa Research Online (IRO), because we can help with curating your data and creating a robust data record, but there are other repositories such as Zenodo, Dryad, and Dataverse.

Contact us if you are ready to deposit data in one of these general repositories.

About FAIR Principles

The FAIR principles are capturing more attention as data sharing becomes more common. FAIR means that repositories (and data depositors) should enable data to be Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Re-usable. Many organizations, including the NIH, place considerable emphasis on data sharing that is aligned with these principles. A good repository will support these principles:

  1. To be Findable any Data Object should be uniquely and persistently identifiable (have an identifer, such as a DOI)
  2. Data is Accessible in that it can be always obtained by machines and humans, upon authorization, through a well-defined protocol
  3. Data Objects are Interoperable if metadata and data is machine-accessible and actionable, and utilizes shared terminology
  4. Data Objects are Re-Usable if the above are met, and the data can be automatically linked or integrated with other data sources, with proper citation of the source

To learn more about FAIR Principles, visit FORCE11 FAIR Principles or contact us for assistance.