A Summary of Academic Libraries and Research Data Services

The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) are concerned about managing large amounts of data, as well as, supporting the planning of that effort financially. Another issue that is important to members of the ACRL is data curation.  Many academic libraries are interested in making more research data services (RDS) available to their patrons. The authors say, “Libraries in larger or doctoral-granting institutions are more likely to offer a range of informational/consultative type services.” This is especially true for American and Canadian institutions.  I believe that smaller college and university libraries would like to offer RDS to their patrons; however, it is a challenge because they do not necessarily have the resources to do so.

There are several ways in which smaller academic libraries can overcome the challenges associated with providing RDS to their patrons. The authors suggest providing library staff with professional development so that they will obtain the necessary skills. Once librarians have learned how to work in RDS, they should be reassigned.  After librarians have gained experience, they should move into providing consulting services related to research data management and curation. Next, libraries could offer front-end data storage and curation. Lastly, academic libraries can help their librarians get involved in writing grant proposals.