frequently asked questions

What is research data management (RDM), and where can I learn more?

A: “Research data management”  (RDM) refers to the methodical and organized handling of research data throughout its entire life cycle. The goal of systematic RDM is to make research data FAIR: findable, accessible, inter-operable and reusable, in the long term, and independent of the researcher(s) who initially generated the data or data sets.

There are many excellent introductions to the topic. One example is the Brochure “Research Data Management. A Guide for Researchers” by the Alliance of German Science Organisations (PFD; German, English). If you want to learn more about the German RDM landscape, a good place to start is forschungsdaten.info (German; EN:  Link).

How can I participate in NFDI4Ing?

A: The best way to start is to visit our community hub. There you can find information on the best ways to get into contact with like-minded researchers and the NFDI/RDM community at large. You may also want to check the information on our work program and the individual task areas (archetypes, base services), to get an overview of our activities. There you will also find contact information for each task area.

Where can I find information on the seed fund program?

A: All required documents as well as information material on the program can be found in the calls provided under downloads.

How can I access the NFDI4Ing-SharePoint?

A: To gain access to the NFDI4Ing SharePoint you first have to request a “TU-ID”. To do that, please send an email containing the following information to contact@nfdi4ing.de:

• Last name
• First name
• Date of birth

And, for your business address:

• Personal email address (no group mailboxes)
• Street address
• ZIP/postcal code
• City
• Phone number

Please CC your co-spokesperson, who guarantees your information is correct. Once we have this information, we will send you a formal application, which you will have to sign and send back to the address provided in the document. As soon as this is done, we can provide access to the SharePoint. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at contact@nfdi4ing.de

I want to join the Rocket.chat – what do I have to do?

A: For now, access to the NFDI Rocket.chat is limited to members of the currently funded consortia. If you are a member of or participant in NFDI4Ing, you can request access on the NFDI4Ing SharePoint. A document describing the process can be found here (Link). If you don’t have access to the NFDI4Ing SharePoint yet, the process to request access is described above.