About repositories & publishing data

Data repositories make it possible to share and preserve data, increasing the visibility, accessibility, and reusability of your research.  

Publishing your research data increases the visibility, reproducibility, and long-term impact of your work. DTU researchers can use DTU Data, our secure, locally hosted repository, free of charge, to store and share datasets, code and other research outputs. While we always recommend using discipline-specific repositories when available, DTU Data provides a reliable, general option for all types of research data.

When publishing, you must assign a license to your dataset to clarify how others may access, use, and cite your work. DTU Data supports a range of open licenses, such as Creative Commons (CC BY), allowing you to share your data responsibly while protecting your rights as a creator.

By sharing your data responsibly, you contribute to transparent, reusable, and verifiable research.

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Datamanagement DTU Library

Why Publish Your Research Data?

Publishing your data—or at least making it available for others to access—can significantly enhance the impact and reach of your research. Here’s why it’s worth considering:

  • Increase visibility and citations – Datasets linked to publications are more discoverable. For example, sharing experimental results or simulation outputs in a repository can lead to your work being cited by other researchers who reuse your data.

  • Ensure reproducibility – Making your data available allows others to verify your results. For instance, if you publish a dataset from a complex laboratory experiment, peers can replicate your findings or apply your methods to new research questions.

  • Preserve your work long-term – Repositories provide secure storage so your data remains accessible for years, even after the project ends. This is especially valuable for large or unique datasets, like long-term environmental monitoring data.

  • Get a DOI for your data – Many repositories assign a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) to your dataset. A DOI provides a permanent, citable link that makes your data easy to reference in publications, track its usage, and ensure long-term accessibility even if the storage location changes.

  • Meet funder and journal requirements – Many funding agencies and journals now require data sharing. Publishing your data ensures compliance and demonstrates transparency.

  • Enable collaboration and innovation – Shared data can spark new research ideas, interdisciplinary projects, or industrial applications. For example, publicly available climate or materials datasets have enabled cross-institution collaborations that led to new discoveries.

By thoughtfully sharing your data, you not only strengthen the credibility and reproducibility of your research but also maximize its scientific and societal value

As open as possible, as closed as necessary?

Not all research data can be shared freely - some may be sensitive, confidential, or subject to privacy or intellectual property restrictions. Even when access is limited, you can still follow FAIR principles by making metadata available. This way, others know your data exists, can understand its structure, and may request access if appropriate - maximizing visibility and potential reuse while protecting sensitive information.  

Licensing your research data ensures that others know exactly how they may use, share, and cite your work. A clear license removes uncertainty, encourages responsible reuse, and helps you receive proper credit.

Open licenses such as Creative Commons (CC BY) support transparency and collaboration while protecting your rights as the data creator. Choosing the right license is an important step in making your data FAIR — Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable.

How to choose your license

  • For research data: DTU recommends using a Creative Commons license, such as CC BY, which allows reuse with proper attribution, this is likely also what the research paper itself will be published under.

  • For restricted data: If your data cannot be openly shared (e.g., for confidentiality or legal reasons), you can still register metadata and select a more restrictive license or access condition.

  • For software and code: Software must be licensed under a software-specific license such as e.g. BSD-3 Clause. MIT, GPL, or Apache 2.0, rather than Creative Commons. Software licenses define how code can be used, modified, and redistributed — something Creative Commons licenses are not designed to regulate.

If your dataset includes both data and code, DTU Data allows you to assign different licenses to individual files using the “Various licenses” option. This ensures that each component is shared under the appropriate legal terms.

For further guidance on license selection contact ophavsret@dtu.dk

 

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