Call for Online Training Workshop

Data Management and Sharing for the Social Sciences

November 28 to 30, 2021

Application deadline is Sunday October 31, 2021, 11:00 pm (Beirut time)

The Arab Council for the Social Sciences (ACSS), through its Arab Public Data Archive initiative, is pleased to announce an online workshop on “Data Management and Sharing for the Social Sciences” co-organized with the Odum Institute for Research in Social Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The workshop will be held online from November 28 to 30, 2021, and is designed for early career researchers and research support staff in the social sciences. The workshop aims to enable participants to manage their research data and shows the pathway and best practices towards data sharing.

The benefits of making data open and accessible have been widely discussed within the academic and public policy communities. Sharing research data enables others to verify and build upon published results, supports transparency and accountability of research findings, increases the return on public investments in research, encourages new scientific innovations, and facilitates collaboration within and across disciplines. However, there are real challenges associated with sharing data with the broader community. Fortunately, many of these challenges can be overcome with careful data management planning and implementation. 

Workshop Objectives

The workshop will examine the opportunities and challenges of creating and sharing high-quality data resources. Workshop participants will learn about:

• The benefits of research data management and the sharing of FAIR data (that is they meet the principles of findability, accessibility, interoperability and reusability) and open datasets to both the individual researcher and to the scientific enterprise as a whole;
• The complexities of research data based on disciplinary context, format, technical requirements, and applicable policies;
• The implementation of data management standards and best practices across the research data lifecycle to produce and share high-quality datasets;
• Drafting a research data management plan with real live examples;
• Applications for archiving research data for long-term preservation, discovery, access, and reuse;

Workshop Format

• The training workshop will be held online and in English
• Training will be from 11am until 5:00 pm (Beirut time)
• Participants are expected to fully participate in all sessions
• The training will include synchronous learning with supplemental exercises done independently or in small breakout groups
• Participants will be awarded an ACSS-Odum Institute certificate based on workshop attendance and successful completion of the workshop

Tentative Training Workshop Agenda

*Individual learning sessions include break times at participants’ leisure*

Day 1: Sunday, November 28, 2021

Introduction to Research Data Management 

Applicants must:

• Be citizens of an Arab League member state or nationals of an Arab country (defined as long-term residents, even if they do not hold citizenship as in the case of refugees or stateless residents)
• Reside in the Arab region.
• Have at least intermediate level proficiency in English, as the workshop will be conducted in English
• Have a minimum of a Master’s degree in social science or related field (Economics, Political Science, Development Studies, Statistics, Computer Sciences, Library and Information Sciences, etc) or Bachelor’s degree with relevant work experience in social science data.

Application Process and Selection

• Applicants are required apply online through this link: https://acss.grantplatform.com/.
• Please select English when completing your registration on the system.
• Click on ‘Start application’
• Under ‘Chapter’, click on ‘ACSS/Odum training workshop’ then click on ‘Save + next’ and fill out all the fields.
  • Attach your CV/Resume and cover letter (200 words maximum).
• When done, click on ‘Submit application’.

Application deadline is Sunday October 31, 2021, 11:00 pm (Beirut time)

The selection committee is comprised of staff members from ACSS and faculty of the Odum Institute who will review applications based on the following criteria:

• Relevance of current position
• Academic qualifications
• Language proficiency

By submitting the electronic application, applicants affirm that they agree, without any objections, to the evaluation and selection results as decided and announced by the selection committee and ACSS. All decisions made by the selection committee are final.

Accepted Applicants 

Accepted applicants are expected to:

• Provide their own computer with internet access and spreadsheet software (Excel, Google Sheets, Libreoffice Calc etc.)
• Participate in online activities on Moodle and upload evidence of their completion of assignments
• Participate fully and attend all sessions of the workshop

Please direct any queries to assm@theacss.orgnoting “ACSS/Odum online training” in the subject line.

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About the Arab Council for the Social Sciences

The Arab Council for the Social Sciences (ACSS) is a regional, independent, non-profit organization headquartered in Beirut, Lebanon. The ACSS works across the Arab region as well as globally. It aims to promote and support the social sciences throughout the 22 countries in the Arab region by providing funding, training, mentorship, publications and networking opportunities. It seeks to achieve this objective by promoting quality research in the region; establishing networks of knowledge production; enhancing research collaborations regionally, cross-regionally and globally; disseminating, validating and utilizing the produced knowledge; and providing a model for academic excellence and professional standards in the region. For more information, please visit http://www.theacss.org.

About the Odum Institute

Founded in 1924, the Howard W. Odum Institute for Research in the Social Sciences supports the social science teaching and research mission at UNC. The Institute provides a range of consulting services on quantitative and qualitative methods, GIS and spatial analysis, survey research, and data management. Odum offers workshops, summer courses, and a graduate certificate program. For more information, please visit http://odum.unc.edu.

About the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

UNC-Chapel Hill, founded in 1789 as the first public university in the United States, is a global higher education leader known for innovative teaching, research and public service. A member of the prestigious Association of American Universities, the University offers 78 Bachelor’s, 112 Master’s, 68 Doctorate and seven professional degree programs. For more information, please visit http://www.unc.edu. 

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