Looking to up your game and gain new skills? We’ve got you covered with the best online courses for research data management.
In today’s data-driven world, research data management has become a crucial aspect of every research project. However, researchers often struggle with the proper management of their data, which can lead to data loss, corruption, and even research misconduct.
With the increasing volume and complexity of research data, researchers require proper training to manage their data effectively. But, due to limited resources, time constraints, and busy schedules, attending traditional training sessions can be a significant challenge.
Fortunately, the rise of online learning has made it easier than ever for researchers to acquire the skills needed to manage their data.
In this article, we will discuss the best online data management courses available for research data management, enabling researchers to develop the necessary skills to manage their data more efficiently and effectively.
Our selection is based on a combination of factors, but we have sorted the courses by enrollment numbers to make the list more informative. The ranking number (#1 or #10) reflects only the number of enrollments among the best courses.
| Course | Instructor(s) | 💸Pricing | ❤️Enrollments | ⭐Rating | ⌛Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1. Data Management for Clinical Research | Stephany Duda, PhD and Paul Harris, PhD | $49 for a verified certificate | ❤️❤️❤️❤️96,442 enrollments (as of Feb 2023) | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐4.7 (1,408 reviews as of Feb 2023) | ⌛⌛⌛⌛ 17 hours |
| #2. Data Management and Visualization | Lisa Dierker | $49 for a verified certificate | ❤️❤️❤️❤️78,387 enrollments (as of Feb 2023) | ⭐⭐⭐⭐4.4 (916 reviews as of Feb 2023) | ⌛⌛⌛ 12 hours |
| #3. The Data Analyst Course: Complete Data Analyst Bootcamp 2023 | 365 Careers | $89.99 | ❤️❤️❤️❤️66,629 enrollments (as of Feb 2023) | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐4.5 (7,671 reviews as of Feb 2023) | ⌛⌛⌛⌛⌛ 20h 55m |
| #4. Big Picture: Enterprise Data Management | Joseph Cline | $19 for a verified certificate | ❤️❤️❤️46,010 enrollments (as of Feb 2023) | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐4.6 (363 reviews as of Feb 2023) | ⌛ 1h 12m |
| #5. Learning Data Governance | Jonathan Reichental | Subscription cost is $39.99 for a verified certificate | ❤️❤️❤️43,258 enrollments (as of Feb 2023) | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐4.6 (1,260 reviews as of Feb 2023) | ⌛ 1h 24m |
| #6. March Towards Big Data – Big Data Implementation, Migration, Ingestion, Management, & Visualization | Nasir Raheem | Regular price is $80 (Current discounted price is $45 as of Feb 2023) | ❤️❤️❤️37,387 enrollments (as of Feb 2023) | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐4.5 (1,934 reviews as of Feb 2023) | ⌛ 2h 3m |
| #7. Research Data Management and Sharing | Helen Tibbo and Sarah Jones | $49 for a verified certificate | ❤️❤️❤️33,940 enrollments (as of Feb 2023) | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐4.7 (643 reviews as of Feb 2023) | ⌛⌛⌛ 13 hours |
| #8. Become a Data Architect | Ben Larson | $1,356 | ❤️❤️❤️25,126 enrollments (as of Feb 2023) | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐4.72 (611 reviews as of Feb 2023) | ⌛⌛ 5-10 hours/week (4 months course) |
| #9. Enterprise Data Management | Aaron Perry and Jie Li | $499 for a verified certificate | ❤️❤️16,640 enrollments (as of Feb 2023) | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐4.7 (643 reviews as of Feb 2023) | ⌛⌛ 8–10 hours per week (12 weeks course) |
| #10. Delivering Research Data Management Services | Alex Delipalta +6 more instructors | Subscription cost is $39.99/month | ❤️5,087 enrollments (as of Feb 2023) | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐4.7 (15 reviews as of Feb 2023) | ⌛ 3 hours per week (5 weeks course) |
Table of Contents
#1. Data Management for Clinical Research by Coursera
Key info
- 🔗Course Link
- 💸Pricing: $49 for a verified certificate
- ❤️ Popularity: 96,442 enrollments (as of Feb 2023)
- ⭐ Rating: 4.7 (1,408 reviews as of Feb 2023)
- 📝 Instructor(s): Stephany Duda, PhD and Paul Harris, PhD (Stephany Duda, PhD, is an associate professor in the Department of Biomedical Informatics at Vanderbilt University. Paul Harris, PhD, is an associate professor of biomedical informatics and biomedical engineering with approximately 15 years’ experience working in the field of clinical research informatics.)
- ⌛ Duration: 17 hours
“Data Management for Clinical Research” is a comprehensive course offered by Coursera that focuses on managing clinical research data effectively. This course covers the essential concepts of data management, including data collection, data ownership, data cleaning, data analytics, and data security.
It also explores the regulatory guidelines for clinical research data management, such as Good Clinical Practice (GCP) and International Council for Harmonisation (ICH).
Upon completing this course, learners will be equipped with the knowledge and data management skills necessary to ensure the accuracy, completeness, and integrity of clinical research data.
Meet the instructors:
What you will learn:
#2. Data Management and Visualization by Coursera
Key info
- 🔗Course Link
- 💸Pricing: $49 for a verified certificate
- ❤️ Popularity: 78,387 enrollments (as of Feb 2023)
- ⭐ Rating: 4.4 (916 reviews as of Feb 2023)
- 📝 Instructor(s): Lisa Dierker (Professor of Psychology at Wesleyan University with training in chronic disease epidemiology.)
- ⌛ Duration: 12 hours
The “Data Management and Visualization” course offered by Coursera is designed to provide learners with a comprehensive understanding of how to manage and visualize data effectively. The course covers topics such as data collection, data cleaning, data analysis, and data visualization.
Learners will be introduced to popular data management and visualization tools such as R, Tableau, and Excel, and will have the opportunity to apply these tools to real-world scenarios.
By the end of the course, learners will have the necessary skills to manage and visualize data, making it easy to derive insights and communicate findings effectively.
Meet the instructor:
What you will learn:
#3. The Data Analyst Course: Complete Data Analyst Bootcamp 2023 by Udemy
Key info
- 🔗Course Link
- 💸Pricing: $89.99
- ❤️ Popularity: 66,629 enrollments (as of Feb 2023)
- ⭐ Rating: 4.5 (7,671 reviews as of Feb 2023)
- 📝 Instructor(s): 365 Careers (#1 best-selling provider of business, finance, and data science courses on Udemy)
- ⌛ Duration: 20h 55m
The “Data Analyst Course: Complete Data Analyst Bootcamp 2023” by Udemy is a comprehensive program designed to equip learners with the skills and knowledge required to become a successful data analyst.
The course covers a wide range of topics, including statistical analysis, data visualization, SQL, Python, and machine learning. Through hands-on projects and real-world scenarios, learners will gain practical experience in analyzing and interpreting data, and communicating insights to stakeholders.
By the end of the course, learners will have a strong foundation in data analysis and be well-equipped to pursue a career in this exciting field.
Meet the instructor:
What you will learn:
#4. Big Picture: Enterprise Data Management by Pluralsight
Key info
- 🔗Course Link
- 💸Pricing: $19 for a verified certificate
- ❤️ Popularity: 46,010 enrollments (as of Feb 2023)
- ⭐ Rating: 4.6 (363 reviews as of Feb 2023)
- 📝 Instructor(s): Joseph Cline (A senior data engineer and has worked as a data management professional in various capacities and titles for the last nineteen years.)
- ⌛ Duration: 1h 12m
“Big Picture: Enterprise Data Management” is a comprehensive course offered by Pluralsight that explores the key basic concepts and best practices for managing data in large organizations.
Participants will learn how to design and implement an effective data strategy that ensures data accuracy, security, and accessibility. The course covers topics such as data governance, data modeling, data quality, and data security.
Taught by experienced instructors, the program provides learners with a deep understanding of the complexities involved in managing enterprise-level data, enabling them to make informed decisions and drive business success.
Meet the instructor:
What you will learn:
#5. Learning Data Governance by LinkedIn Learning
Key info
- 🔗Course Link
- 💸Pricing: Subscription cost is $39.99 for a verified certificate
- ❤️ Popularity: 43,258 enrollments (as of Feb 2023)
- ⭐ Rating: 4.6 (1,260 reviews as of Feb 2023)
- 📝 Instructor(s): Jonathan Reichental (Award-winning technology leader)
- ⌛ Duration: 1h 24m
The “Learning Data Governance” course by LinkedIn Learning is designed to help learners understand the fundamentals of data governance and its role in ensuring data quality, privacy, and compliance.
The course covers a range of topics, including data governance frameworks, policies, and procedures, as well as best practices for implementing effective data governance programs.
Through practical examples and case studies, learners will gain insights into the challenges and opportunities of data governance, and how to navigate them successfully.
Meet the instructor:
What you will learn:
#6. March Towards Big Data – Big Data Implementation, Migration, Ingestion, Management, & Visualization by Experfy
Key info
- 🔗Course Link
- 💸Pricing: Regular price is $80 (Current discounted price is $45 as of Feb 2023)
- ❤️ Popularity: 37,387 enrollments (as of Feb 2023)
- ⭐ Rating: 4.5 (1,934 reviews as of Feb 2023)
- 📝 Instructor(s): Nasir Raheem (Master’s in Management Science & Data Engineering and an MBA from Stanford University. He’s also a Certified Project Management Professional – Lic. # 1469312, Certified Scrum Master – Lic. # 100991 and a Certified Big Data Analyst.)
- ⌛ Duration: 2h 3m
This course, “March Towards Big Data” offered by Experfy, is a comprehensive training program that covers all aspects of big data implementation, migration, ingestion, management, and visualization.
It is designed to equip learners with the necessary skills and knowledge to tackle big data challenges in various industries. The course is taught by experienced professionals with a deep understanding of big data technologies and best practices.
By the end of the program, participants will have the ability to effectively manage and visualize big data, making them valuable assets to any organization.
Meet the instructor:
What you will learn:
#7. Research Data Management and Sharing
Key info
- 🔗Course Link
- 💸Pricing: $49 for a verified certificate
- ❤️ Popularity: 33,940 enrollments (as of Feb 2023)
- ⭐ Rating: 4.7 (643 reviews as of Feb 2023)
- 📝 Instructor(s): Helen Tibbo and Sarah Jones (Dr. Helen R. Tibbo is an Alumni Distinguished Professor at the School of Information and Library Science (SILS) at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Sarah Jones works at the Digital Curation Centre, a UK national service to support the higher education sector with research data management.)
- ⌛ Duration: 13 hours
The “Research Data Management and Sharing” course by Coursera is designed to equip researchers with the necessary skills to manage and share their research data effectively.
This course covers the entire data management plans lifecycle, from planning and organizing data to preserving and sharing it. Participants will learn about best practices for data management, metadata, and data sharing, as well as data management tools and technologies.
By the end of the course, participants will have developed a data management plan for their own research project and gained a deeper understanding of how to make their data discoverable, accessible, and reusable.
Meet the instructors:
What you will learn:
#8. Become a Data Architect by Udacity
Key info
- 🔗Course Link
- 💸Pricing: $1,356
- ❤️ Popularity: 25,126 enrollments (as of Feb 2023)
- ⭐ Rating: 4.72 (611 reviews as of Feb 2023)
- 📝 Instructor(s): Ben Larson (Data Architect, has a 15 years experience working as a data professional)
- ⌛ Duration: 5-10 hours/week (4 months course)
The “Become a Data Architect” course by Udacity is designed to equip learners with the skills and knowledge required to become a successful data architect.
The course covers a range of topics, database administration, including data modeling, database management systems, data warehousing, and data integration.
Through hands-on projects and real-world scenarios, learners will gain practical experience in designing, building, and maintaining complex data architectures.
By the end of the course, learners will have a strong foundation in data architecture and will be well-equipped to pursue a career in this exciting field.
Meet the instructor:
What you will learn:
#9. Enterprise Data Management by edX
Key info
- 🔗Course Link
- 💸Pricing: $499 for a verified certificate
- ❤️ Popularity: 16,640 enrollments (as of Feb 2023)
- ⭐ Rating: 4.7 (643 reviews as of Feb 2023)
- 📝 Instructor(s): Aaron Perry and Jie Li (Aaron Perry is a Senior Lecturer of Operations and Decisions Technologies at Indiana University – Kelley School of Business. Jie Li is the Lecturer of Operations and Decisions Technologies at Indiana University – Kelley School of Business.)
- ⌛ Duration: 8–10 hours per week (12 weeks course)
The “Enterprise Data Management” course offered by edX provides learners with an in-depth understanding of how to manage and organize data within an enterprise setting.
Through this course, students will learn about the fundamental concepts of data management, including data governance, data quality, and metadata management.
They will also explore key technologies and tools used for managing data, such as data warehouses, master data management systems, and business intelligence tools.
Upon completing this course, learners will be equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary to effectively manage and utilize data within large organizations.
Meet the instructors:
What you will learn:
#10. Delivering Research Data Management Services by Future Learn
Key info
- 🔗Course Link
- 💸Pricing: Subscription cost is $39.99/month
- ❤️ Popularity: 5,087 enrollments (as of Feb 2023)
- ⭐ Rating: 4.7 (15 reviews as of Feb 2023)
- 📝 Instructor(s): Alex Delipalta (MSc in Developmental Linguistics, and 3 years of experience as an RA in speech & language processing), Sarah Jones(A decade of experience in research data management and open science), René van Horik (Senior project manager at DANS (NL)), Ryan O’Connor (Research Data Specialist at the Digital Curation Centre), Eirini Zormpa (Trainer on Research Data Management and Open Science at TU Delft and 4TU.ResearchData), and S Venkataraman (Training Officer for OpenAIRE)
- ⌛ Duration: 3 hours per week (5 weeks course)
“Delivering Research Data Management Services” is an online course offered by Future Learn that provides a comprehensive understanding of research data management (RDM) services.
The program covers topics such as data management planning, storage, preservation, and sharing. Participants will learn how to develop effective RDM policies and work with researchers to ensure compliance with funder requirements.
Taught by expert instructors, the course equips learners with the skills and knowledge to deliver high-quality RDM services to researchers and organizations, enabling them to make better use of their data and drive innovation.
Meet the instructors:
What you will learn:
Final Thoughts
Congratulations, you have made it to the end of the discussion on the best online courses for research data management! Now that you have learned about the different courses available, you may be wondering which one is the best fit for you.
Do you prefer a self-paced course, or one with a set schedule? Are you looking for a course that is more focused on the technical aspects of data management or one that covers the broader aspects of data management planning?
Whatever your preferences may be, the good news is that there are plenty of options available to you by data managers. With the increasing importance of research data management, it is important to stay up-to-date with the latest tools and techniques in the field.
So, what are you waiting for? Start exploring the various online courses for research data management and take the first step towards mastering this crucial aspect of research.
Who knows, you may even discover new strategies that can help you streamline your workflow and boost the impact of your research. Happy learning!
