Reference Department - Data Services

DataFinder Search - search data sets purchased by Davis Library

The Library may be able to help you procure data. Here are some things to consider.

• Do we already own the data?
  • Search the Statistics DataFinder above
  • Search the Library's catalog
  • Ask the Data Services Librarian
• Are the data available for purchase?
• You don't know if the data you want exist, or you know where it exists but you don't know how to get it.

Purchases

Please email me at michele_hayslett@unc.edu and include as much information as you can, such as:

• Publisher/producer of the data
• Data set name or title
• Years available and years you particularly want
• If there are different geographies available, what they are and which you particularly want
• Price
• Where specifically you found information about the data set--a citation in an article, on a web site, etc.

Caveats

1. Before I spend funds I must consider

1. price
2. whether a data set is likely to be used by other researchers, and
3. the available budget.

So for example, data that cost $20,000 for one year's access and are only likely to be used by one person are unlikely to be purchased.

2. Be sure to speak with your advisor about the data set and your research hypothesis before you come to me. Your ideas about your research may change drastically with that input.

3. Remember that the purchase process can take a long time. I may be able to purchase something but it may take months to get it. How quickly we can get it is dependent on several variables including working out a license agreement between the Library and the vendor. Licenses are legal agreements and therefore must be reviewed with care--this is not a fast process. I cannot provide any estimate about when something will be available for use.

Other Help

Unknown Sources

Maybe you have a good idea of what kind of data you want but you have no idea where to find it. You have only one option here: talk to the people who know. That might be your advisor or it could be me. Or it might be a government agency, or a trade group. Who has an interest in this kind of data? I'm happy to help with tracking down sources--email me.

Known Sources

Sometimes you may know that a particular organization, institution or government agency collects certain data but you don't know how to go about getting it.

I can often help.

Sometimes the people who have data simply want to know that you have a legitimate, serious research interest. Sometimes there are only certain ways data can be used. I can help you figure out what the conditions are, whether alternative sources are available and, if necessary, reassure the data producer that you really are using this for your dissertation/thesis/class paper.

Again, please email me with as much information as you can (see list of possible things to include under Purchases).