The Irish Social Science Data Archive (ISSDA) based in UCD Library has announced the launch of ISSDA Dataverse, a modern platform that significantly enhances how users access, discover, and work with archived social science data. Supported by funding from Research Ireland, ISSDA Dataverse offers multiple benefits to users including ease of data access, discoverability, and use. The open-source platform also increases the FAIRness of deposited data meaning that it is findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable. Additionally, ISSDA has unveiled a new look ISSDA website with increased accessibility and user-friendly interface. Combined, these new developments represent a significant improvement in how researchers and data managers interact with Ireland’s leading repository of quantitative social science data.
On 16 Oct, ISSDA will run a demonstration in finding and accessing Irish social science data through their newly launched Dataverse, you can register here.
About ISSDA
ISSDA is Ireland’s leading centre for quantitative data acquisition, preservation, and dissemination. Based at UCD Library, its mission is to ensure wide access to quantitative datasets in the social sciences, and to advance the promotion of international comparative studies of the Irish economy and Irish society. ISSDA makes a number of key data studies related to Irish society available for secondary data analysis including Growing Up in Ireland (GUI), The Irish Longitudinal study on Ageing (TILDA) and Central Statistics Office (CSO) data such as the Household Budget Survey and Labour Force Survey.
What is Dataverse?
Dataverse is an open-source data repository platform designed by Harvard University to share, preserve, cite and explore research data. Dataverse enables repositories to make datasets easily discoverable and accessible online. It is widely used by data repositories including by a number of CESSDA Service Providers. For researchers and data managers, this means more reliable data sharing and long-term preservation. Dataverse is supported by and maintained by 4Science, a trusted provider with many years experience working with universities and research institutions on digital projects, and managing open software solutions. The ISSDA Dataverse repository is hosted on the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud in the Dublin Data Center, ensuring a robust and secure technical platform.
Key Benefits for Data Users
- Streamlined access with institutional logins
- Improved discoverability through a new search interface and standardised metadata
- Grouped datasets by project or organisation for easier browsing
- Open Access datasets and documentation can be downloaded directly
- Datasets available in multiple formats including tab-delimited and RStudio-ready files
- Automatic data citation in EndNote, RIS, or BibTex formats
Explore the ISSDA Dataverse User Guide here.
Key Benefits for Data Depositors
- DOIs minted for datasets via DataCite to enhance discoverability
- Compliance with international metadata standards (Data Documentation Initiative (DDI), CESSDA Metadata Model)
- Inclusion in the CESSDA Data Catalogue, increasing visibility across Europe
- Data linked to research outputs via ORCID iDs and publication PIDs
Explore the ISSDA Dataverse here.
How can I learn more about ISSDA Dataverse?
Training on ISSDA Dataverse for data users and depositors will commence in Autumn 2025 and will be advertised on the ISSDA website and social media.
Can I access all ISSDA datasets via ISSDA Dataverse?
A number of datasets are now available via ISSDA Dataverse. Over the coming months, we will be adding more datasets to the platform. In the meantime a list of datasets in ISSDA Dataverse can be viewed on the ISSDA Access Data webpage and here you will also find a list of datasets not in ISSDA dataverse and how to request them.
Register for the 16 Oct ISSDA demonstration of the newly launched Dataverse here.