DATA ACCESS - FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How can students access the data holdings?

Doctoral students and students in research-oriented master's programs are eligible to access Population Data BC's data holdings in fulfillment of their thesis research requirements. However, students are subject to the same conditions and responsibilities as university-affiliated researchers. That includes:

• ensuring that ethics and supervisory review requirements have been met
• becoming familiar with all material outlining access requirements, privacy considerations and data holdings
• submitting a research protocol and completed Data Access Request (DAR) to Population Data BC

Students are expected to analyse the data that results from their request.

Timing
Completing a DAR, the associated approval process and data preparation, can be a lengthy process taking anywhere from six months to over a year, and students should be aware of that fact when planning the research segment of their degree.

The Data Steward(s) requires that students using data from Population Data BC submit their thesis to them for review at least 60 days in advance of submission to the thesis review committee. The Data Steward(s) have 45 days to review and respond to the work, after which the student will have a minimum of 14 days to make any suggested edits prior to their final submission. Students may submit materials for review by email. Questions regarding this requirement can be addressed to the same address.

Fees For Students
Graduate students who have received research funding are expected to reimburse reasonable cost recovery charges to Population Data BC. If a master's or doctoral student doesn't have access to funding, they may apply to have the costs waived.

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