The landscape of research data, scholarly communication, and data services changes fast…faster than most formal training programs can keep up with. If you’re thinking about moving into data librarianship (or you’re already in the role and trying to keep up), it can be daunting. Luckily, data librarianship has a generous, active, wildly knowledgeable community. That community is one of your most powerful career assets.
Below is a curated, community-informed guide to the conferences, training programs, reading habits, and professional groups that can help you get oriented and stay connected to the people shaping the field.
Start With Community/Professional Groups
- RDAP (Research Data Access & Preservation): If you do only one thing, join RDAP. Their listserv, Slack space, webinars, and annual conference make RDAP the beating heart of the North American research data community. It’s approachable, friendly, and full of peers who share generously. Pro tip: RDAP also has a Resource Hub, and they actively welcome contributions. It’s a great place to find curated training and to give back.
- IASSIST: A must-know for anyone working with research data, especially in the social sciences but increasingly beyond. IASSIST offers webinars, special interest groups, and one of the most community-driven annual conferences in the field.
- Data Curation Network: A great place to deepen practical curation skills. High-signal conversations, tools, and case studies
- Digital Curation Centre (DCC): A foundational hub of guidance on data management and curation, with excellent how-to materials and models. They also have an Associates email list you can join to get updates and training opportunities
- Research Data Alliance (RDA): A global umbrella organization with many interest groups and working groups. You can sign up for areas relevant to your work (especially the Libraries for Research Data Interest Group) to stay connected to international conversations and emerging standards
Conferences Worth Your Time
You don’t have to attend all of these, but consider exploring a few to find your people
- RDAP Annual Meeting: approachable and data-services-focused
- IASSIST: Annual Conference: deep dives into data curation plus social science data
- CSVConf: for data-curious folks who like the intersection of social justice, data journalism/storytelling, and data tech
- DLF Forum (Digital Library Federation): broader digital-library community, with strong data overlap
- Open Repositories: Very relevant for data stewardship and repository infrastructure.
- CNI (Coalition for Networked Information): Strong on digital scholarship, research IT, persistent identifiers, data policy
- FORCE11 Conference: Metadata, credit, FAIR, research communication, high overlap with data librarianship
- International Digital Curation Conference (IDCC): One of the most respected spaces for digital curation and RDM research
- ICPSR Summer Program: renowned methods workshops + data librarian bootcamp
- Carpentries Workshops: hands-on technical skills (Python, R, Git, data cleaning)
- Even better: become an instructor. Teaching reinforces the skills and connects you with a global network.
Training and Certificate Programs
These programs can help you get grounded or formalize a professional pivot:
- RDMLA (Research Data Management Library Academy): A strong primer. Works best if you pair it with a mentor or discussion group.
- DSCPE (Data Services Continuing Professional Education): An intensive, 12-week online program that many in the field swear by.
- University iSchool Certificates: (e.g., University of Tennessee’s Research Data Management Graduate Certificate). These aren’t required but can be helpful if you like structured, credentialed pathways.
- ICPSR Data Librarian Bootcamp: A targeted, field-specific training offered during the ICPSR Summer Program. Excellent for building comfort with quantitative research data and social science workflows.
Technical Skills Pay Off
You don’t need to become a software engineer, but having some technical confidence changes everything. Consider:
- Python
- R
- SQL
- Git/GitHub
- Basic command-line skills
Carpentries trainings are ideal for this because they focus on practical, beginner-friendly, research-oriented skills.
Publications to Keep on your Radar
Journals
- JeSLIB (Journal of eScience Librarianship)
- JLSC (Journal of Librarianship and Scholarly Communication)
- IJDC (International Journal of Digital Curation)
Even periodic table-of-contents scanning can keep you current on trends.
Foundational Reading
- A list of foundational resources is available here: https://doi.org/10.3897/rio.11.e154845:
- Goben A, Briney KA (2025) Data Management Books for Researchers – An Annotated Bibliography. Research Ideas and Outcomes 11: e154845. https://doi.org/10.3897/rio.11.e154845
- Margaret Henderson’s Data Management: A Practical Guide for Librarians: great introduction that bridges LIS foundations and practical RDM workflows.
- Two books that are great places to go for the basics:
- Cox, A., & Verbaan, E. (2018). Exploring research data management. Facet Publishing. ISBN 978-1-78330-278-9
- Henderson, M. E. (2017). Data management: A practical guide for librarians. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 9781442264380
Internships, Bootcamps & Real-World Experience
- NCDS Internships: These are great for librarians already in the field who want real hands-on exposure to data work
- ICPSR Workshops: These aren’t just for social scientists; data librarians learn a ton from working alongside researchers (Recording of a past session: Providing Data Services and Support: From Surviving to Succeeding | ICPSR)
- Volunteer Teaching with the Carpentries: This builds confidence, community, and immediate practical value
Tap Into Everyday Community Knowledge
The data-librarian community is uncommonly open, supportive, and collaborative. Some of the best ways to stay plugged in:
- Join relevant Slack workspaces (RDAP, Carpentries, DataCure, institutional groups)
- Attend topical webinars (IASSIST, RDAP, ICPSR, DLF)
- Follow active practitioners on social media (LinkedIn, Bluesky, Mastodon)
- Share slides, workflows, and code openly. Post to your institutional repo or to Zenodo.
This is a community where asking questions is normal, not embarrassing. Data librarianship thrives because people share freely: tools, failures, workflows, job ads, and questions that start with “Is anyone else seeing…?” There is no single path into the field. Instead, there is a community that helps you build the path as you go.
If you’re advising someone exploring data librarianship, or you’re stepping into the role yourself, this post can be a great starting point. But the most important step is simply showing up:
Join a Slack. Ask a question. Attend a webinar. Volunteer to teach a Carpentries workshop.
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Contributors: Thank you to everyone in the community who helped pull this together, especially Amanda Whitmire, Abigail Goben, Kristin Briney, Megan O’Donnell, Kelsey Badger, Deb McCaffrey, Jen Ferguson, Mikala Narlock, Stephanie Labou, Rachel Woodbrook, Katharine Tepper, and Stephanie Labou.
If there’s a resource, program, or community space we missed that you think others would benefit from, we’d love to hear from you. Send us a note at uc3@ucop.edu and help keep this guide growing.