Using the MRDC

Persons wishing to conduct research at a Federal Statistical Research Data Center (RDC) must submit a research proposal to the Center for Economic Studies (CES) to use Census Bureau data or to the federal agency responsible for the data set that the researcher wishes to access via ResearchDataGov.

The MRDC is a joint venture between the Census Bureau and the University of Michigan. Access to the MRDC is provided at no charge to University of Michigan faculty and graduate students. Other researchers should inquire to the MRDC for fee information.

Researchers who wish to develop a proposal to conduct research using Census Bureau data at the MRDC should first contact the RDC administrator. The researcher should discuss the proposed project with the administrator to determine whether the research fits with the Bureau’s mandate, is feasible, is likely to provide benefits to Census Bureau programs under Title 13 of the U.S. Code, is designed to produce model based statistical estimates, and that the research output will not pose undue risk of disclosing information about an individual survey respondent.

Once the RDC administrator and the researcher have agreed it is sensible to proceed, the researcher submits a completed proposal via ResearchDataGov. 

For resources for preparing a proposal, visit our proposal guidelines page.