The Digital Research Commons (DRC) exists to encourage and facilitate interdisciplinary research and build communities of practice around modern digital research methodologies. As part of the UH Libraries’ Research Services department, the DRC provides the UH community with the hardware and software tools to start and develop projects of all sizes. The DRC is also available to host workshops, lectures, and conferences throughout the year.

The DRC is located on the second floor of M.D. Anderson Library (Brown Wing, Room 266-C) and has four main areas available to members of the UH community: three Group Workstations, a Lecture Area, a VideoWall with attached PC, and a Podcast Studio. Along with powerful computers, the DRC offers a collection of software that facilitate audio editing, code development, mapping and geospatial analysis, optical character recognition, and research data analysis, cleaning, and visualization. These resources will aid in the earliest stages of formulating a research question to publication and beyond.

We maintain open hours during the fall and spring semester, and over the summer and winter breaks we are accessible by appointment. You may book time in the DRC via this form or by emailing us directly at drc@uh.edu. If you would like to use the DRC resources outside of business hours, please let us know as early as possible we can facilitate your request.

The DRC welcomes referrals for instructors, students, or staff who wish to:

• Record or edit podcasts or other audio content
• Host workshops or other research-oriented gatherings (e.g. poster sessions)
• Leverage the equipment, computers, software, or programs installed in the DRC for a course or project
• Visualize research findings or other scholarly content on the VideoWall
• Give a lecture or presentation in an in-person or hybrid format
• Undertake small-group research
• Consult with library experts