Statistical Computing II

Course Description

The aim of this course is to introduce students to essential concepts and tools required for the management and analysis of data using modern and open source statistical software. Data manipulation, descriptive analyses, importing and exporting data, R objects and R functions, and interpretation are introduced using R statistical software. The course will develop basic skills in the use of an open source statistical package R through classroom demonstrations and independent lab assignments. The course will emphasize data definition, descriptive and inferential statistics and graphical presentation.

The course also aims to teach students to use the SAS statistical programming language and to apply this knowledge appropriately in a variety of settings. Student achievement in the course will rely heavily on performing computational tasks, data management, editing data, running basic statistical procedures, and producing reports using SAS.

This is a data analysis course that shows how to use the statistical packages SAS and R to help solve both simple and complex real-life data problems including one-, two-, and k-sample statistical problems. Basic concepts include data preparation, modification, analysis, and interpretation of results. 

Course objectives

The aim of this course is to provide students with the knowledge and skills required to undertake moderate to high level data manipulation and management in preparation for statistical analysis of data. Specific objectives are for students to:

•  Gain experience in data manipulation and management using two major statistical software packages (R and SAS)
• Learn how to display and summarize data using statistical software
• Become familiar with basic statistical data analysis using statistical software packages (R and SAS)
• Acquire fundamental programming skills for efficient use of software packages
•  communicate the findings of a statistical analysis in a clear, concise, and scientific manner