We recently improved our Advanced R course for Master’s students and PhD candidates. The course now lasts for one week, has received a positive evaluation, and will be scheduled again for the next academic year.
Complete overhaul
Advanced R is a complete overhaul of the former course for Master’s students and PhD candidates. The one-week intensive course focuses on technical and programming aspects of R, including creation of packages, the R S3 and S4 object orientation systems, plotting and web apps using Shiny. Twenty-six students attended the course in an interactive class setting, with brief explanations and lots of hands-on work using their own laptops. According to the evaluation forms, the students enjoyed the course, and while there are still some wrinkles to iron out, we’re positive the course can be very useful to anyone who wants to take their R skills to the next level.
What is R?
R provides a wide variety of statistical (linear and nonlinear modelling, classical statistical tests, time-series analysis, classification, clustering) and graphical techniques, and is highly extensible. The S language is often the vehicle of choice for research in statistical methodology, and R provides an Open Source route to participation in that activity.