Introduction to R

The first part of this course teaches R with a focus on manipulating and visualizing data. You will get set up with a functional RStudio workflow, learn to use different file types, transform data tables, import and manipulate data, use functions and loops, create data visualizations, make a Shiny app, and learn how to solve problems with their programming. Both base R and tidyverse methods are included. To work reproducibly, you will create R Projects.

The second part of the course will cover the ethics of consent, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (EDI) training, and professional skills including presentation, project management, and data security. Finally, the course will conclude with an industry case study.

Requirements

This course is designed for those who have a degree in something other than Computer Science/Statistics and are looking to enhance their data science skills for their career.

Learning Outcomes

  • The ability to set up and use R and RStudio
  • The ability to manipulate and visualize data
  • The ability to fix errors
  • An understanding of consent in data-based studies
  • The ability to make presentations and manage projects

Delivery Format/Length

Online for 7 hours/week for 3 weeks (21 hours in total).

2023 Summer Dates

  • Monday 29 May, 6pm-8pm: Hello World! And Work practices (Set-up; prep session for installation; R basics; file types; errors)
  • Thursday 1 June, 6pm-8pm: Data in R (tibbles, strings, factors, times, missing values)
  • Saturday 3 June, 9am-noon: Manipulation (filtering; arranging; selecting; mutating, pipe; grouping; summarize)
  • Monday 5 June, 6pm-8pm: Wrangling (importing data; pivot, joining data; data.table)
  • Thursday 8 June, 6pm-8pm: Programming (custom functions, loops, if/else logic, purr, simulations)
  • Saturday 10 June, 9am-noon: Visualization (initialization, choosing chart types, ggplot, customizing)
  • Monday 12 June, 6pm-8pm: Shiny applications; Ethics, inequity and professional skills
  • Thursday 15 June, 6pm-8pm: Professional skills: Industry case study
  • Saturday 17 June, 9am-noon: R: Review and Practice

2022 Fall Dates

  • Monday 7 November, 6pm-8pm: Hello World! And Work practices (R basics; file types; errors)
  • Thursday 10 November, 6pm-8pm: Data in R (Key data types: tibbles, strings, factors, times, missing values)
  • Saturday 12 November, 9am-noon: Manipulation I (Filtering; arranging; selecting; mutating)
  • Monday 14 November, 6pm-8pm: Manipulation II (The pipe; grouping; summarizing)
  • Thursday 17 November, 6pm-8pm: Wrangling I (Importing data; database in R; cleaning)
  • Saturday 19 November, 9am-noon: Wrangling II (Pivot; joining data; data.table)
  • Monday 21 November, 6pm-8pm: Programming (custom functions); visualization; shiny; ethics; inequity
  • Thursday 24 November, 6pm-8pm: Professional skills: Industry case study
  • Saturday 26 November, 9am-noon: R: Review and Practice