SAS Summer Workshop

The 6-week summer SAS workshop is designed to introduce current MPH students, CSUN MPH alumni, and community partners (with an MPH) to the basics of SAS coding and statistical concepts required for effective public health research using small and large datasets.

Workshop Overview

• 6-week workshop (6 consecutive Saturday meetings from July 8 to August 12)
• Time: 1:00 - 3:45 p.m.
• Cost (includes attendance and workshop materials): 
• $150 Current CSUN MPH students
• $300 CSUN MPH Alumni
• $400 Public Health Practitioner (Non-CSUN alumni)

Register for the 2023 Summer Workshop

 Content will include

• Orientation to the SAS program
• Reading data into SAS 
• Data management
• Univariate and bivariate statistics 
• Data visualization and graphing features
• Regression modeling 
• Use of basic macros and code 

Pre-requisite

Although statistical methods and theory will be discussed, this workshop assumes that participants have a foundation in data management, analysis of variance (ANOVA), and multivariable regression modeling.  Therefore, completion of HSCI 592 (graduate biostatistics or equivalent) is required.

Format

Each week the instructor and attendees will meet for 2 hours and 45 minutes in a seminar style workshop with the option of attending in-person (on the CSUN campus) or virtually.  

The seminar will be comprised of a lecture and in class assignments designed to build students’ competencies and comfort with SAS, the preferred statistical software of the state of California and county of Los Angeles county public health departments. Each week participants will be assigned projects to apply their learning outside of the workshop setting.  Although not graded, the instructor will provide feedback to all participants.

Expected learning outcomes
After completing the workshops, students will be able to:

• To read, export, and save excel, SPSS, and SAS data files  
• Use SAS language to code, manage, and concatenate data
• Use syntax to conduct bivariate analyses and nonparametric equivalent
• Use syntax and macros for data visualization
• Comprehend and clarify the role of statistical and epidemiological theory and methodology in public health research;
• Correctly interpret and present findings of regression models covered in the course and have knowledge about sample size calculation.

Skills and abilities:
After completing the workshop, students shall be able to:

• Analyze data in SAS using the different methods covered in the course; and 
• Build tables, graphs and figures to discuss the results of such analyses correctly