STA 440: Case Studies

STA 440 is an intensive applied course that asks you to analyze timely real-world data across diverse domains in a principled, data-driven way. There may be more than one reasonable approach for any given situation, and you may be introduced to new material and techniques you haven't yet seen. Along the way, you'll work with a team of peers, develop critical thinking and communication skills, develop best-practices in version-control and reproducibility, and strive to become a creative and well-rounded practicing statistician.


Course info
Lecture M/W 10:05 - 11:20 AM Soc. Sci. 136
Lab (Olivier) M 3:05 - 4:20 PM Gross Hall 105
Lab (Nathan) M 4:40 - 5:55 PM Gross Hall 105
Instructor Yue Jiang T / Th 10:30 - 11:30 Old Chemistry 207A
Teaching Assistant Olivier Binette M 1:30 - 3 Old Chemistry 114
Teaching Assistant Nathan Varberg W 1 - 3 Perkins 313

Additional instructor office hours are available by appointment.

To develop your skills as a practicing statistician, throughout the course you will:

  • solidify skills in reproducible research and programming, including version-control and collaboration via GitHub,
  • critically think about reasonable analysis approaches in the context of recent real-world data,
  • express statistical models clearly and correctly,
  • develop scientific writing skills by providing clear, concise, data-driven conclusions, and
  • effectively and concisely communicate results to non-statistical researchers.