MEAFA Professional Development Workshop in Quantitative Analysis Using Stata

Workshop description

You may attend any one or any combination of the following days:

Day 1 (Monday, July 18):

Working efficiently with Stata 11 and data management by Demetris Christodoulou, MEAFA General Convener

This session assumes no previous knowledge of Stata. You will receive an overall introduction to Stata and learn ways to customize/personalize the software, as well as learn the handling of key data structures, the analysis of different types of variables, and various data-management techniques. Some examples of graphing, tables, and management of output will be presented. The focus of the day will be working efficiently with reproducible and tractable routines. This session is of interest to those who are new or have limited experience with Stata or who want become more efficient in their work.

Day 2 (Tuesday, July 19):

Two parallel sessions—you may choose only one to attend.

Introduction to Stata programming by Demetris Christodoulou

This session assumes working knowledge of Stata but no knowledge of programming with Stata or with any other software. By the end of this day, you will be able to produce fast, automated routines for data management, statistical analysis, econometric estimation, creation of tables, graphing, etc. This session is appropriate for those who wish to step up their knowledge of statistical computing and start producing more complex routines with Stata.

Econometric modeling and statistical testing using Stata by Andrey Vasnev

This session assumes familiarity with Stata and a basic understanding of quantitative methods. It uses applications to demonstrate the use of statistical analysis, hypothesis testing, and basic econometric modeling for validating assumptions and expectations. This session is of interest to those who wish to know how to apply various quantitative methods using Stata. Detailed notes on theory will be provided for background reading.

Day 3 (Wednesday, July 20):

Two parallel sessions—you may choose only one to attend.

Graphing with Stata 11 by Demetris Christodoulou

This session assumes working knowledge of Stata but no knowledge of graphing with Stata or any other software. The day provides an in-depth analysis of Stata's graphing logic, syntax, and capabilities. Graphing examples will be demonstrated for a variety of data structures. By the end of this day, you will be able to produce informative, robust, complex, and beautiful graphs using reproducible routines. If you have no or limited experience with Stata, then you are strongly advised to attend Day 1 first. Programming elements from Day 2 will also be used for producing more-complex graphs.

Time series analysis by Richard Gerlach

This session assumes working knowledge of Stata and basic knowledge of econometric principles. It details the theory for modeling univariate time series and forecasting, and offers extensive applications using Stata. This session is of interest to those who wish to learn how to model and estimate univariate time series using Stata. Detailed notes on theory will be provided for background reading.

Days 4–5 (Thursday–Friday, July 21–22)

Survival analysis using Stata by Rory Wolfe, Associate Professor, Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Monash University

These two days assume basic knowledge of Stata and working with Stata do-files. A basic knowledge of standard statistical techniques is also assumed (such as linear/logistic regression). The course will be taught from first principles. Following the introduction to survival analysis, the two-day workshop will break down the topic by method: nonparametric analysis, semiparametric analysis, and parametric analysis. More-advanced topics will be addressed at the end of the second day. Detailed notes, log-files, do-files, and datasets will be provided, outlining all theory and applications. The course will be interactive, use real data, and offer ample opportunity for working exercises to reinforce what is learned. Rory Wolfe is the PhD Program Coordinator in Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine and the co-director of the Biostatistics Consulting Service at Monash University. He is also an expert at the NHMRC Centre for Clinical Research Excellence in Gait Analysis. He has a long history with Stata and has published in the Stata Technical Bulletin and the Stata Journal, and has contributed open-source Stata commands in the Statistical Software Components library. Rory also runs short courses on Survival Analysis with Stata for the Australian Psychology Society.

For more information, including a detailed program, or to register, visit http://sydney.edu.au/business/research/meafa/activities/pdworkshop/2011.