UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. — Beginning Oct. 15, the Research Informatics and Publishing department at Penn State University Libraries will offer four workshops on statistical data analysis. These workshops will provide an overview of several statistical software applications available to the Penn State community that are commonly used for quantitative data analysis: R/RStudio, Excel, Minitab, JASP and SPSS.
The workshops are free and open to Penn State undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, faculty and staff as indicated.
All workshops will be held virtually via Zoom, and recordings will be shared with registered participants. Advance registration is required for each workshop; registration and additional information is provided at the links below.
If you need additional information, contact Research Informatics and Publishing at repub@psu.edu.
Fall 2025 Workshop Schedule
Research Reproducibility in R/RStudio Workshop Series — Oct. 15 to Nov. 5
More information and registration here
Introduction to SPSS — Oct. 16, 2–4 p.m.
This session will provide introductory knowledge on how to use SPSS for quantitative statistical analysis, with demonstrations using a practice data set. Participants will learn how to access SPSS and navigate the software interface, inputting different types of data, specifying variables and conducting exploratory data analysis and some basic statistical tests. No previous SPSS experience is required. Register for this session here.
Quantitative Methods for Undergraduate Students — Oct. 17, 1–2:30 p.m.
For Undergraduate Students
This workshop introduces concepts such as descriptive vs. inferential statistics, running exploratory data analysis, testing data for normality, and parametric vs. nonparametric data analysis. Participants will learn about different statistical methods for exploring and analyzing their data. Register for this session here.
Introduction to Minitab — Oct. 23, 2–4 p.m.
This session will provide a general overview of using Minitab for quantitative statistical analysis, with demonstrations using a practice data set. Participants will learn how to access Minitab and navigate the software interface, inputting different types of data, specifying and transforming variables and conducting exploratory data analysis and some basic statistical tests. No previous Minitab experience is required. Register for this session here.
Level Up Your R Skills – Functions & Reproducible Workflows— Nov. 12, 1–2:30 p.m.
For postdocs only
Ready to take your R skills to the next level? This session for postdocs builds on the core principles covered in the “Research Reproducibility and Data Management in R and RStudio” series. We will focus on writing and using functions to streamline your code, reduce redundancy and improve clarity. We’ll also explore best practices for structuring your R scripts and projects to support reproducible workflows in data processing and visualization. Whether you're aiming to make your code more modular, share your analysis with collaborators or prepare your work for publication, this session will equip you with practical tools to write cleaner, more maintainable R code. Register for this session here.
Introduction to JASP — Nov. 18, 2–4 p.m.
This beginners’ session will provide an overview of the JASP software for statistical analysis using a practice data set. Participants will learn how to run descriptive and basic statistical tests, including exploratory data analysis. No prior knowledge is required. Practice data will be provided for participants’ use. Register for this session here.