How Should I Learn R?

There are lots of good reasons to learn R, even if it won’t be your main statistical package. One very good reason is most of the seminars that we offer now use R as a primary tool.

The best path forward depends on what you already know. Check out the recommendations below for total beginners or for those who are looking to improve on some existing R proficiency.

I AM A BEGINNER

If you are new to R, the best way to learn it is by taking our course, Introduction to R for Data Analysis. Or, if you’re coming from an SPSS or Stata background, try our 8-hour seminars on R for SPSS Users and R for Stata Users.

What if you want to learn just enough R to feel comfortable in one of our seminars that use R? In that case, our first recommendation is to watch a one-hour video that was prepared especially for participants in our seminars.

I ALREADY KNOW SOME R

If you have already started your R journey, you might still benefit from our Introduction to R for Data Analysis course. But if you’re ready to move beyond the basics, there are a few directions you can take to increase your R coding skills:

R REFERENCES

In addition to these options, there are many references that you can use to refresh or expand your knowledge. We recommend the following as particularly useful:

R FOR DATA SCIENCE

This is the gold standard for developing R programming, data management, and visualization skills. This book has many short chapters. Even just going through chapters 2-6 would give you a basic familiarity with R.

Click here to read R for Data Science.

MODERN DIVE

This online book provides a balanced introduction to R with a strong emphasis on data wrangling and visualization. After going through the first two parts, you would be ready for any of our R courses.

Click here to read Modern Dive.

OUR SEMINARS THAT USE R INCLUDE: