Admission Requirements
One should have obtained at least 45 ECTS from the compulsory courses of the program of the Statistical Science master.
Description
Consulting is an integral part of an applied statistician’s life, whether working in academia, government or industry. Statistical and methodological consultation may involve brief interactions to respond to very specific technical questions of a single client, or long term associations as a member of research projects. It always involves a form of ‘reverse reasoning’, that is, figuring out the conclusion you want to come to, and finding a way to get there. Specifically, the consultant’s problem is: What statistical procedure(s) could provide an appropriate answer to the client’s research question, within all practical constraints? During the course, every two students will carry out a statistical consultation project with an actual client.
Course objectives
The goals of this course are to:
identify and recognize issues in a client project relevant for a statistical consultant, such as: research question, study design, sampling procedure, and measurement instruments;
choose and apply (an) appropriate analysis technique(s) to answer the client's research question(s);
effectively communicate the choice of analysis technique, the statistical assumptions, the analysis results and how these answer the research question to the client (both oral and written)
Timetable
See the Leiden University students' website for the Statistical Science programme -> Schedules 2018-2019
The date of handing in the report, and the dates when each student will receive a client with a statistical problem will be agreed upon during the first lectures.
Mode of Instruction
A combination of lectures, client meetings (intake, progress, and final advice), and student presentations. For the client meetings, the students will be divided into two groups (i.e., morning and afternoon group). Details of the program will be announced on the first lecture day.
Assessment Method
Final written report including reflection report (75%); final oral presentation (15%); active participation during the meetings (10%). Attendance of the lectures and client meetings is obligatory during the whole course.
Course material
Various articles and book chapters on a) how to perform statistical consulting; b) the profession of an applied statistician; c) how to report statistical methods and results to non-statistical readers, and d) meta-scientific issues. The titles will be announced on Blackboard.
Contact information
Dr. E. Dusseldorp and Dr.Ir. N. van Geloven
elise [dot] dusseldorp [at] fsw [dot] leidenuniv [dot] nl and N [dot] van [underscore] Geloven [at] lumc [dot] nl