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Fundamentals of R (v1)

Ever tried to learn R on your own? It’s not easy.

Most R courses are designed for hardcore quants. This course is different. It’s designed to help the rest of us learn R, the most powerful tool for working with data. It’s the course that I wish I had when I was struggling to learn R.

The course won’t take you on unnecessary detours that are irrelevant to your work. Each lesson gets straight to the point, covering just the right amount of material. And you’ll finish the course with the skills you need to use R for all of your data work.

Don’t take my word for it. Take the word of participants who have taken the course, including one who said:

What I really liked about your course is that all the content was totally relevant to somebody like me whose background is in social science research. I signed up for DataCamp and it is helping me become more familiar with some things, but there is way too much stuff on there for people who want to become data scientists or statisticians. That’s definitely not me.

Or listen to another user, who described himself as “a serial refuser when it comes to R.” Kevin Cahill, Data Officer at UK-based We Are With You, said, “I’ve had so many false starts trying to learn R: my initial excitement at learning something new is quickly dashed by the brick wall of coding. I keep telling myself R is not for non-coders like me and off I slope back to Excel!”

This course is different. To use the words of one of my data heroes, Alberto Cairo, this course doesn’t try to simplify R but it helps clarify the basic skills you need. The step-by-step approach to building skills kept me engaged and learning all the way through. All the while I kept thinking, I know how I can use this in my current job.

50% discount for:

Students

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Low-income locations

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25% discount for:

Groups of 3 or more

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Course Includes

  • 32 Lessons
  • Course Certificate
  • Self-Paced
  • Lifetime Access

About the Instructor

David Keyes

I’m not a hardcore quant (my PhD is in anthropology).

I’m not a coder ready to jump on you for any small mistake. I want to help others avoid the pain that I went through learning R.

A teacher at heart (shoutout to my former second grade students), I make R less scary and more fun (yes, fun).

David Keyes

FAQs

What makes this course unique?

Most R courses are designed for data scientists. As a result, they tend to expect a high level of statistical expertise, which isn’t necessary to do the work that many of us do. Courses for data scientists also start with topics (e.g how R works with various data structures) that you don’t need to master at the outset. By flipping the structure of typical courses, I give you the practical tools to get started right away using R.

There are a lot of free R tutorials on the internet. Why would I pay for a course?

You’re right, there are a ton of free tutorials. You can learn R using free resources. I did! But, I will say that, looking back, I know I spent much longer than if I had taken a more structured approach. Taking this course, you benefit from the mistakes I’ve made by taking the shortest route on your R journey.

Are there any prerequisites for this course?

You should be familiar with the content in the free Getting Started with R course. If you sign up for this course, you’ll automatically be enrolled in both so you can review the material in Getting Started if necessary.

Do I need to be an expert statistician to do this course?

Absolutely not! I’m an anthropologist by training. I’ve written about coming to terms with using R “only” for descriptive stats. R has a reputation for being only for hardcore quants, but it’s a tool that can benefit so many more people. That’s what I mean when I talk about “R for the Rest of Us.”

Can I get a refund if I’m not satisfied?

Absolutely! If you are unsatisfied with the course for any reason, contact me and I will give you a full refund, no questions asked.