Alright, so today I’m gonna walk you through my experience with the “easy sas core rutgers” stuff. Buckle up, it’s gonna be a bumpy ride!
Getting Started: The Download Hustle
First things first, I needed to actually get my hands on the materials. This meant digging around the Rutgers website – a bit of a maze, honestly. I spent a solid hour clicking through different departments and course listings before I finally found the right page. Once I landed there, downloading the necessary files was pretty straightforward, thankfully. Just a bunch of PDFs and some data sets.
Setting up the SAS Environment: A Minor Panic
Okay, so I had the files, but I still needed to fire up SAS. I’m using SAS University Edition through Oracle VirtualBox, since that’s what I already had set up on my machine. Got to say, firing up the VM always feels like a gamble. But this time, it worked on the first try – thank god! I mapped the shared folder so I could access the course material and feel like a pro for a second.
Diving into the Material: Slowly but surely
I started with the first lecture’s PDF. The explanations seemed reasonable enough, covering the basics of SAS syntax and data structures. At first, I felt a little overwhelmed because I hadn’t used SAS in a while. I decided to copy the code snippets into the SAS editor and run them to see the output. This helped me understand the practical application of each concept. The first few examples were easy enough, like creating variables and importing data. I was thinking, “This ‘easy’ course is living up to its name so far!”
The Data Sets: Taming the Beast
The lectures also covered importing the data sets provided. The data sets were in different formats (.csv, .dat, etc.), so I had to tweak the import code accordingly. This is where I ran into my first real hurdle. Some of the datasets had weird formatting issues, with missing values. I spent a good amount of time debugging my code and researching online how to handle those specific cases. Pro tip: PROC IMPORT is your best friend, but remember to check your DELIMITER and DATAROW options.
Exercises and Practice: Hands-on is Key
The course provided a set of exercises for each module. This is where the learning really kicked in. I started attempting these exercises, step-by-step. Some were easy, just requiring me to apply what I learned in the lecture. Others were more challenging, requiring me to combine multiple concepts.
- One exercise involved creating a new variable based on a condition of a another variable. It was pretty easy, I used an
IF-THEN-ELSEstatement within aDATAstep. - Another exercise required me to create a summary table of the data. This one took a bit longer, as I had to use the
PROC MEANSprocedure and customize the output format.
Overcoming Challenges: Google is Your Friend
I definitely hit a few snags along the way. There were times where my code just wouldn’t run, and I couldn’t figure out why. Error messages in SAS can be cryptic, to say the least. This is where Google became my best friend. I searched for the specific error messages and scanned through forums and documentation until I found solutions. Stack Overflow saved my bacon more than once!
The Final Result: (Semi) Competent SAS User
After a few days of grinding through the material, I felt like I had a much better grasp of SAS fundamentals. I could now import data, manipulate variables, and create basic reports. I’m definitely not an expert yet, but I feel confident enough to tackle more complex projects.
Final Thoughts: It’s all about practice!
Overall, the “easy sas core rutgers” material was a good starting point. It covered the essential concepts in a clear and concise manner. The exercises were particularly helpful for solidifying my understanding. The key takeaway is that practice makes perfect. The more you code in SAS, the more comfortable you’ll become with the syntax and the more easily you’ll be able to solve problems. Now I just need to find a real-world project to apply my newfound skills. Wish me luck!
