Short Course: Introduction to R, 2 Feb 2026

Course Overview

R is widely used and extremely powerful statistical software. This course assumes that you have never used R before. You will learn how to obtain and install R, which is open-source software, and RStudio, which is a versatile, user-friendly interface for using R. It is very useful to do this course before our introductory statistics course, Introductory Statistics for Researchers. This course will cover some basic features of R and lay the groundwork for you to improve your R skills independently. The course is self-paced and focused on developing practical skills.

Course outline

This course will cover topics including:

• Basics of interacting with R – calculations, saving variables so you can reuse them, data types and structures, organising R code in scripts

• Tidyverse – a basic introduction to tidy R code

• Data – reading in and organising data (from spreadsheets) with dplyr

• Plotting – make beautiful figures with ggplot

Course Requirements: You will need a computer with administrator access (to install R and RStudio software before attending the course).

Presenter and Expertise: David Chan, Statistical Consultant, UNSW Stats Central

Date: 2 February 2026
Time: 9.30am to 4.30pm
Deliver Mode: In-Person ONLY
Location: Bioscience G07
This course is not hybrid and will not be recorded. 
You will receive a certificate of completion for the course.

We offer bundle tickets to UNSW Student ONLY with a further 10% discount as follows:

• Bundle2: $180 (full price $200)

  • Introduction to R: February 2

  • Introductory Statistics for Researchers using R: February 4-6 (prerequisite: Introduction to R or completed a quick TASK)

• Bundle3: $315 (full price $350)

  • Introduction to R: February 2

  • Introductory Statistics for Researchers using R: February 4-6 (prerequisite: Introduction to R or completed a quick TASK)

  • Fundamentals of Regression in R: February 10-12

• Bundle4: $405 (full price $450)

  • Introduction to R: February 2

  • Introductory Statistics for Researchers using R: February 4-6 (prerequisite: Introduction to R or completed a quick TASK)

  • Fundamentals of Regression in R: February 10-12

  • Plus one of the following advanced courses:

    • Mixed Models using R: May 12-13 (2 days)

    • Multivariate Statistics using R: August 19-20 (2 days)

• Bundle4+: $450 (full price $500)

  • Introduction to R: February 2

  • Introductory Statistics for Researchers using R: February 4-6 (prerequisite: Introduction to R or completed a quick TASK)

  • Fundamentals of Regression in R: February 10-12

  • Survival Analysis in R: October 20-22 (3 days)

Once you have registered for Intro R course or one of the above bundle courses, you will receive the email order confirmation. Please see message details for access "codes" for registering for bundle courses, make sure to select the correct ticket type when registering. Your ticket will be verified, and choosing the right bundle will help us match your registration details quickly and accurately. If you're unsure which ticket type applies to you, please feel free to reach out to us directly stats.central@unsw.edu.au. Thank you!

Note: If you have a funding support and would like to pay by "Internal Funding Payment" please contact us stats.central@unsw.edu.au

FAQs

How can I contact the organiser with any questions?

Please send us an email at: stats.central@unsw.edu.au