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Workshops and Training

Workshops and Tutorials

We offer in-person workshops (see below), but when those aren't scheduled, check out our web-based tutorials and videos via the links on the left or below. Topics include R, Python, SPSS, and Excel.

Upcoming Data Workshops

Upcoming Workshops

See all HSL Research & Data Services workshops

See more workshops from University Library's Research Data Services + Sciences and UVA Research Computing.

R Tutorials and Training

R Training Materials and Tutorials from the Health Sciences Library

Artwork by @allison_horst

Tutorials 

Additional R Training Resources

Online Courses

Guides and Cheat Sheets

RStudio Software at UVA

RStudio is freely available to download and use, but it is also installed in the Health Sciences Library's Carter Classroom (first level). It also is available through UVA Labs and Classrooms (locations with RStudio), as well as the UVA RemoteApps service.

Set-up Instructions for R Workshops

Software Installations:

Prior to your first workshop session, please follow the instructions below to install necessary software and to set-up your physical space.

R and RStudio are separate downloads and installations. R is the underlying statistical computing environment, but using R alone is no fun. RStudio is a graphical integrated development environment that makes using R much easier. You need R installed before you install RStudio.

1. R:

We recommend the most recent version of R, 4.3.1. Download and install it for Windows or Mac. If you have a previous R installation, please check the version by opening R and typing R.version. If you have an older Mac OS, download the latest pkg file for your appropriate version of Mac OS.

2. RStudio:

Download and install RStudio Desktop version 2023.03.0-386

3. tidyverse package:

Lastly, we will need to install several core packages needed for most lessons.

a) Launch RStudio (RStudio, not R itself). Ensure that you have internet access, then copy and paste the following 2 commands, one-at-a-time, into the Console panel (the lower-left panel, by default) and run the command (ctrl+Enter key on Windows, Cmd+Enter key on Mac).

install.packages("tidyverse")

A few notes:

  • Commands are case-sensitive.
  • You must be connected to the internet.
  • Even if you’ve installed these packages in the past, re-install the package to download the most recent version. Many of these packages are updated often, and we may use new features in the workshop that aren’t available in older versions.
  • If you’re using Windows you might see errors about not having permission to modify the existing libraries – disregard these. You can avoid this by running RStudio as an administrator (right click the RStudio icon, then click “Run as Administrator”).
  • The tidyverse package is a meta-package that automatically installs 8 commonly used packages for data analysis that all play well together (see tidyverse.org for more)

Check that you’ve installed everything correctly by closing and reopening RStudio and entering the following command at the console window.

library(tidyverse)

Don’t worry about any messages that look something like the following objects are masked from ..., or Warning message: package ... was build under R version ...Running the library(tidyverse) code may produce some notes or other output, but as long as you don’t get an error message, you’re good to go.

If you see output like this:

Attaching packages

everything installed properly and is working. You are all set!

If you get a message that says something like: Error in library(somePackageName) : there is no package called 'somePackageName', then the required packages did not install correctly. Please do not hesitate to email the instructors prior to class if you are still having difficulty. In your email, please copy and paste what you typed in the console, and all of the output that streams by in the console.

Physical Space:

Because of these workshops’ online format, here are the best options for following along during class sessions. Most of the workshop consists of live coding, so the challenge will be how to simultaneously view the instructor’s screen and your screen given that the RStudio window is large and landscape format.

  1. Best option Dual monitors side-by-side
  2. Second choice: Computer projected onto tv or large monitor
  3. Second choice: Two computers side-by-side
  4. Second choice: One computer (you) and one tv (instructor)
  5. Third choice: One computer (you) and one tablet (instructor)
  6. When all else fails: One computer (you & instructor) and PDF of printed codes

Please do not hesitate to email the instructors prior to class if you have questions about how best to set up your workspace.

Software Installations:

Prior to your first workshop session, please follow the instructions below to install necessary software and to set up your physical space.

You must install both R and RStudio: each are separate downloads and installations. R is the underlying statistical computing environment, but using R alone is no fun. RStudio is a graphical integrated development environment that makes using R much easier. You need R installed before you install RStudio.

1. R: We recommend the most recent version of R, 4.3.1. Download and install it for Windows or Mac. If you have a previous R installation, please check the version by opening R and typing R.version. If you have an older Mac OS, download the latest pkg file for your appropriate version of Mac OS.

2. RStudio: Download and install RStudio Desktop version 2023.03.0-386

3. tidyverse package: Lastly, we will need to install several core packages needed for most lessons.

a) Launch RStudio (RStudio, not R itself). Ensure that you have internet access, then copy and paste the code for the following 2 commands, one-at-a-time, into the Console panel (the lower-left panel, by default).

First, copy and paste this code:  install.packages("tidyverse") 
Run this code by using ctrl+Enter key on Windows or Cmd+Enter key on Mac.

A few notes:

  • Commands are case-sensitive.

  • You must be connected to the internet.

  • Even if you’ve installed these packages in the past, re-install the package to download the most recent version. Many of these packages are updated often, and we may use new features in the workshop that aren’t available in older versions.

  • If you’re using Windows you might see errors about not having permission to modify the existing libraries – disregard these. You can avoid this by running RStudio as an administrator (right click the RStudio icon, then click “Run as Administrator”).

b) Check that you’ve installed everything correctly by closing and reopening RStudio.

c) Now, copy and paste this code in the console window and run: library(tidyverse)

Don’t worry about any messages that look something like the following objects are masked from ..., or Warning message: package ... was build under R version ...Running the library(tidyverse) code may produce some notes or other output, but as long as you don’t get an error message, you’re good to go.

If you see output like this:

everything installed properly and is working. You are all set!

d) If you get a message that says something like: Error in library(somePackageName) : there is no package called 'somePackageName', then the required packages did not install correctly. Please do not hesitate to email the instructors prior to class if you are still having difficulty. In your email, please copy and paste what you typed in the console, and all of the output that streams by in the console.

Physical Space:

Because of these workshops’ online format, here are the best options for following along during class sessions. Most of the workshop consists of live coding, so the challenge will be how to simultaneously view the instructor’s screen and your screen given that the RStudio window is large and landscape format.

  1. Best option: Dual monitors side-by-side
  2. Second choice:
    • Computer projected onto tv or large monitor (side-by-side windows of Zoom and your R Studio) or
    • Two computers side-by-side or 
    • One computer (you) and one tv (instructor)
  3. Third choice: One computer (you) and one tablet (instructor)
  4. When all else fails: One computer (you & instructor) and PDF of printed codes

Please do not hesitate to Ask Us prior to class if you have questions about how best to set up your workspace.

Excel Workshops, Videos, and Training Materials

Excel Bites Workshops Sep-Oct 2024

Sample Excel File for all sessions

  • Excel Bites: Navigation Basics 9/16/24 - Handout
  • Excel Bites: Working with Text 9/19/24 - Handout
  • Excel Bites: Formulas and Functions 9/23/24 - Handout
  • Excel Bites: XLOOKUP 9/25/24 - Handout
  • Excel Bites: PivotTables 9/30/24 - Handout
  • Excel Bites: More PivotTables and PivotCharts 10/2/24 - Handout

Recorded Excel Workshops

Recordings of previous "Excel Bites" (short, bite-sized Excel tutorials for beginners) are available below. For the accompanying handouts and exercises, see the links above.

Additional Excel Training Resources

Excel and other Microsoft training is available through these UVA subscriptions: 

  • Online courses through UVA's subscription to LinkedIn Learning (formerly Lynda.com) - see courses such as Learning Excel 2019 
  • Online books through O'Reilly. NOTE: For first time users, select from the drop-down menu "Not listed? Click here." You must enter UVa email address to access the content. See dozens of online titles on Excel such as Essential Excel 2019: A Step-By-Step Guide, Excel for Dummies, Microsoft Excel 365 Bible or the Excel Cookbook.
  • YouTube videos like Excel with Grant or MyOnlineTrainingHub

SPSS Workshops, Videos, and Training Materials

SPSS Workshop Materials

Introduction to SPSS (2014) posted materials from a previous workshop by UVA Library Research Data Services)

Additional SPSS Training Resources

There are many excellent online resources for learning SPSS:

SPSS Software at UVA

There are several options for accessing SPSS at UVA for faculty, staff, students and sponsored accounts 

  • Download SPSS to your computer through the UVA Software Gateway (choose Teaching and Research edition). See additional helpful information from the UVA Libraries on installing SPSS.
  • Access SPSS through the "Remote Apps" (virtual desktop, formerly known as The Hive) option through UVA ITS (computing) 
  • SPSS is available in the Health Sciences Library on the Carter Classroom computers only. Other library computers can access SPSS through the Remote Apps method above.

Workshop Directions

The Claude Moore Health Sciences Library is located at 1350 Jefferson Park Avenue between McKim Hall and Pinn Hall (formerly Jordan Hall).

Many entrances to UVA Health buildings are limited to those with a Health System ID. See the map below for public entrances indicated by green arrows, including the main entrance to West Complex and the main entrance to the University Hospital. Entrances with red arrows have video doorbells, but they are not consistently staffed for entry.

If you have questions about accessing the Library, please contact the HSL Service Desk at 434-924-5444.

Map of CMHSL

Our Workshops

Currently Offered:

  • R (Introduction, Data Visualization, Data Preparation, Data Wrangling, Statistics (series))
  • ChatGPT (Data Analysis (Introduction and Advanced)) 
  • Python (Introduction, Advanced, Data Analysis)
  • Introduction to Qualtrics
  • Introduction to SPSS
  • Excel Bites: basic navigation; working with text; formulas; merging and separating data; PivotTables; PivotCharts

Past Workshops:

  • Essential Stats in R (2020-2021)
  • Linear Models in R (2020-2021)
  • Advanced Data Visualization in R (2020-2021)
  • Dealing with Longitudinal Data in R (2020-2021)
  • Regression in R (2020)
  • Funding Discovery (2019)
  • Survival Analysis in R (2019)
  • Power and Sample Size in R (2019)
  • Predictive Analytics with R (2019)
  • Introduction to Stata (2018)
  • Introduction to SAS (2018)
  • Using SPSS Syntax (2018)
  • Reproducible Reporting with R and RMarkdown (2017)
  • Introduction to the Command Line (2017)
  • Statistical Analysis with SAS (2017)
  • Survival Analysis in R with TCGA Data (2017)
  • Last Updated: Jun 12, 2025 9:13 AM
  • URL: https://guides.hsl.virginia.edu/data
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