SAS Advanced Programming Exam for SAS 9
Audience
Successful candidates for the SAS Certified Advanced Programmer credential
should have experience in programming and data management using SAS. They
will be knowledgeable in using advanced DATA step programming statements
and efficiency techniques to solve complex problems, writing and
interpreting SAS SQL code, and creating and using the SAS MACRO facility.
Candidates should also be familiar with the enhancements and new
functionality that are available in SAS 9.
Test Content
Accessing Data Using SQL
- Generate detail reports by working with a single table or joining tables using PROC SQL and the appropriate options
- Generate summary reports by working with a single table or joining tables using PROC SQL and the appropriate options
- Construct subqueries within a PROC SQL step
- Compare solving a problem using the SQL procedure versus using traditional SAS programming techniques
- Access Dictionary Tables using the SQL procedure
- Demonstrate advanced PROC SQL skills by creating and updating tables, updating data values, working with indexes using the macro interface/creating macro variables with SQL, defining integrity constraints, SQL views and SET operators
Macro Processing
- Creating and using user-defined and automatic macro variables within the SAS Macro Language
- Automate programs by defining and calling macros using the SAS Macro Language
- Understand the use of macro functions
- Recognize various system options that are available for macro debugging and displaying values of user-defined and automatic macro variables in the SAS log
Advanced Programming Techniques
- Demonstrate advanced data set processing techniques such as updating master data sets, transposing data, combining/merging data, sampling data, using generation data sets, integrity constraints and audit trails
- Reduce the space required to store SAS data sets and numeric variables within SAS data sets by using compression techniques, length statements or DATA step views
- Develop efficient programs by using advanced programming techniques such as permanent formats and array processing
- Use SAS System options and SAS data set options for controlling memory usage
- Control the processing of variables and observations in the DATA step
- Create sorted or indexed data in order to avoid unnecessary sorts, eliminate duplicate data and to provide more efficient data access and retrieval
- Use PROC DATASETS to demonstrate advanced programming skills (e.g. renaming columns, displaying metadata, creating indexes, creating integrity constraints, creating audit trails)
