With the advent of the exciting new hybrid field of Data Science, programming and data management skills are in greater demand than ever and have never been easier to attain. Online resources like codecademy and w3schools offer a host of tutorials and assistance to those looking to develop their programming abilities and knowledge. Though their content is limited to languages and tools suited mostly for web developers, the value and quality of these sites are undeniable. To this end, similar tutorials for other free-to-use software applications are springing up. The interactivity of these tutorials elevates them above most, if not all, other out-of-classroom learning tools. The process of learning programming or a new language can be quite disjointed when trying to pair a textbook or similar walk-through material with matching coding tasks and problems. These sites unify these pieces for users by presenting them with a series of short, simple lessons that always require the user to demonstrate their understanding in a coding exercise before progressing. After teaching SAS^® in a classroom environment, I became fascinated by the potential for a similar student-driven approach to learning SAS. This could afford me more time to provide individualized attention, as well as open up additional class time to more advanced topics. In this talk, I discuss my development of a series of SAS scripts that walk the user through learning the basics of SAS and that involve programming at every step of the process. This collection of scripts should serve as a self-contained, pseudo-interactive course in SAS basics that students could be asked to complete on their own in a few weeks, leaving the remainder of the term to be spent on more challenging, realistic tasks.

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Traditional approaches to assessing undergraduate assignments in the field of software-related courses, including Analytics and Data Science courses, involve the course tutors in reading the students' code and getting the students to physically demonstrate their artifacts. However, this approach tends to assess only the technical skills of solving the set task. It generally fails to assess the many soft skills that industry is looking for, as identified in the e-skills UK (Tech Partnership)/SAS^® report of November 2014 and the associated infographic poster. This presentation describes and evaluates the effectiveness of a different approach to defining the assessment task and summatively assessing the work of the students in order to effectively evaluate and mark both the soft skills, including creativity, curiosity, storytelling, problem solving, and communication, and the technical skills. This approach works effectively at all levels of undergraduate and masters courses. The session is structured to provide adequate time for audience participation to discuss the approach and its applicability.

In the biopharmaceutical industry, biostatistics plays an important and essential role in the research and development of drugs, diagnostics, and medical devices. Familiarity with biostatistics combined with knowledge of SAS^® software can lead to a challenging and rewarding career that also improves patients' lives. This paper provides a broad overview of the different types of jobs and career paths available, discusses the education and skill sets needed for each, and presents some ideas for overcoming entry barriers to careers in biostatistics and clinical SAS programming.

We use SAS^® Forecast Studio to develop time series models for the daily number of taxi trips and the daily taxi fare revenue of Yellow Cabs in New York City, using publicly available data from 1/1/2011 to 6/30/2015. Interest centers on trying to assess the effects (if any) of the Uber ride-hailing service on Yellow Cabs in New York City.

Today's employment and business marketplace is highly competitive. As a result, it is necessary for SAS^® professionals to differentiate themselves from the competition. Success depends on a number of factors, including positioning yourself with the necessary technical skills in relation to the competition. This presentation illustrates how SAS professionals can acquire a wealth of knowledge and enhance their skills by accessing valuable and free web content related to SAS. With the aid of a web browser and the Internet, anyone can access published PDF papers, Microsoft Word documents, Microsoft PowerPoint presentations, comprehensive student notes, instructor lesson plans, hands-on exercises, webinars, audios, videos, a comprehensive technical support website maintained by SAS, and more to acquire the essential expertise that is needed to cut through all the marketplace noise and begin differentiating yourself to secure desirable opportunities with employers and clients.

While there is no shortage of MS and MA programs in data science, PhD programs have been slow to develop. Is there a role for a PhD in data science? How would this differ from an advanced degree in statistics? Computer science? This session explores the issues related to the curriculum content for a PhD in data science and what those students would be expected to do after graduation. Come join the conversation.

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Teaching online courses is very different from teaching in the classroom setting. Developing and delivering an effective online class entails more than just transferring traditional course materials into written documents and posting them in a course shell. This paper discusses the author's experience in converting a traditional hands-on introductory SAS^® programming class into an online course and presents some ideas for promoting successful learning and knowledge transfer when teaching online.

Universities, government agencies, and non-profits all require various levels of data analysis, data manipulation, and data management. This requires a workforce that knows how to use statistical packages. The server-based SAS^® OnDemand for Academics: Studio offerings are excellent tools for teaching SAS in both postsecondary education and in professional continuing education settings. SAS OnDemand for Academics: Studio can be used to share resources; teach users using Windows, UNIX, and Mac OS computers; and teach in various computing environments. This paper discusses why one might use SAS OnDemand for Academics: Studio instead of SAS^® University Edition, SAS^® Enterprise Guide^®, or Base SAS^® for education and provides examples of how SAS OnDemand for Academics: Studio has been used for in-person and virtual training.