Introduction

In addition to the longer format intended for more in-depth questions (see here for more details), the Department of Statistics also provides consulting advice for current OSU students in a "drop-in" format. Appointments with consulting GTAs are available in 45 minute time slots running Week 2 through Week 10 of each quarter. This service is provided in conjunction with the Graduate Student Commons.

NOTE: For Spring term 2020, all consulting sessions (long format and "drop-in") will be held remotely over Zoom following OSU's guidance about the COVID-19 pandemic.

For a general overview of consulting services provided by the Department of Statistics, please refer to the Index.

About the Service

The objective of the drop-in statistical consulting service is to provide free statistical advice on University-related research projects. Any currently enrolled graduate student at the university may request assistance. The assistance given is primarily advice. Consultants will not do data entry or statistical analyses for you. This service is not to be used for homework problems or class projects. 

The consultants can advise on many aspects of statistical design and analysis, including but not limited to, designing a study, database management, data exploration, formulating a statistical model, determining the type of analysis that should be done, advising on appropriate statistical software, and interpretation of analyses. 

The drop-in hours are intended to handle projects with quicker questions or cases where an immediate response is needed. Longer term projects or more in-depth questions are better suited for the Long Format. Our goal is to provide an answer to your question within the 45 minute meeting, but if this is not possible follow-ups may be required.

How to Schedule an Appointment

To schedule an appointment, you must do two things:

1. Use the Calendar to pick an available time. (Please not that you must be logged in with your OSU gmail account to use the Google Calendar). You may contact Katie McLaughlin (mclaugka <at> oregonstate.edu) if you have difficulty using the calendar. Appointment slots are for 1 hour -- plan to spend about 45 minutes with your consultant discussing the problem, and allow the remaining 15 minutes to deal with technical issues that may arise due to Zoom/screen sharing.

2. Fill out the Intake Form on Qualtrics, which will provide us with some background information about your project so that we can better help you.

Your appointment is not considered confirmed until BOTH the scheduling and intake form have been completed.

Once you schedule your appointment and fill out the intake form, the consulting GTAs will contact you with a link to a Zoom meeting for your scheduled time.

How to Prepare for your Appointment

Every project is different, but here are some general tips to prepare for your appointment:

  • Be ready to briefly summarize the research goals of your project. The GTAs will ask about the background of your project, which is essential to understand to provide statistical advice.
  • If you have data, be ready to explain how the data were collected.
  • If there are pictures/plots/graphs that may be helpful to explain your research or statistical questions, have them ready on your computer and be able to share your screen. You could also link the files in Zoom chat if you are comfortable sharing them in that manner.
  • If you are requesting help interpreting computer output or understanding a code bug, be ready to show the relevant material.

 

Other Things to Know

  • Please do not invite your faculty advisor to the meeting. We have found meetings are most successful when they are between graduate students.
  • If you are unable to make your scheduled appointment, please let us know. The consulting service often fills up, and your time slot can then be used by another student if you are unable to make it.
  • Students who repeatedly schedule appointments and then don't show without canceling may be given lower priority for future requests.