Learn how to use Python and/or R programming languages for data analysis (via Zoom)

January 12, 2026

Learn programming skills for computational research during the R workshop series and the Python workshop series. Attend any or all of the sessions. Brought to you as a part of the UW–Madison Libraries Graduate Support workshop series. Open to all UW–Madison students, faculty, and staff.

Location:  Instruction online via Zoom. Workshops will not be recorded.

Find additional workshops covering Python, R, and other computational skills through these campus communities:

The R Series

*Registration required. Registration is by workshop, not for the entire series. See links below to register for individual workshops. Workshops online via Zoom and will not be recorded.

To find out more about this series, see: https://researchguides.library.wisc.edu/R

Friday, February 6, 10am-12pm
R Programming 1: R Basics for Research Projects (online)
Register: go.wisc.edu/2zo751

This code-along workshop is for the absolute beginner wanting to slowly walk through the process of getting started with R, a programming language commonly used for data analysis. The session will introduce you to the RStudio interface for coding in R. We will set up a project directory, cover key concepts and terminology, and load and inspect a dataset.

No programming experience is required.

Confirmation email includes R and RStudio setup information.

The workshop will not be recorded.

Friday, February 13, 10am-12pm
R Programming 1: R Basics for Research Projects – Repeat (online)
Register: go.wisc.edu/wdcuc8

This code-along workshop is an exact repeat of the previous week’s “R Basics” workshop.

For the absolute beginner wanting to slowly walk through the process of getting started with R, this workshop will introduce you to the RStudio interface for coding in R. We will set up a project directory, cover key concepts and terminology, and load and inspect a dataset.

No programming experience is required.

Confirmation email includes R and RStudio setup information.

The workshop will not be recorded.

Friday, February 20, 10am-12pm
R Programming 2: Data Wrangling for Research Projects (online)
Register: go.wisc.edu/6qux10

Data is rarely perfect out of the box. This code-along workshop will cover how to manipulate datasets using an R package called dplyr. After this session, you will be able to select rows and columns, add new columns, remove missing data, and create summary tables of your data.

Prerequisite: basic working knowledge of R and RStudio (e.g., functions, operators, data types) is helpful.

Confirmation email includes software setup information.

The workshop will not be recorded.

Friday, February 27, 10am-12pm
R Programming 3: Data Visualization for Research Projects (online)
Register: go.wisc.edu/f7n0ww

So you’re familiar with R, but want to do more with your plots than the base graphics package. This code-along workshop will show you how to use the ggplot2 package in R. After this session, you will be able to create a variety of plot types, alter their aesthetics, and create custom themes.

Prerequisite: working knowledge of R, RStudio, and the dplyr package is helpful.

Confirmation email includes software setup information.

The workshop will not be recorded.

Friday, March 6, 10am-12pm
R Programming 4: Reports for Research Projects (online)
Register: go.wisc.edu/qv5hdj

One way to automate your reports is to create files with human readable text and machine readable code. This code-along workshop will cover creating reproducible reports of this type in RStudio using Quarto. After this session, you will be able to create Quarto documents, add formatted text and executable code blocks, and render the document into a final report.

Prerequisite: working knowledge of R, RStudio, and familiarity with the dplyr and ggplot2 packages is helpful.

Confirmation email includes software setup information.

The workshop will not be recorded.

Friday, April 17, 10am-12:30pm
R Programming 5: Organizing Your Projects with GitLab + RStudio (online)
Register: go.wisc.edu/4dye27

This code-along workshop teaches learners to use RStudio and Git to keep track of file versions, host version-controlled files on the campus GitLab instance, and synchronize your files between different computers.

Individuals with a UW NetID and a working knowledge of R and RStudio will get the most out of this workshop.

Confirmation email includes software setup information.

The workshop will not be recorded.

The Python Series

*Registration required. Registration is by workshop, not for the entire series. See links below to register for individual workshops. Workshops online via Zoom and will not be recorded.

To find out more about this series, see: https://researchguides.library.wisc.edu/python

Thursday, February 5, 10am-12pm
Python Programming for Research Projects 1: Introduction (online)
Register: go.wisc.edu/18pweg

This workshop is for the absolute beginner wanting to slowly walk through the process of getting started with Python, a programming language commonly used for data analysis. We’ll work through installation and setup of some helpful software and introduce basic concepts and terminology used in Python. Finally, we’ll work together to create your first simple but useful program!

No previous programming experience is required.

Confirmation email includes software setup information.

The workshop will not be recorded.

Thursday, February 12, 10am-12pm
Python Programming for Research Projects 1: Introduction – Repeat (online)
Register: go.wisc.edu/4271xj

This workshop is for the absolute beginner wanting to walk through the process of getting started with Python, a programming language commonly used for data analysis. We’ll work through installation and setup of helpful software and introduce basic concepts and terminology used in Python. Finally, we’ll work together to create your first simple but useful program!

This workshop is an exact repeat of the previous week’s “Python: Introduction” workshop.

No previous programming experience is required.

Confirmation email includes software setup information.

The workshop will not be recorded.

Thursday, February 19, 10am-12pm
Python Programming for Research Projects 2: Loops, Lists, and Functions (online)
Register: go.wisc.edu/7hp6nm

This workshop will take a deeper dive into Python, covering essential topics such as automating tasks using loops, lists, and functions.

Prerequisite: Understanding of basic Python concepts (e.g., variables, data types) is helpful.

Confirmation email includes software setup information.

The workshop will not be recorded.

Thursday, February 26, 10am-12pm
Python Programming for Research Projects 3: Spreadsheets and Data Manipulation (online)
Register: go.wisc.edu/yh0064

Real-world data can be messy. This workshop will cover a range of topics related to organizing and manipulating spreadsheet data for more effective analysis. We’ll use Pandas, a popular and free data analysis library written for Python.

Prerequisite: Understanding of basic Python concepts (e.g., functions, operators, data types) is helpful.

Confirmation email includes software setup information.

The workshop will not be recorded.

Thursday, March 5, 10am-12pm
Python Programming for Research Projects 4: Data Visualization with Seaborn (online)
Register: go.wisc.edu/f392cl

In this workshop, we will explore different methods and tools for visualizing data. We’ll use Seaborn, a popular and free data visualization library written for Python.

Prerequisite: Understanding of basic Python concepts (e.g., functions, operators, data types) is helpful.

Confirmation email includes software setup information.

The workshop will not be recorded.

Workshop Organizers

Heather Shimon

Heather Shimon is a Science and Engineering Librarian specializing in research data management.

Questions? heather.shimon@wisc.edu 

Trisha Adamus

Trisha Adamus is a Health Sciences Librarian at Ebling Library specializing in data services.

Questions? adamus@wisc.edu

Dave Bloom

Dave Bloom is a Science and Engineering Librarian specializing in research data management.

Questions? david.bloom@wisc.edu

Lisa Abler

Lisa Abler is a Science and Engineering Librarian specializing in research data management.

Questions? lisa.abler@wisc.edu

Additional Instructors:

Casey Schacher, Research Storage Lead, Research Cyberinfrastructure, Division of Information Technology (DoIT)

Christopher Henson, Academic Data Strategist, SMPH Informatics and Information Technology

Corey Halpin, Software Engineer, Internet Scout

Erwin Lares, Research Data Science Consultant, Research Cyberinfrastructure, Division of Information Technology (DoIT)

Hannah Olson-Williams, Research & Analytics Scientist, Population Health Institute, School of Medicine & Public Health (SMPH)

Sarah Stevens, Director, Data Science Hub

Sarah Whitcomb, Research Scientist, USDA

Serena Touqan, Library Access Services Specialist, UW–Madison Libraries

Helpers: 

Ana Wells, GIS Data Engineer, State Cartographer’s Office, Geography Dept

Aruna Kunche

Bohyoon Lee, Graduate Student, Statistics and Data Science, Statistics Dept

Brendan Capozzi, Data and Digital Scholarship Services, UW–Madison Libraries

Catherine Pettinger, Research Assistant, Bacteriology

Chris Kirby, Project Manager, Geneva Lake Astrophysics and STEAM (GLAS) Education

Emma Bekele, Science & Engineering Librarian, UW–Madison Libraries

Hector Lopez Moreno, Research Assistant, Plant and Agroecosystem Sciences

Jennifer Scheuren, High Performance Computing Administrator, UW Cryo-EM Research Center

John Shadle, Health Equity Survey Analyst, University Health Services

Kamila Redd, Administrative Assistant, Institute for Diversity Science

Katie Dunn, Electronic Resources Librarian, Law Library

Katie Sanders, Library Systems Administrator, UW–Madison Libraries

Kimberlie Vera, Research Assistant, Forest & Wildlife Ecology

Mariah Riel, Research Assistant, Oncology

Michal Laszkiewicz, Graduate Student, Environmental Observation and Informatics, Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies

Peixuan (Nancy) Xu, UW-Madison

Saketh Edpuganti, Graduate Student, Computer Sciences

Todd Hayes-Birchler, Database Administrator, UW Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention