This course and the textbook give students the necessary tools to design and select single- and multi-stage survey samples in the real world. We will cover topics on calculating a sample size for a specified level of precision or within the confines of the survey budget, identifying and creating strata, allocating the sample to the strata given a set of constraints or requirements for detectable differences between group estimates, estimating variance components, and determining what sample sizes to use at different stages in a multi-stage sample.

We will use specialized software for the calculations mentioned. This course will emphasize R but some examples in SAS and Stata are also discussed. Sample size calculations can be done using the R PracTools package written by the instructors or with Microsoft Excel; SAS procedures and Microsoft Excel are used for the mathematical programming (Unit 4). Survey weights can be computed with the R survey package for many designs and estimators—a topic covered in Part II of the Practical Tools series.

R is downloaded for free from http://cran.r-project.org/. Students may also find https://www.rstudio.com/ a helpful interface to execute program code. R packages for this class include, for example, PracTools (developed for the textbook), survey, and sampling. Three videos on the R survey package and five videos on PracTools are posted on http://jointprogram.umd.edu/all/our-faculty#cbp=https://jointprogram.umd.edu/content/richard-valliant. For those new to R, there are 48 MarinStatsLectures available at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqzoL9-eJTNBDdKgJgJzaQcY6OXmsXAHU

There will be small-scale homework problems each week for students to gain practice using all methods covered in the course. The emphasis will be on using the methods to solve practical problems; we review theory as needed for a clear understanding of the underlying assumptions. All are encouraged to discuss their own survey design challenges and solutions during our weekly online meetings.