6 ECTS credits
150 h study time

Offer 1 with catalog number 4023857ENR for all students in the 1st semester at a (E) Master - advanced level.

Semester
1st semester
Enrollment based on exam contract
Impossible
Grading method
Grading (scale from 0 to 20)
Can retake in second session
Yes
Taught in
Dutch
Faculty
Faculty of Sciences and Bioengineering Sciences
Department
Biology
Educational team
Bram Vanschoenwinkel (course titular)
Activities and contact hours
16 contact hours Lecture
16 contact hours Seminar, Exercises or Practicals
70 contact hours Independent or External Form of Study
Course Content

This is an applied statistics course specifically designed for biologists and environmental scientists with a focus on biological problems and statistical procedures used in the biological sciences. It contains a brief recapitulation of the fundamental elements of statistical inference, basic procedures such as ANOVA, correlation, regression and contingency tables. These foundations are complemented with an overview of more advanced methods including logistic regression, repeated measures ANOVA, mixed models, general- and generalized linear models as well as a range of nonparametric methods. Finally, the course also includes an overview of multivariate analysis techniques including PCA, CCA, RDA and NMDS. Theory will be illustrated with specific biological examples from different research areas and complemented with hands-on practical experience with different statistical approaches in the flexible environment provided by the statistical packages available in the R platform. No prior knowledge of the R language is required to take this course. The emphasis is on performing statistical analyses in R not on programming.

Additional info

Study Material:

  • Digital course material (Required) : There is a syllabus containing all material of the slides
  • Handbook (Recommended) : Biostatistical Analysis and Design, A Practical Guide, Murray Logan, Wiley-Blackwell, 9781405190084, 2010
Learning Outcomes

General Competences

The student:

  • knows the principles of different types of basic and more advanced statistical approaches available to analyse biological data and is able to apply them. These include regression, correlation, contingency tables, ANOVA, logistic regression, General and Generalized linear models and basic multivariate techniques such as PCA, RDA and NMDS.
  • can choose appropriate statistical methods to analyze biological data
  • can correctly interpret results of statistical analyses
  • can correctly perform statistical analyses in R
  • understands the importance of a correct experimental design, the experimental method and research ethics and is able to apply this knowledge to biological data.

Grading

The final grade is composed based on the following categories:
Oral Exam determines 70% of the final mark.
Other Exam determines 30% of the final mark.

Within the Oral Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:

  • Oral Exam with a relative weight of 7 which comprises 70% of the final mark.

Within the Other Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:

  • Examen Other with a relative weight of 3 which comprises 30% of the final mark.

Additional info regarding evaluation

An Oral exam determines 70% of the final mark.

A written report determines 30% of the final mark.

The oral exam comprises one or two questions, which can be prepared in writing beforehand. Students are asked to discuss a scientific paper of their choice in which multivariate techniques were used.

 

Within the PRAC Paper category, the following assignments need to be completed:

Statistical Report with a relative weight of 1 which comprises 30% of the final mark.

The written report is a short paper in which students test a given hypothesis or a small set of complementary hypotheses using a dataset provided by the titular. Depending on the size of the group, the students will be allowed to work together in groups of two or three.

Allowed unsatisfactory mark
The supplementary Teaching and Examination Regulations of your faculty stipulate whether an allowed unsatisfactory mark for this programme unit is permitted.

Academic context

This offer is part of the following study plans:
Master of Biology: Ecology and Biodiversity (only offered in Dutch)