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Introducing the Royal Statistical Society Professional Development Centre www.rss.org.uk/courses What is it? The aim of the RSS PDC is to enhance the provision of continuing professional development for statisticians and users of statistics What does it offer individuals? . Annual programme of open professional development courses covering statistical, consultancy and management training. What does it offer employers? . Training needs analysis of staff . Programme of open courses delivered across UK and overseas . Commissioning the design and delivery of bespoke training courses by experts in their field at a venue to suit you Why has it been set up? The RSS wants to see: . good practice use of statistics and statistical methods by statisticians and users of statistics . professional statisticians being equipped with all the skills needed for their personal and career development. The PDC will facilitate this and reflect the needs and aims identified in the RSS's CPD policy and to help deliver the RSS mission statement (see www.rss.org.uk for further details). Make the RSS Professional Development Centre work for you Professional statisticians To help in your professional development as a statistician you may need training or updating in technical statistical methods or you may need help with consultancy or management skills. Courses run by the RSS PDC will help you maintain your log of continuing professional development needed for the Maintained Professional Certificate (see www.rss.org.uk/cpd for further details). Users of statistical information If you are dealing with a lot of statistical information in the workplace it is important that you understand how to interpret that information, make decisions and communicate this to colleagues and a wider audience. Being properly trained will make you feel more confident about making data based decisions and explaining your rationale to others. Participating in our courses will develop your own CPD portfolio. Employers We're here to facilitate the professional development of you and your staff. Courses which are run as open courses can also be delivered in a particular workplace or venue convenient to those requesting it. If you can't see the right course for you then get in touch and we can look in to commissioning just what you are after. Established training course providers The RSS PDC will be offering established providers the opportunity to get their courses approved or endorsed by the RSS, so that potential sponsors and clients are reassured of the quality of the course. Example courses on offer Anybody can come to the open courses, details of which can be found on the RSS website. The information there will help you to decide which course is right for you or your staff. . Introductory statistics courses for users of statistics e.g. Presenting data . Technical statistical courses for professional statisticians e.g. Multi-level modelling . Professional skills e.g. Consultancy skills, Presenting a paper You can see the current open courses on offer at www.rss.org.uk/courses. Course Formats Most courses will last for either one or two days and will consist of a mixture of lectures and tutorial sessions. A list of learning outcomes and the level of knowledge assumed is clearly stated in the description of each course. Sometimes prior reading will be recommended. All delegates will receive hard copies of course materials at the event, with the option of receiving them electronically afterwards. Course and presenter quality guarantee All courses go through a process of quality control under the scrutiny of the RSS's PDC Committee including peer review. Course costs Costs for open courses will be set at the going rate for professional development courses with good discounts for RSS members, and additional discounts for early bird bookings on some courses. If you have many people from one workplace who wish to attend a course it could be more cost efficient to arrange the presenter to come to you. Ask us for details. Future developments The PDC was initiated in January 2007, building on the pilot courses successfully run by the RSS during the previous couple of years. We would like to: . Take statistical training to a wider audience of statistics users. . Commission courses which fill the gaps identified in training needs analyses . Develop e-learning courses . Work collaboratively with existing providers Would you like to become involved with the work of the PDC? We are keen for the PDC to work in partnership with statisticians and employers to deliver our vision. . Are you a statistician with a proven track record in delivering quality training courses? . Do you have ideas for training courses that you could deliver? . Do you know of a group of people who could benefit from statistical training courses? We would love to hear from anyone who would like to become involved. Please contact Nicola Bright at [log in to unmask] The team and contact details Nicola Bright, Director, [log in to unmask] Colin Yarnall, Finance Administrator Ali Houghton, Training Coordinator Nicola Bright is herself a Chartered Statistician who has experience writing, developing and delivering training courses, primarily in medical statistics. The support team is based at Resources for Associations Ltd (www.resourcesforassociations.co.uk) in Macclesfield, who have experience running statistical training courses. For further information on our current programme of open courses please see www.rss.org.uk/courses.