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R for RAP

Before you embark on your RAP journey, we think it's best for you to have some basic skills in the open source language that you are going to build the pipeline in. If that language is R, read on to find out if you have the skills needed already.

Unlike Python, we don't have that much training for using R as we mostly use Python, but check out the links we have for some great guidance written by others.

Essential R Skills for RAP Checklist

I can...

  • Use an Integrated Development Environment, like RStudio or Visual Studio Code, to run R files
  • Create print statements
  • Use built in data types (numeric, integer, character, logical) to declare variables
  • Perform basic arithmetic operations and string manipulation
  • Create comments in my code to explain why I'm performing certain operations
  • Use conditional logic in if/else/else if statements
  • Use loops (for/while) for iterative processes
  • Import libraries, like dplyr or ggplot2
  • Perform simple data analysis operations
    • Read in data
    • Extract column names and types
    • Filter a dataframe based on a certain condition
    • Join two dataframes together
    • Group data based on a specific criteria
    • Export data
  • Wrap code up in a function so it can be reused
Desirable R Skills for RAP Checklist

I can...

  • Use config files
  • Handle errors effectively
  • Write and perform unit tests
  • Refactor code to improve it
  • Use package management tools like Packrat or Pacman

If you've used R before and are confident in your abilities- great! Be aware that some in your team might not have the skills you do and might need some extra help with the basics. Offer to buddy up with some of the R Newbies if they're struggling so everyone can quickly get up to scratch. Check out the Desirable Skills checklist above in case there is something you could brush up on.

Have you got some familiarity with R but you're not sure if you know enough for RAP? Try out the essential skills checklist above - you will learn a lot from implementing RAP, but having these basic skills will allow everyone to get off to a flying start. You probably know more than you think!

Never even heard of R? No worries, there is extensive R training out there to get you off on the right foot. Don't be afraid to reach out to some R Masters in your team if you need help understanding something - there's no such thing as a stupid question! Check out our links to R training and come back and tick off what you know on the checklist so you can tailor your learning to the important stuff!

Last update: March 1, 2024
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NHS England is not affiliated with any of the websites or companies in the links to external websites.

If you come across any external links that do not work, we would be grateful if you could report them by raising an issue on our RAP Community of Practice GitHub.