Second stats assignment

[Milan]

Good evening,

Is there a time either tomorrow afternoon or Wednesday during the day
when people would like to meet in the DPIR computer lab and take a stab
at completing the second stats assignment? Having just printed my core
seminar paper (with another paper for my supervisor also due tomorrow),
I don't know if I can face STATA alone. A group of us, preferably with
spears and face paint, is definitely the way to approach it.

Milan

[alexander...@sant.ox.ac.uk]

I'll be starting the STATA assignment at 9.00pm tomorrow morning at the
Social Science Library. Anyone welcome!

Alex

[Milan]

Do you mean 9:00am? I think it is due at 5:00pm.

I shall make a concerted effort to be present at that time tomorrow. I
look forward to seeing some of you there.

[Milan]

Seriously annoyed by the character of our quantitative methods course,
I have sent a letter to the people in charge. Regardless of what your
position on the course is, I would encourage others to do likewise. The
stats course definitely seems to be the bit of the program that those
running it are most uncertain about, in terms of what it should
involve.

My letter is here:
http://users.ox.ac.uk/~wadh2665/StatsLetter.pdf

[Lee Jones]

I would always encourage anyone with views on the QM course to make
them known. They are best addressed to Adam Roberts
<adam.r...@politics.ox.ac.uk> and Karma Nabulsi
<karma....@politics.ox.ac.uk> who are, respectively, Director of
Graduate Studies and Director of Research Training. CCing the chair,
Neil MacFarlane <neil.ma...@politics.ox.ac.uk> is not a bad idea,
and I would also appreciate it if you CC'd me
<lee....@politics.ox.ac.uk> so I can collate comments as they come in
as I have been doing for the past year.

I would also remind you all of the fact that a review has been
initiated and student feedback will be sought when a new course is
designed during the course of this year. There will therefore be
several good opportunities to voice concerns and complaints. The review
is being led by Karma Nabulsi. I would encourage everyone to
participate in that.

Sadly it is a simple fact that the QM course is (a) the worst thing
about the MPhil and (b) is not going to change this year. As
frustrating and infuriating as that certainly is, the only way forward
is to work with the review process to ensure the course is fully
reformed, root and branch, rather than incrementally tinkered with, for
next year. The dept does know that it is the #1 priority for change,
but pressure must be kept up to ensure that the change is sufficient.

Lee

[Milan]

Lee,

Knowing that it will change next year is good, but not nearly good
enough. I think that with sufficient agitation from those in the
program now, significant changes can be implemented - particularly in
terms of how it is evaluated.

Milan