A Summer RCT Institute for Established Researchers

The training is intended for researchers who have some background in statistics and computing and who are employed in settings in which they could be conducting randomized trials. The program will train 30 people in 2-week training seminars held annually (90 participants total) in a residential summer training institute. The seminar consists of nine 8-hour sessions, with the training covering multiple topics relevant to preparing, conducting, and analyzing data from RCTs, through a combination of group instruction and group project work.

The group work provides a realistic experience of planning a study that fits within realistic constraints of budget, human capital limitations within the research team, and limited time to prepare a proposal. During the group work units, participants will collaborate on a proposal, similar to one that could be prepared as an IES Initial Efficacy grant project. Participants will have access to the instructors and a group of consultants to assist during the groupwork, as necessary. Each group will present their proposals in a 1-hour session to the instructors and to the other participants for thorough feedback.

This training is a continuation of the summer institutes on randomized trials that IES funded from 2007 to 2019, which have received positive immediate and long-term responses from participants.