Python is an open source software (free to use) that can be used to analyze data and do econometrics (among other things)
How to Get the Python Software: Anaconda
A good discussion for setting up the program can be found at: Setting up Your Python Environment as part of Thomas J. Sargent and John Stachurski’s Quantitative Economics with Python.
If you take the “Introduction to Portfolio Construction with Python” shown below, you will find very good instructions on installing and getting started with Python.
Learning How to Use Python
There are NUMEROUS resources available for learning Python. Below are some free courses that provide a good starting point.
- Work your way through the material at QuantEcon DataScience: Introduction to Economic Modeling and Data Science. This is part of the Quantitative Economics with Thomas Sargent and Stachurski
- Skills to Learn to become a Data Scientist from Dan Blevins, JMU Econ ’17, Lots of good stuff on SQL and Python
Coursera courses: Free on-line learning (FYI: all of the courses are available without a fee. When you click on Enroll, it will prompt you to enroll for a fee (includes certification) but there will also be an option to enroll for free (sometime called AUDIT) with no certification. The free option will give you access to all the course materials except for some quizzes and projects:
- Data Management and Visualization from Wesleyan University
This course is a good place to start. It provides instructions in SAS and Python side-by-side in a course that shows students how to input data and do simple statistical analysis structured around a research question.
- Programming for Everybody (Getting started with Python) from the University of Michigan
Under Course resources, you will find Jupyter Notebook FAQ
- Data Analysis with Python by IBM
- Introduction to Portfolio Construction with Python Learn Python *and* finance. A good way to learn a new software is to watch and code at the same time. The Python videos (called “Labs”) in this course are very good. You can watch and code along with the instructor. It is the first course in a series of four courses that make up a specialization.
Other Courses
- Introduction to Python by Kevin Sheppard, a YouTube video class “The focus of this course is preparing students to work with numerical data in applications to statistics and econometrics”.
- Kevin Sheppard’s Python for Econometrics. Site includes textbook, code and data examples
- Notebooks for financial economics on github: lots of great examples (mostly macroeconomics and financial economics) with Python code