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National College of Ireland

NCI LIBRARY

Datasets and Statistics: Introduction

Subject guide for datasets and statistics

Datasets and statistics

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DATASETS TIP:

Go to the External Websites tab on the blue menu bar above to locate open access statistics and datasets on the internet.

Introduction

This guide will give you an introduction to datasets and statistics.

  • locate books, ebooks and journal articles
  • search relevant databases
  • connect to useful websites
  • how to reference properly and avoid plagiarism

This subject guide has been designed to be as easy to use as possible. You can navigate the guide using the menu tabs on top of each page (example below).

Tab example

Datasets and statistics - the difference

Data is the result of research undertaken by a survey or study.  It is usually presented in digital form in datasets.  The data can be analysed or queried by using programmes such as Excel or SPSS  to produce statistics on various phenomena.  So a dataset will contain multiple lines relating to individual responses, and statistics will summarise that data and tell you (for instance) how many people use the bus to go to work or cycle to workThe Census is a good example of this.  Data is the primary source of the information and statistics answer questions (i.e. how many, when, etc.) by interrogating the data. 

Communications from the library

Please note all communications, from the library, concerning renewal of books, overdue books and reservations will be sent to your N.C.I. student email account.

Assistant Librarian

Borrow this book from the library