Western Users of SAS Software (WUSS) & SAS Global Forum (SGF)

By Alex Herrington

 I was able to attend two conferences during my last year in the Statistics Department. I went to the Western Users of SAS Software (WUSS) conference in San Diego and the SAS Global Forum (SGF) conference in Las Vegas. I wanted to write a short paragraph sharing my opinions about the conferences. Both WUSS and SGF were amazing conferences and I would love to go again.

There was a ton to learn, plenty of people to meet, opportunities to find jobs, and other exciting activities. The conferences allow students in the department to get to know each other better and become closer friends. Comparing the two conferences, I enjoyed WUSS more than SGF. I liked WUSS more because it’s not as big as SGF. I feel SGF can be overwhelming with all the classes that are offered, and some of the classes are more technical than WUSS. I also found it more difficult to network at SGF. The conference is so large that it can be difficult to see the same people. WUSS is much smaller and is easier to see the same people throughout the day. Another great thing about both conferences is they offer student scholarships to cover the registration fees, and the Statistics Department will pay most of the remaining expenses. Overall, I would say the students should definitely go to WUSS and those who are really into SAS programming, should go to SGF.