SAS Opens Up SAS OnDemand for Academics

• By Dian Schaffhauser
• 03/18/08

SAS has broadened the availability of SAS OnDemand for Academics, a service that allows faculty and students to integrate advanced data analysis in their teaching and learning activities. Users register for the service, download a SAS software application via the Web, and then perform processing by connecting to a hosted server at SAS.

In a statement, the company said the program has been in use during the past year by a limited number of professors and students, including the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

"SAS OnDemand for Academics allows students to download SAS on their own computers, avoid the hassle of trying to use computer labs and perform statistical analysis at their own convenience," said Dr. Michael Sobczak, visiting professor. "It is a good way for students to have easy access to a very versatile and powerful program."

To use SAS OnDemand for Academics, instructors connect to a secure Web site to register, create or update courses and download course software for free. Students then register and download software for the created course. By secure credit card transaction, students pay a per-course fee that is approximately the price of a textbook, according to the company.

The vendor is currently testing access through SAS OnDemand for Academics to SAS Enterprise Miner, an advanced predictive modeling product, and JMP Statistical Discovery Software.