SAS Certified Base Programmer

Why to become a SAS Certified Base Programmer?

You really do not need to spend your time and money in becoming a SAS Certified Base Programmer unless:

1. You are interested in learning SAS programming basics
2. You are a new entrant and want to start a career as a SAS programmer
3. You have lots of experience in SAS programming but still want to fill in some of the gaps in your knowledge
4. You have lots of experience in SAS programming but still want to clean your hand with new tricks and techniques
5. You want to be recognized as some one who knows about SAS programming.

SAS Base Programming certification will not make you an expert. To become an expert you need to spend time with the software and deal with real life cases/problems/scenarios. Practice is the key. Never forget: "knowledge goes from the hand bone to the elbow bone to the head bone".

Which resources do I need to prepare for the SAS Certified Base Programming exam (SCBPE)?
It depends on your budget. You may register for online courses at SAS website (SAS Programming 1: Essentials, SAS Programming 2: Data Manipulation Techniques) or get personalized training/tuition. I have always remained a self learner (with least cost/expenses) so I recommend you to go through three books if you are a self starter (I suggest you to follow the order 1, 3, and 2 to crush the exam).

1. Learning SAS by Example: A Programmer's Guide 
   
2. The little SAS Book: A Premier 
   
3. SAS Certification Prep Guide: Base Programming for SAS 9, Third Edition
   
   
   

Here is a good guide to prepare yourself for the exam in 4 months. Personally, I feel 4 months is too long to wait to have the certification.

How much time is required to prepare for the exam?
There is no answer. The time you require to prepare for the exam depends on you. Such as your previous programming experience (any language), do you have previous SAS working experience, do you use SAS at your work? etc.
For a novice, on average it takes 2 to 3 months to prepare for the exam. Experienced users normally spend 2 to 4 weeks.

Note: There are instances where highly experienced SAS users failed to pass the exam. That does not mean the experts do not know about SAS programming. We recommend even the most experienced ones to go through a bit of practice or do a sample/mock exam before registering for the exam. 

What does SAS(R)  expects from you?
SAS expects that you have experience in programming and data management specifically:

• Import and export (raw) data files, manipulate and transform data, and combine data sets
• Prepare reports and summaries using SAS procedures
• Identify and correct errors related to data and procedures (syntax, logic, etc.)

What are the exam contents?
Exam contents are given on the SAS(R) website and reproduced here. It is recommended that you check the SAS website for update.

Accessing Data

• Use FORMATTED and LIST input to read raw data files
• Use INFILE statement options to control processing when reading raw data files
• Use various components of an INPUT statement to process raw data files including column and line pointer controls, and trailing @ controls
• Combine SAS data sets
• Access an Excel workbook

Creating Data Structures

• Create temporary and permanent SAS data sets
• Create and manipulate SAS date values
• Export data to create standard and comma-delimited raw data files
• Control which observations and variables in a SAS data set are processed and output

Managing Data 

• Investigate SAS data libraries using base SAS utility procedures
• Sort observations in a SAS data set 
• Conditionally execute SAS statements 
• Use assignment statements in the DATA step 
• Modify variable attributes using options and statements in the DATA step 
• Accumulate sub-totals and totals using DATA step statements
• Use SAS functions to manipulate character data, numeric data, and SAS date values
• Use SAS functions to convert character data to numeric and vice versa
• Process data using DO LOOPS
• Process data using SAS arrays
• Validate and clean data

Generating Reports

• Generate list reports using the PRINT procedure 
• Generate summary reports and frequency tables using base SAS procedures 
• Enhance reports through the use of user-defined formats, titles, footnotes and SAS System reporting
• Generate reports using ODS statements

Handling Errors

• Identify and resolve programming logic errors
• Recognize and correct syntax errors
• Examine and resolve data errors

What we are going to do here?

We are going to enjoy SAS. I am going to post tips, notes, example questions, and other resources from time to time for the preparation of SAS base exam. You are encouraged to comment and post questions and provide link for any thing you think could be useful for the audience.

Week 01 Notes
Week 01 Practice Programs
Week 01 Practice Questions (You will need Visual CertExam Manager VCEM, Add the file in VCEM and practice).
Where could I find SAS jobs?
The best practice is to Google .... One of the place to look for SAS jobs is http://www.sas-jobs.com/.

Some commonly asked SAS Interview Questions:

How to remove duplicate records/observations?
Answer 1 or Answer 2 more interesting with SAS EG

What is the difference between Proc MEANS  and Proc SUMMARY?
Answer

When and why should you choose the use of 'Where' and 'If'' keywords?
Answer

Do you like Proc SQL or Data step?
PROC SQL can achieve the same results as base SAS software but often with fewer and shorter statements.
Answer may also depend on what you like and why!! General logic would suggest Answer!!

Do you know the difference between 'Do while' and 'DO untill'?
Can you answer? - answer in the comments section, I will place the best answer here ...

What is the difference between format and informat?
Format
Informat

A list of common SAS Interview questions could be found here.
Do not hesitate to add more in the comments section.


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