MPC Workshop

The MPC Workshop series provides a rich set of professional development opportunities for all members, but especially for students and trainees. Students and trainees are often encouraged to present their research and expertise to showcase the important work being done at the MPC. The flexible and casual setting of the MPC Workshop is designed to support all participants.

Workshops are on Fridays starting at 12:15 pm in the MPC office in 50 Willey Hall, Seminar room on the UMN West Bank. Food and beverages will be served at all upcoming workshops. View this schedule as a pdf file.

Please contact [email protected] with any questions.

Spring 2025 Schedule

FRIDAY, January 24  |  12:15 - 1:15 PM

Spring Kick-Off! All UMN Graduate Student Meeting & MPC/LCC Information Session
Learn more about the benefits and opportunities of becoming a member of the Minnesota Population Center and/or the Life Course Center. 

FRIDAY, January 31 |  12:15 - 1:15 PM 

How Different Disciplines Think about Causality
With Janna Johnson, and Theresa Osypuk 

FRIDAY, February 7  | 12:15 - 1:15 PM  

How to Choose a Journal to Publish Your Article   
With Rob Warren, Heather Randell, and Diana Magnuson

FRIDAY, February 14  |  12:15 - 1:15 PM 

Didn't Get the Results You Expected? Strategies to Publish Null Findings 
With Rob Warren, Elizabeth Wrigley-Field, and Andy Fenelon 

FRIDAY, February 21  |  12:15 - 1:15 pm  

Introduction to the Federal Statistical Research Data Center (FSRDC)
Learn about the FSRDC from Cathy Fitch and Gina Erickson, including the application process and what data are available. 

FRIDAY, February 28  |  12:15 - 1:15 PM 

All About Lit Searches 
With Mike Esposito and Michelle Eilers

FRIDAY, March 7  |  12:15 - 1:15 PM

Causal Mediation Analysis (Application & Conceptual Theory)
With Nick Graetz

FRIDAY, March 21  |   12:15 - 1:15 PM 

Second Year Population Studies Trainee Presentations
Xiting Zhang, Hyeyun Jeong, Brayden Rothe, and Desiree Alvarez-McNelis 

FRIDAY, March 28 |  EXTENDED TIME - See sign-up sheet for specifics

PAA Poster Practice Session
Join us in giving constructive feedback to those preparing to share posters at PAA.

FRIDAY, April 4 |  EXTENDED TIME - See sign-up sheet for specifics

PAA Presentation Practice Session
Join us in giving constructive feedback to those preparing to present at PAA.

FRIDAY, April 18 |  12:15 - 1:15 PM 

Level Up Your Positionality Statement
With Bhaskar Upadhayay

FRIDAY, April 25  |  12:15 - 1:15 PM 

Spatial Data Linkage (e.g. Joining Contextual Data to Microdata)
With Tracy Kugler. View the slides from this event

FRIDAY, May 2  |  12:15 - 1:45 (Extended)

Three Paths to Equality: New Causal Decomposition Tools
Felix Elwert, Ph.D., Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor, University of Wisconsin

Social and medical scientists often ask how an intervening variable contributes to observed group-based outcome disparities. Examples include the roles of education in generating gender wage gaps, racial health disparities, and intergenerational income mobility. We introduce a new nonparametric decomposition approach to put this enterprise on a firm causal footing. We make three contributions.  First, we introduce a previously overlooked disparity-generating mechanism; second, we show how to isolate three distinct mechanisms under unstructured effect heterogeneity; third, we develop machine learning estimators with desirable properties. Empirically we enumerate, isolate, and identify the multiple and nearly countervailing causal roles that college graduation plays in intergenerational income mobility in the United States. (Joint work with Ang Yu: https://doi.org/10.1214/24-AOAS1990)

FRIDAY, May 9  |  12:15 - 1:15 PM 

Matching Techniques (Propensity Scores - When to Use and When Not to Use)
With David Hacker and Janna Johnson

Past Workshops

To view past workshop schedules, please use the links below:

Some select previous workshops have been recorded and can be found on the ISRDI YouTube channel.