If you want to work in clinical trials (Pharma) or anti-money laundering (Finance), knowing Python is nice, but knowing SAS is mandatory. The free trial allows you to learn PROC SQL and PROC REPORT on real data sets. Use the 30 days to replicate a published medical study. If you can do that, you can pass the technical interview.
However, it suffers from an identity problem. New coders find it "old." Old coders find it "reliable." If you are trying to break into legacy industries, this trial is your golden ticket. If you are building a flashy web app, stick to open source. sas software free trial
Download the trial on a Friday. Spend the weekend running the "SAS Programming 1: Essentials" free e-learning course (often bundled with the trial). By Monday, you will be able to talk to senior data managers in their native language. That is worth the price of admission (which is currently $0). If you want to work in clinical trials
During your free trial, you have access to everything —from machine learning algorithms to natural language processing. However, background jobs may be deprioritized in the queue. This means your model might take 10 minutes to run instead of 2. For learning and prototyping, this is irrelevant. For production, it is the only reminder that you are on a free tier. You should download the SAS free trial immediately if you fall into one of these three buckets: If you can do that, you can pass the technical interview
In the world of advanced analytics, SAS is the 800-pound gorilla. For decades, it has been the gold standard for industries where failure is not an option: banking, pharmaceuticals, government, and healthcare.
SPSS is clunky. R has a steep curve. SAS proc mixed (for hierarchical linear modeling) is the industry standard for education and psychology research. The OnDemand platform is free indefinitely for professors and students. You can write a dissertation using SAS without paying a cent.