Software Carpentry aims to help researchers get their work done in less time and with less pain by teaching them basic research computing skills. This hands-on workshop will cover basic concepts and tools, including program design, version control, data management, and task automation. Participants will be encouraged to help one another and to apply what they have learned to their own research problems.

For more information on what we teach and why, please see our paper "Best Practices for Scientific Computing".

This workshop will cover an introduction to Python. Python is a common and powerful programming language, with many scientific libraries; this workshop will cover basic concepts and tools, including program design, version control, data management, and task automation.

This event takes place in person on the MIT campus over three days, from 4pm to 6pm, in 55-110 (Green Building, 2nd Floor).

This workshop is part of a multi-day series on practical software carpentry. Register for the Unix (in 2 parts), Git/Github (in 2 parts), Python (in 3 parts) or all 3 series. We recommend that you please register for all parts of a workshop series:

• Monday, Sept 15th (Part I), Sept 22nd (Part II): Introduction to Unix Shell
  • Unix workshop outline and download instructions 
• Monday, Sept 29th (Part I), Oct 6th (Part II): Introduction to Git/GitHub
  • Git/Github workshop outline and download instructions
• Monday, Oct 27th (Part I), Nov 3rd (Part II), Nov 17th (Part III): Introduction to Python
  • Python workshop outline and download instructions

Who: The course is aimed at graduate students and other researchers. You don't need to have any previous knowledge of the tools that will be presented at the workshop.

Where: 77 Massachusetts Avenue Cambridge, MA 02139 | 55-110 (Green Building, 2nd Floor). Get directions with OpenStreetMap or Google Maps.

When: Oct 27-Nov 17, 2025; 4:00 pm - 6:00pm. Add to your Google Calendar.

Requirements: Participants must bring a laptop with a Mac, Linux, or Windows operating system (not a tablet, Chromebook, etc.) that they have administrative privileges on. They should have a few specific software packages installed (listed below).

Accessibility: We are committed to making this workshop accessible to everybody. The workshop organizers have checked that:

• The room is wheelchair / scooter accessible.
• Accessible restrooms are available.

We are dedicated to providing a positive and accessible learning environment for all. We do not require participants to provide documentation of disabilities or disclose any unnecessary personal information. However, we do want to help create an inclusive, accessible experience for all participants. We encourage you to share any information that would be helpful to make your Carpentries experience accessible. To request an accommodation for this workshop, please fill out the accommodation request form. If you have questions or need assistance with the accommodation form please email us.

Glosario is a multilingual glossary for computing and data science terms. The glossary helps learners attend workshops and use our lessons to make sense of computational and programming jargon written in English by offering it in their native language. Translating data science terms also provides a teaching tool for Carpentries Instructors to reduce barriers for their learners.

Workshop Recordings: Carpentries workshops are designed to be interactive rather than lecture-based, with lessons that build upon one another. To foster a positive online learning environment, we strongly recommend that participants join in real time. As a result, workshop recordings are not recommended and may not be available to learners.

Contact: Please email turnator@mit , plajoie@mit.edu or apaz@mit.edu for more information.

Roles: To learn more about the roles at the workshop (who will be doing what), refer to our Workshop FAQ.