Spreadsheet software remains one of the most ubiquitous pieces of software used in workplaces around the world. Learning to confidently operate this software means adding a highly valuable asset to your employability portfolio. Across the globe, millions of job advertisements requiring Excel skills are posted every day. At a time when digital skills jobs are growing much faster than non-digital jobs, completing this course will position you ahead of others, so keep reading. In this last course of our Specialization Excel Skills for Business you will build on the strong foundations of the first three courses: Essentials, Intermediate I + II. In the Advanced course, we will prepare you to become a power user of Excel - this is your last step before specializing at a professional level. The topics we have prepared will challenge you as you learn how to use advanced formula techniques and sophisticated lookups. You will clean and prepare data for analysis, and learn how to work with dates and financial functions. An in-depth look at spreadsheet design and documentation will prepare you for our big finale, where you will learn how to build professional dashboards in Excel.
This course is part of the Excel Skills for Business Specialization
Excel Skills for Business: Advanced
Offered By
Skills you will gain
- Controllers
- Financial Analysts
- Accountants
- Economists
- Process Analysts
Syllabus - What you will learn from this course
Spreadsheet Design and Documentation
As an intermediate Excel user, you have the basics down. The first module of the Advanced course focusses on creating and maintaining accurate, flexible, responsive and user-friendly spreadsheets. You will learn how to design flexible and auditable spreadsheets, construct transparent calculations, create user-friendly navigation, and use styles, themes and formatting to tie it all up in a nice bow.
Advanced Formula Techniques
Excel often requires you to perform complex analysis on large sets of data. This can be made a lot easier using array formulas, which can perform multiple calculations simultaneously and ensure the accuracy of your spreadsheet. This module covers the use of array formulas, how to build them and use them effectively.
Data Cleaning and Preparation
Been handed a messy spreadsheet? This module focuses on data cleaning and preparation. You will learn how to use dynamic and automated fixes, clean messy data, automate these processes through functions, and ensure data remains clean dynamically. We will use functions to fix dates, replaces blanks and remove unwanted characters from data – all to help us build an efficient solution that lasts.
Financial Functions and Working with Dates
This module introduces financial functions into our Excel knowledge base. Financial functions are often used in businesses and Excel has a variety of tools to help you with that. This week, you will learn to apply date formulas in calculations, create loan schedules with financial functions, as well as use depreciation functions.
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Top reviews from Excel Skills for Business: Advanced
It has been a journey for me and I am glad that I have learned so much in these courses. Also I want to thank all learners who have helped me through the exercises, challenges and assessments.
It is wonderful to complete every course in excel provided by Macquarie University. These courses are really helpful for data analysis. Finally i am pro excel become a King of Excel
Instructor
Dr Yvonne Breyer
Program Director, Design and Experience, Global MBAAbout Macquarie University
About the Excel Skills for Business Specialization
Frequently Asked Questions
When will I have access to the lectures and assignments?
Once you enroll for a Certificate, you’ll have access to all videos, quizzes, and programming assignments (if applicable). Peer review assignments can only be submitted and reviewed once your session has begun. If you choose to explore the course without purchasing, you may not be able to access certain assignments.
What will I get if I subscribe to this Specialization?
When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free.
What is the refund policy?
Is financial aid available?
What version of Excel do you teach?
In this course, we are using Microsoft Excel 2016 (Office 365) on a Windows PC with all options set to default. The Office 365 version of Excel is the latest version at the time of writing and developing this course. If you have a different version of Excel or you are using a Mac, some tools and buttons will look different, they may be located in a different spot, or some might be missing altogether. If there are any major differences, we usually point them out during the practice videos. If you cannot find a tool that we mention, you can always ask in the forums or search the Internet. Most of the functionality we demonstrate is also available in other spreadsheet programs, although the interface will look different. Most other spreadsheet software can import and export files in the Microsoft Excel format. If you are not sure which version of Excel you are using, check the Microsoft support pages for help.
If you cannot use Excel 2016 on a PC, you will be able to follow along with the videos, however, please note that some of the assessment tasks will require Excel. Where possible, we have designed assessment tasks so that users of older versions of Excel (such as 2013) can still solve them.
More questions? Visit the Learner Help Center.
