Professional Excel Course

Lesson 1 • Navigating the Excel Environment

Covers the Ribbon, Quick Access Toolbar, and worksheet navigation shortcuts. Establishes spatial awareness of the interface as the foundation for all subsequent tasks.

Lesson 2 • Printing and Page Layout Basics

Covers print area setup, page orientation, and headers and footers. Prepares students to produce clean, professional printed or exported outputs.

Lesson 3 • Workbook and Worksheet Management

Teaches creating, saving, and organising workbooks and sheets. Proper file management prevents data loss and supports professional collaboration.

Lesson 4 • Entering and Editing Cell Data

Covers text, number, and date entry with editing techniques. Accurate data entry is the prerequisite for every formula and analysis task in the course.

Lesson 1 • Conditional Formatting Techniques

Applies rules-based formatting to highlight trends, outliers, and thresholds. Conditional formatting adds analytical value without requiring formulas.

Lesson 2 • Excel Tables and Structured References

Converts ranges to Excel Tables for automatic formatting and structured references. Tables streamline data management and formula writing throughout the course.

Lesson 3 • Row, Column, and Sheet Formatting

Covers adjusting row height, column width, hiding, and grouping. Structural formatting controls how data is displayed and navigated across large sheets.

Lesson 4 • Number and Date Formatting

Teaches built-in and custom number formats for currency, percentages, and dates. Correct formatting ensures data is interpreted accurately by all readers.

Lesson 1 • Date and Time Functions

Covers TODAY, NOW, DATEDIF, EDATE, and NETWORKDAYS. Date functions automate time-based calculations common in project tracking and reporting.

Lesson 2 • Logical Functions and Conditionals

Covers IF, AND, OR, NOT, and nested logic structures. Logical functions enable dynamic, decision-driven outputs essential for business reporting.

Lesson 3 • Formula Construction and Operators

Covers formula syntax, arithmetic operators, and operator precedence. A solid understanding of formula structure prevents errors in all subsequent function work.

Lesson 4 • Text Functions for Data Cleaning

Teaches LEFT, RIGHT, MID, TRIM, CONCATENATE, and TEXT. Text functions are critical for cleaning imported data and standardising formats.

Lesson 1 • INDEX and MATCH Combination

Covers INDEX and MATCH individually, then combined as a flexible lookup pair. This combination overcomes VLOOKUP's column-order limitations in complex models.

Lesson 2 • VLOOKUP and HLOOKUP Fundamentals

Teaches vertical and horizontal lookup syntax, match types, and common errors. These functions are the most widely used retrieval tools in professional Excel work.

Lesson 3 • Conditional Aggregation Functions

Teaches SUMIF, COUNTIF, AVERAGEIF, and their multi-criteria variants. These functions aggregate data by condition, replacing manual filtering for reporting tasks.

Lesson 4 • XLOOKUP for Modern Retrieval

Introduces XLOOKUP syntax, default values, and search modes. XLOOKUP replaces older lookup functions with simpler, more powerful syntax in modern Excel versions.

Lesson 1 • Subtotals and Grouping

Teaches the Subtotal tool, outline levels, and grouped summary views. Subtotals provide quick hierarchical summaries without building full pivot tables.

Lesson 2 • Sorting and Filtering Data

Covers single and multi-level sorting, AutoFilter, and custom filter criteria. Sorting and filtering are the first steps in any data exploration or reporting workflow.

Lesson 3 • What-If Analysis Tools

Covers Goal Seek, Scenario Manager, and one- and two-variable data tables. What-if tools enable rapid sensitivity analysis for business decision modelling.

Lesson 4 • Data Validation and Input Controls

Teaches dropdown lists, numeric constraints, and custom validation rules. Validation prevents entry errors at the source, protecting downstream analysis accuracy.

Lesson 1 • Chart Fundamentals and Type Selection

Covers chart anatomy, insertion methods, and matching chart types to data. Choosing the right chart type is the most critical decision in effective data visualisation.

Lesson 2 • Dynamic Charts with Named Ranges

Teaches dynamic chart ranges using named ranges and OFFSET or table references. Dynamic charts update automatically as data grows, eliminating manual chart maintenance.

Lesson 3 • Formatting Charts for Clarity

Teaches axis formatting, data labels, titles, and legend placement. Proper formatting removes ambiguity and ensures charts are self-explanatory to any audience.

Lesson 4 • Dashboard Design Principles

Covers layout planning, chart alignment, colour palettes, and removing chart clutter. Applying design principles produces dashboards that communicate insights at a glance.

Lesson 1 • Summarising and Grouping PivotData

Teaches value field settings, grouping dates and numbers, and calculated fields. These tools transform raw aggregations into meaningful business summaries.

Lesson 2 • PivotTable Design and Layout Options

Teaches compact, outline, and tabular layouts, plus style customisation. Consistent design ensures PivotTable reports meet professional presentation standards.

Lesson 3 • Creating and Customising PivotCharts

Covers inserting PivotCharts, chart type selection, and formatting linked to PivotTables. PivotCharts extend PivotTable analysis into visual executive summaries.

Lesson 4 • Filtering PivotTables with Slicers

Covers report filters, slicers, and timelines for interactive data exploration. Slicers and timelines make PivotTable reports intuitive for non-technical stakeholders.

Lesson 1 • Recording and Running Macros

Covers the macro recorder, relative vs. absolute recording, and running macros. Recording is the fastest entry point to automation without writing code manually.

Lesson 2 • VBA Variables, Data Types, and Logic

Covers Dim statements, data types, If-Then-Else, and For-Next loops. These programming fundamentals enable writing flexible, condition-driven automation routines.

Lesson 3 • Working with Ranges and Worksheets in VBA

Teaches Range, Cells, and Worksheet objects for reading and writing data. Manipulating ranges programmatically is the core skill for spreadsheet automation.

Lesson 4 • Introduction to the VBA Editor

Teaches the VBA IDE layout, modules, and reading recorded code. Understanding the editor is essential before writing or modifying any VBA procedure.