Microsoft Excel Course: Level 1

Microsoft Excel. Unlock insights and tell the story in your data.

COVID-19 update: arrangement of our courses

We are now delivering courses online and in-person. Please check the delivery format of each class before enrolling.

Please note that course materials (excluding prescribed texts) are shared electronically within 48 hours of course commencement. Printing is not available.

This Microsoft Excel short course will help you improve the way you manage and present information, and take the legwork out of calculations and data manipulation. It provides the skills and knowledge necessary to create and manage workbooks and covers topics including adding data, editing data, working with formulas, printing and charting It is an ideal introductory course before progressing onto Microsoft Excel Course: Level 2.

We encourage you to use the CCE Excel level self-assessment tool if you are unsure which course level to enrol in.

Aims

This course aims to provide new Excel users with a foundation knowledge of Excel’s core features such as formulas, formatting, navigation, printing and creating charts.

Outcomes

By the end of this course, you should be able to:

• navigate your way around Excel
• create and work with a new workbook
• open and navigate within workbooks and worksheets
• understand and work with ranges in a worksheet
• understand, create and work with formulas and functions used to perform calculations
• copy and paste data
• understand and use formula cell referencing
• use font formatting techniques
• align the contents of cells in a number of ways
• format rows and columns in a worksheet
• understand and use the number formatting features
• print workbook data
• create effective charts.

Content

Getting to know Excel

• Starting from the desktop
• Understanding the start screen
• The workbook screen
• How excel works
• Using the ribbon
• Showing and collapsing the ribbon
• Understanding the backstage view
• Accessing the backstage view
• Using shortcut menus
• Understanding dialog boxes
• Launching dialog boxes
• Understanding the quick access toolbar
• Adding commands to the quick access toolbar
• Understanding the status bar
• Exiting safely

Creating a new workbook

• Understanding workbooks
• Using the blank workbook template
• Typing text
• Typing numbers
• Typing dates
• Typing formulas
• Easy formulas
• Saving a new workbook on your computer
• Checking the spelling
• Making basic changes
• Printing a worksheet
• Safely closing a workbook

Working with workbooks

• Opening an existing workbook
• Navigating a workbook
• Navigating using the keyboard
• Using go to
• Recent files and folders

Editing in a workbook

• Understanding data editing
• Overwriting cell contents
• Editing longer cells
• Editing formulas
• Clearing cells
• Deleting data
• Using undo and redo

Selecting ranges

• Understanding cells and ranges
• Selecting contiguous ranges
• Selecting non-contiguous ranges
• Using special selection techniques
• Selecting larger ranges
• Selecting rows
• Selecting columns

Copying data

• Understanding copying
• Using fill for quick copying
• Copying from one cell to another
• Copying from one cell to a range
• Copying from one range to another
• Copying relative formulas
• Copying to a non-contiguous range
• Copying to another worksheet
• Copying to another workbook

Formulas and functions

• Understanding formulas
• Creating formulas that add
• Creating formulas that subtract
• Formulas that multiply and divide
• Understanding functions
• Using the sum function
• Summing non-contiguous ranges
• Calculating an average
• Finding a maximum value
• Finding a minimum value
• Creating more complex formulas
• What if formulas
• Common error messages

Formula referencing

• Absolute versus relative referencing
• Relative formulas
• Problems with relative formulas
• Creating absolute references
• Creating mixed references

Font formatting

• Understanding font formatting
• Working with live preview
• Changing fonts
• Changing font size
• Growing and shrinking fonts
• Making cells bold
• Italicising text
• Underlining text
• Changing font colours
• Changing background colours
• Using the format painter
• Applying strikethrough
• Subscripting text
• Superscripting text
• Practice exercise

Cell alignment

• Understanding cell alignment
• Horizontal cell alignment
• Vertical cell alignment
• Rotating text
• Indenting cells

Number formatting

• Understanding number formatting
• Applying general formatting
• Formatting for money
• Formatting percentages
• Formatting as fractions
• Formatting as dates
• Using the thousands separator
• Increasing and decreasing decimals

Row and column formatting

• Approximating column widths
• Setting precise columns widths
• Setting the default column width
• Approximating row height
• Setting precise row heights

Working with a worksheet

• Understanding worksheets
• Changing the worksheet view
• Worksheet zooming
• Viewing the formula bar
• Viewing worksheet gridlines
• Viewing the ruler
• Inserting cells into a worksheet
• Deleting cells from a worksheet
• Inserting columns into a worksheet
• Inserting rows into a worksheet
• Deleting rows and columns
• More than one worksheet
• Worksheet wisdom

Sorting data

• Understanding lists
• Performing an alphabetical sort
• Performing a numerical sort
• Sorting on more than one column
• Sorting numbered lists
• Sorting by rows

Filtering data

• Understanding filtering
• Applying and using a filter
• Clearing a filter
• Creating compound filters
• Multiple value filters
• Creating custom filters
• Using wildcards

Printing

• Understanding printing
• Previewing before you print
• Selecting a printer
• Printing a range
• Printing an entire workbook
• Specifying the number of copies
• The print options

Creating charts

• Understanding the charting process
• Choosing the right chart
• Using a recommended chart
• Creating a new chart from scratch
• Working with an embedded chart
• Resizing a chart
• Repositioning a chart
• Printing an embedded chart
• Creating a chart sheet
• Changing the chart type
• Changing the chart layout
• Changing the chart style
• Printing a chart sheet
• Embedding a chart into a worksheet
• Deleting a chart

Intended audience

Suitable for beginners. Assumes little or no knowledge of Microsoft Excel.

Prerequisites

You should be familiar with the basic functions of a computer operating system such as navigating the environment using a mouse and keyboard, starting applications, copying and pasting objects, formatting text, creating folders, opening files, saving files, familiarity with the accessing the Internet and use of common web browsers. If you do not have these skills, we recommend attending Basic Computer Skills Course and Effective Internet Use before attempting this course.

Delivery modes

• Face-to-face, presenter-taught training
• Online training via the platform Zoom

Delivery style

Face-to-face classes (CCE, Newtown)

These classes run in a computer lab and you do not need to bring your own device.

Face-to-face classes (external venues including PARKROYAL, Cliftons and CBD)

These classes run in a classroom and you need to bring your own device.

Online classes

You will need your own device.

Materials

You will be provided with a link to access and download your own personalised eBook prior to class.

Teaching instructions and materials are specifically tailored to Windows PC users.

Additional information

Recommended operating system: Windows or Mac
Recommended software for PC: MS Excel 2013, 2016, 2019, 365
Recommended software for Mac OS: MS Excel 2016, 2019, 365
Recommended browser: Chrome

Please bring a USB flash drive to class if you would like to make a copy of your work or any relevant class materials. Alternatively, you can save these to a cloud storage space or email them to your personal email address.