Data Analysis with Excel for Complete Beginners
Learn data analysis from scratch, including an introduction to essential maths and Microsoft Excel.
Duration
Approx 10 weeks5 hrs per week
An introduction to the fundamentals of data analysis using Excel.
Data analysis skills are in increasing demand across a huge range of industries, but if maths is not your strong suit, it can be a daunting thing to learn. This ExpertTrack has been designed with exactly that in mind. It is a complete beginner’s guide to the subject, covering the basics of data analytics, maths, and Excel fundamentals to refresh your memory and build your confidence in these areas.
You’ll explore:
- data in life and society
- ways to build your data literacy
- data analysis methods
- how to create tables and pivot tables in Excel
- how to create data visualisations in Excel
- the maths behind data analysis
- how to apply basic inferential maths to your data sets.
Every course within this ExpertTrack is self-paced, allowing you to review the course content as quickly or as slowly as you’d like.
Brush up on your mathematics before delving into data analysis
Data analysis involves applying maths - whether it’s statistics or simple formula - to data sets. This ExpertTrack offers you the chance to refresh your maths knowledge before you get started so that you feel confident in mathematical notation, applying summary statistics, and calculating business metrics as you proceed through the courses.
Learn how to use Excel functions for data analysis
Microsoft Excel is one of the top tools for data analysis and the built-in pivot tables are arguably the most popular analytic tool.
You will learn how to perform data analysis using Excel’s most popular features, including how to create pivot tables from a range with rows and columns in Excel. You will see the power of Excel pivots in action and their ability to summarise data in flexible ways, enabling quick exploration of data and producing valuable insights from the accumulated data.
Grow your data analysis skills
Once you’ve covered the maths behind data analytics and the Excel functions to support it, you’ll be able to grow your analytics skills more directly. This involves creating flexible data aggregations and representing data visually. Before long, you’ll be able to calculate margins and other calculations, as well as filtering data and creating reports using simple Excel formulas.
Feel confident making data-driven decisions
All of this works towards offering you more control and confidence in your data. You’ll be able to apply your new-found skills in both decision making and problem solving at work. You can even use this as a pathway into more specialised training in data analysis.
Key skills you will learn
- Microsoft Excel
- Decision Making
- Mathematics
- Data Analysis
Experience required
In order to benefit from this course, it would be helpful to have a basic understanding of how to create formulas and how cells are referenced by rows and columns within Excel.
Getting started
This ExpertTrack has been designed for learners who are new to Excel and to data analysis, who want to improve their skills.
You may want to advance your career, perform tasks more efficiently, or test out whether a career in data analysis is really for you.
ExpertTrack course overview
Course 1
Introduction to Data Analysis using Excel for Absolute Beginners
3.4 (13 reviews)Learning from scratch? This course provides an accessible entry-point into the fascinating world of data analysis.
2 tests
3 weeks
5 hours per week
Week 1
Course Introduction
- About this Course
- Our Data-Driven World
- Data Fluency
- Your First Data Walkthrough
- Unpacking the Walkthrough
- Wrapping up the Week
Week 2
Data Structure, Analysis and Visualisation
- Data Structures
- Data Anatomy
- Data Joins
- Data Analysis Methods
- Data Visualisation
- Wrapping up the Week
Week 3
Data Analysis in Context
- Data Analysis in Context
- Data Ethics
- Career Paths
- Wrapping Up the Course
Course 2
How to Use Microsoft Excel for Data Analysis
3.4 (5 reviews)Improve your skills using Microsoft Excel and associated Excel features, to better report and analyse your data.
2 weeks
5 hours per week
Week 1
Introduction to Excel Table and Pivot Table Fundamentals
- Welcome to the Course!
- Introduction to Reporting in Excel
- CloudSwyft Hands-On Lab 1
- Excel Tables
- CloudSwyft Hands-On Lab 2
- Basic Pivot Tables
- CloudSwyft Hands-On Lab 3
- Wrapping up the Week
Week 2
Reporting, Analysing and Comparing Data in Excel
- Dashboards
- CloudSwyft Hands-On Lab 4
- Profitability Analysis and Finding Anomalies
- CloudSwyft Hands-On Lab 5
- Comparative Data in Pivot Tables
- CloudSwyft Hands-On Lab 6
- Reporting Hierarchical Data
- CloudSwyft Hands-On Lab 7
- Introduction to Multi-Table Pivot Tables and the Data Model
- CloudSwyft Hands-On Lab 8
- Wrapping up the Course
Course 3
Data Visualisation Fundamentals for Absolute Beginners
4.0 (5 reviews)Gain an introduction into data visualisations to communicate your data analytics to a diverse audience.
1 test
2 weeks
5 hours per week
Week 1
Welcome to the Course
- About this Course
- Visualisations are Everywhere
- Visualisation Fundamentals
- Visuals for Comparing and Relating
- Visuals for Interacting and Analysing Data
- Wrapping Up the Week
Week 2
Business Visualisations and Visualisations of Tomorrow
- Business Visualisations
- Business Context for Visualisations
- Advanced Visualisations
- The Future of Visualisation
- Wrapping Up the Course
Course 4
Essential Mathematics for Data Analysis in Microsoft Excel
4.3 (6 reviews)Understand the basic maths that powers data analysis with this beginner’s course.
1 test
3 weeks
5 hours per week
Week 1
Introduction to Working with Data
- About this Course
- Introduction to Data and Variables
- Types of Data
- Notation
- Means and Deviations
- Weekly Wrap Up
Week 2
Summarising and Graphically Representing Data
- Summarising Data with Distributions and Graphs
- Bar Graphs and Pie Charts
- Mode, Mean and Median
- SD vs IQR
- Proportions
- Weekly Wrap Up
Week 3
Business Statistics and KPI's
- Business Statistics
- Business KPIs
- Introduction to Inferential Math and Forecasting
- Course Wrap Up
Prove you're job ready
Highlight the new, job-relevant skills you’ve gained and supplement existing qualifications with a hard-earned, industry-specific digital certificate – plus one for every course within your ExpertTrack.
- Learn the latest in your chosen industry or subject.
- Complete each course and pass assessments.
- Receive certificates validated by the educating organisation.
- Impress employers with learning outcomes you can add to your CV.
- Make your career dreams a reality.
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How ExpertTracks work
Join an ExpertTrack to master new skills in your chosen specialist area. Work through a series of topic-focused courses at your own pace, and pass the final assessment to earn a digital certificate award which proves your expertise.
Decide if the ExpertTrack is right for you with free access to the full suite of courses and assessments for a week.
Pay a monthly subscription fee of $39 for as long as it takes you to complete the ExpertTrack. You can learn at your own pace and cancel at any time.
Receive a certificate for every completed course and pass the final assessment to earn a digital certificate.
Use your specialist training to progress further in your career or build expertise in areas you’re passionate about.
Learning on FutureLearn
Your learning, your rules
- Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps to help you keep track of your learning
- Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
- Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores
Join a global classroom
- Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
- Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
- Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others
Map your progress
- As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
- Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control
- Complete 90% of course steps and all of the assessments to earn your certificate
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FAQ
ExpertTracks are a series of online courses designed to help you master new skills in specialist areas. You pay a monthly subscription fee which includes access to all courses within the ExpertTrack, as well as assessments and the final digital certificate.
Each ExpertTrack comes with a 2-day free trial period. You may cancel your subscription at any time and your subscription will automatically cancel when you finish the courses and assessments in your chosen ExpertTrack.
Yes. All of our ExpertTracks come with a 2-day free trial. You may claim one free trial period per ExpertTrack.
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No, all of our ExpertTracks consist of fully online courses. This means you can take an ExpertTrack from anywhere in the world.
No. ExpertTracks are designed for you to master new skills in a specialist area. You will earn a digital certificate that proves your learning, but it does not carry accreditation.
If you’re looking for certified or accredited courses, many of our microcredentials offer university credit or professional certification.
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