Digital skills for the workplace: using Excel (foundation)

What is the course about?

This course will give you the skills and confidence in Excel to create a well-presented spreadsheet. You will learn important terms, concepts and functions of the Excel spreadsheets and be astonished at how powerful and useful Excel is. We will focus on how to create spreadsheets which are formatted with the right fonts, colour, text size and style including headers and footers. You will learn about entering data and using formulae and functions to make calculations. You will practise creating charts and graphs and enhancing their appearance so that data can be presented in an easy to read way. We will also practise using and creating templates, printing to maintain formatting and managing your files.

What will we cover?

• identifying key features of a worksheet to create attractive and accurate documents such as budget sheets
• how to enter and present data including making it more readable by changing its font, colour, size and style.
• how to present and change tables such as entering and deleting a column, row or sheet.
• adding and deleting headers and footers.
•how to make calculations by using common formulae and key functions such as Sum, Average, Maximum and Count.
• how to present data by creating charts, graphs and enhancing their appearance.
• using and creating templates.
• print preparation
• managing your files and maintaining security.

What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...

•use all the main essential features of Excel to create attractive and accurate documents such as budget sheets
• identify the key features of an Excel window
• create, open and save files
•enter and present data including making it more readable by changing its font, colour, size and style.
• present and change tables such as entering and deleting a column, row or sheet.
• create well-presented and readable spreadsheets by using appropriate formatting including use of headers and footers, different page layouts and orientation
•make calculations by using common formulae and key functions such as Sum, Average, Maximum and Count.
• convert and present numerical data into visually appealing forms by creating charts, graphs and enhancing their appearance.
• use and creating templates.
• using spell check and grammar check so your documents are accurate
• print documents including headers and footers
• organise your files so they are easy to find and secure.

What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?

This is a course suitable for post-beginners. You need some familiarity with Excel. If you are a complete beginner, do our Becoming Confident on Excel course.

How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?

You will learn in a supportive and welcoming environment with an emphasis on your discovering how to do and complete tasks, with guidance from the tutor. You will work on your own and with other students on different tasks so you are always practising important in-demand life and work skills such as problem-solving, decision-making, prioritising, negotiating, collaborating and independence. You will learn in a step by step manner so you can complete challenging tasks in enjoyable and relaxing ways. Your tutor will also work with you individually so you know how to improve and how to work in a way that improves your learning. You will need to do work outside the classroom and use Google Classroom to help you.

Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?

You will need a pen, A4 paper and a folder to keep your work in. Your tutor will provide handouts and a code for Google classroom so you can communicate with classmates and access materials, videos online.

When I've finished, what course can I do next?

There are many courses you can do before, at the same time or after this course. These include:
• Business administration with digital skill: how to be an administrator (foundation)
• Business Administration: how to be a PA (foundation)
• Business administration: using Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Access in the office (intermediate)
• Award in Digital and IT Skills: word-processing, spreadsheets, presentations and databases (level 2)
• Essential digital skills for work (Level 1)
• Becoming confident on the cloud: OneDrive and Google drive - a new way of sharing and managing your files (foundation)
• Essential digital skills for the workplace: Word, Excel and PowerPoint (foundation-level 1)
• Becoming confident on Excel 365 (beginner)
• Digital skills for the workplace: working with data - inputting, finding, sorting, filtering with Excel (foundation)
• Digital skills for business: analysing, handling and presenting data with Excel (intermediate)
• Digital skills for business: visualising data with Excel - from column charts to scatter plots (intermediate)

You can also do classes in the maths and English areas. These include:
• Maths skills for life and work - getting ready for functional skills (foundation 1)
• Maths for life and work (level 1)
• Discover the maths in the world around you: from nature to buildings (entry 3-level 1)
• Bitesize maths: becoming confident with numbers and calculations (level 1-2)
• Bitesize maths: becoming confident with shapes, space and measuring (level 1-2)
• Bitesize maths: becoming confident with algebra, problem-solving and equations (level 1-2)
• English Functional Skills (level 1)
• English Functional Skills (level 2)
• English communication skills - for life and work (level 1)

For more information, talk with your tutor or contact universal.skills@citylit.ac.uk / 020 4582 0423.