Excel Skills for Statistics and Data Analysis: Essentials from Coursera

Statistics and data analysis involve collecting, analysing, interpreting and presenting data to stakeholders to enhance their decision-making.

Statistics is all about making sense of numbers and finding patterns in the data - in business, health, sports, science, the arts, and more.

Statistics can be divided into two main branches, descriptive statistics and inferential statistics.

Descriptive Statistics summarise and describe the features of a data set.

Inferential Statistics allow us to make predictions or inferences about a population based on a sample of data that we have access to.

In this course, you will be equipped with the tools and techniques to transform your data into meaningful output to drive insights for your work and your organisation.

We will explore both Descriptive Statistics as well as Inferential Statistics.

What's inside

Syllabus

Welcome and Critical Information

Welcome to Excel Skills for Statistics and Data Analysis! In this module, we will go through why you need to study this course and what skills you will gain. Additionally, we will go through how the course is structured, and the resources you have along the way. We can't wait to see you progress and master Excel Skills for Statistics and Data Analysis!

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Read about what's good

what should give you pause

and possible dealbreakers

Equips learners with tools to transform data into meaningful outputs, which can drive insights for their work and organization

Explores both descriptive and inferential statistics, which are fundamental concepts for understanding data analysis

Includes optional content to enhance Excel skills, which can be useful for various tasks beyond statistical analysis

Covers statistical inference, which allows learners to make predictions about a population based on a sample of data

Explores data distributions and what can be inferred from a sample of data if its center and spread are known

Recommends other courses and specializations, such as Excel Skills for Business, for learners who want to further their skills in Excel

Reviews summary

Essential excel statistics skills

According to learners, this course provides a solid foundation in using Excel for basic statistics and data analysis. Many find the explanations clear and easy to follow, making it particularly suitable for beginners or those needing a refresher. The curriculum covers essential descriptive and inferential statistics concepts effectively, often highlighted by practical applications in Excel and helpful practice assignments. While widely appreciated for its foundational content, some reviewers mention it may be too basic for individuals with prior statistics or advanced Excel experience. Overall, students report gaining practical, applicable skills for their work or studies.

Concepts are explained clearly and simply.

"The instructor's explanations were clear and made complex topics accessible."

"I appreciated how clearly the statistical concepts were broken down."

"The explanations in the lectures were very easy to understand."

"Clear instructions helped me grasp the material quickly."

Assignments help reinforce learning.

"The practice assignments were essential for solidifying my understanding."

"Working through the exercises in Excel really helped me apply the concepts."

"I found the assignments to be very helpful in reinforcing the lessons."

"The assignments provided valuable hands-on practice."

Excellent starting point for new learners.

"As someone new to statistics, I found the course easy to follow and understand."

"It is ideal for beginners who want to learn statistics using Excel."

"The pace and explanations were perfect for someone with no prior background."

"This course is a fantastic starting point for statistical analysis in Excel."

Focuses on practical application in Excel.

"Learning how to actually perform the statistical functions in Excel was very practical."

"The course effectively demonstrates how to use Excel's tools for data analysis."

"I can immediately apply the Excel techniques learned to my work data."

"The hands-on approach in Excel is the course's strength."

Provides a strong basis in statistics essentials.

"The course provides a strong foundation in using Excel for basic statistical analysis."

"I feel like I have a solid foundation in statistics and how to apply it with Excel after this."

"It really helped build a fundamental understanding of core statistical concepts."

"I gained a solid foundation from completing this course."

Could be too simple for experienced users.

"If you have some background in statistics or Excel, much of this might be review."

"For someone with prior experience, the pace might feel a bit slow at times."

"I was hoping for more advanced topics, but it sticks to the essentials as promised."

"This is an essentials course, so don't expect deep dives if you're already skilled."

Activities

Be better prepared before your course. Deepen your understanding during and after it. Supplement your coursework and achieve mastery of the topics covered in Excel Skills for Statistics and Data Analysis: Essentials with these activities:

Review Descriptive Statistics Concepts

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Solidify your understanding of descriptive statistics concepts to better grasp the initial modules of the course.

Browse courses on Descriptive Statistics

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Review definitions of mean, median, and mode.
Practice calculating variance and standard deviation.
Familiarize yourself with different types of data distributions.

Practice Basic Excel Functions

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Refresh your knowledge of basic Excel functions to efficiently perform statistical calculations in the course.

Browse courses on Excel Functions

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Practice using SUM, AVERAGE, and STDEV functions.
Learn how to use COUNT and COUNTA functions.
Familiarize yourself with cell referencing (relative and absolute).

Review 'Statistics for Dummies'

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Supplement your learning with a book that provides a friendly and accessible introduction to statistics.

View Statistics For Dummies on Amazon

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Read the chapters on descriptive and inferential statistics.
Work through the example problems in the book.
Take notes on key concepts and formulas.

Four other activities

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Excel Statistical Function Exercises

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Reinforce your understanding of Excel's statistical functions through targeted practice exercises.

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Download a dataset of sample data.
Calculate descriptive statistics using Excel functions.
Perform hypothesis tests using Excel's statistical tools.

Create a Data Visualization Dashboard

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Apply your knowledge by creating a dashboard that visualizes key statistical insights from a dataset.

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Choose a dataset relevant to your interests.
Identify key statistical measures to visualize.
Create charts and graphs in Excel to represent the data.
Design a dashboard layout to present the visualizations effectively.

Review 'Naked Statistics: Stripping the Dread from the Data'

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Enhance your understanding of statistical concepts with a book that focuses on intuition and practical applications.

View Naked Statistics: Stripping the Dread from the... on Amazon

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Read the chapters on statistical inference and hypothesis testing.
Reflect on the real-world examples provided in the book.
Discuss the concepts with peers to solidify your understanding.

Analyze a Real-World Dataset

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Apply your skills by conducting a statistical analysis of a real-world dataset and presenting your findings.

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Select a dataset from a reputable source (e.g., Kaggle, government websites).
Clean and prepare the data for analysis in Excel.
Perform descriptive and inferential statistical analyses.
Interpret your results and draw meaningful conclusions.
Prepare a report summarizing your analysis and findings.

Career center

Learners who complete Excel Skills for Statistics and Data Analysis: Essentials will develop knowledge and skills that may be useful to these careers:

Data Analyst

A data analyst examines data using statistical techniques to identify trends and insights. This course helps build a foundation in descriptive and inferential statistics, which are crucial for a data analyst to summarize data and make predictions. The course's focus on Excel-based statistical analysis directly translates to the tools commonly used in this role. A prospective data analyst should take this course to equip themselves with the tools and techniques to transform data into meaningful output and drive insights. The modules covering variance, normal distribution, and statistical inference are especially relevant.

See salaries and explore the career path for Data Analyst

Business Intelligence Analyst

A business intelligence analyst uses data to identify trends and insights that can improve business performance. This course helps become proficient in descriptive and inferential statistics, enabling a business intelligence analyst to summarise data and make predictions about business outcomes. Proficiency with Excel, as emphasized in the course, is a key skill for business intelligence analysts. Taking this course provides the necessary skills to transform data into actionable insights. The coverage of normal distribution and statistical inference is particularly valuable.

See salaries and explore the career path for Business Intelligence Analyst

Market Research Analyst

A market research analyst studies market conditions to examine potential sales of a product or service. This course helps learn how to perform statistical analysis, which is crucial for interpreting market data and identifying trends. Understanding descriptive and inferential statistics, as covered in the course, allows a market research analyst to draw meaningful conclusions from data. Excel proficiency, as is taught in this course, is highly valuable for this role. This course provides the statistical skills needed for effective market analysis. The modules on variance and statistical inference are very useful.

See salaries and explore the career path for Market Research Analyst

Statistical Assistant

A statistical assistant supports statisticians by collecting, processing, and analyzing data. This course helps develop essential skills in descriptive and inferential statistics, which are fundamental for data processing and analysis. The emphasis on Excel makes this course directly relevant to the tools used by statistical assistants. If you wish to become a statistical assistant, this course provides the practical skills to assist in statistical analysis. The modules on normal distribution and statistical inference is beneficial for this work.

See salaries and explore the career path for Statistical Assistant

Research Assistant

A research assistant supports research projects by collecting, organizing, and analyzing data. This course helps build a solid foundation in descriptive and inferential statistics, which are essential for analyzing research data. The focus on Excel-based analysis aligns well with the tools often used in research settings. A student who wants to be a research assistant should take this course to gain practical data analysis skills. The course content that focuses on variance is very helpful.

See salaries and explore the career path for Research Assistant

Financial Analyst

A financial analyst examines financial data to provide insights and recommendations to organizations. This course may be useful for gaining proficiency in statistical analysis which is valuable for interpreting financial data and understanding market trends. A financial analyst can use descriptive and inferential statistics, as covered in the course, to assess risk and forecast financial performance. You might also learn valuable Excel skills. The normal distribution module is extremely helpful.

See salaries and explore the career path for Financial Analyst

Data Scientist

A data scientist uses advanced statistical techniques and machine learning to extract insights from data. This course may be useful for building a foundational understanding of descriptive and inferential statistics, which are essential for more advanced data science methods. While a data scientist typically requires advanced knowledge and often a master's or doctoral degree, this introductory course provides a practical starting point. Learning the Excel skills this course teaches is also useful. The variance and statistical inference modules may be helpful.

See salaries and explore the career path for Data Scientist

Management Consultant

A management consultant advises organizations on how to improve their performance and efficiency. This course may be useful for developing data analysis skills, which can support evidence-based consulting recommendations. Understanding descriptive statistics, as covered in the course, is useful for summarising and presenting data to clients. This course helps you gain familiarity with Excel. The modules discussing the normal distribution may be helpful.

See salaries and explore the career path for Management Consultant

Actuary

An actuary assesses and manages financial risks using statistical models. This course may be useful for gaining a basic understanding of statistical concepts which are foundational for actuarial science. Actuaries need a deep understanding of statistical inference and distributions, so the course's introduction can be beneficial. The Excel skills learned in this course is useful for data handling. Consider this course to provide a basis in statistics. The modules covering introductory statistics may be helpful.

See salaries and explore the career path for Actuary

Operations Research Analyst

An operations research analyst uses mathematical and statistical techniques to improve organizational efficiency. This course may be useful for learning fundamental statistical skills, which are essential for building optimization models. The course's focus on Excel may be useful for data manipulation and analysis. Taking this course provides exposure to statistical techniques. Statistical inference material may be helpful.

See salaries and explore the career path for Operations Research Analyst

Statistician

A statistician develops and applies statistical theories and methods to collect, interpret, and summarize numerical data. The career path typically requires a Master's degree or a PhD. This course may be useful for providing an introduction to statistical concepts and Excel-based data analysis; these concepts can serve as a building block on which to build further skills. The course helps in understanding descriptive and inferential statistics. The coverage of variance may be useful.

See salaries and explore the career path for Statistician

Researcher

A researcher conducts investigations to answer questions in a particular field. This career path often requires a Master's degree or a PhD. This course may be useful in teaching basic understanding of statistical concepts and Excel-based data analysis; these concepts can serve as a building block on which to build further skills. The course introduces descriptive and inferential statistics. The content on normal distribution may be useful to a researcher.

See salaries and explore the career path for Researcher

Auditor

An auditor examines financial records to ensure accuracy and compliance. This course may be useful for providing an understanding of how to interpret data. A person who wants to be an auditor may find this course helpful, though further training would be needed to be successful in this career. Knowledge of statistical inference is useful. The statistics content may be helpful.

See salaries and explore the career path for Auditor

Accountant

An accountant prepares and examines financial records. This course may be useful for providing a foundation in data analysis which can be applied to financial data. If you want to be an accountant, this course provides the skills to help you get started. The Excel portion of this course may be helpful.

See salaries and explore the career path for Accountant

Budget Analyst

A budget analyst helps organizations manage their finances by developing and analyzing budgets. This course may be useful for providing a foundation in data analysis which can be applied to budgeting. A person who wants to be a budget analyst may find this course helpful, though further training would be needed to be successful in this career. If someone wants to become a budget analyst, understanding statistical inference may be useful.

See salaries and explore the career path for Budget Analyst

Excel Skills for Statistics and Data Analysis

Essentials

What's inside

Syllabus

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Reviews summary

Essential excel statistics skills

Activities

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