Below is a summary of three valuable websites to become proficient in Excel. They are not in order of preference. Remember, whichever one (s) you choose to use will depend upon your personal preference or adult learning style.
1) E-learners provide these free courses online in Excel and other business courses, without a catch! All one has to do is go to their free online course page and sign up. You will be sent a confirmation email before beginning.
Check their website periodically for course updates. Below is a sample list of the current courses available (remember they are subject to change). There are also different course levels based upon level of ability. For example, Course 1, Course 2 or Course 3, are available at different times so one can build upon his or her skills.
- Networks (CompTIA A+ Essentials)
- Basics of HTML and XHTML (Web Publishing and Design with HTML 4.01 and XHTML)
- Start Using JavaScript
- Working with Active Directory (Windows Server 2003)
- DataSets and XML Data (Visual Basic .NET for XML Web MCSD/MCAD 70-310)
- Programming with PHP (PHP and MySQL)
- Creating a Worksheet (Excel 2007)
- Management in Perspective (Fundamentals of Business Management)
- Communicating (Customer Service)
2) Another legitimate way to take a free online course in Excel, is right from the Microsoft official website. These are actually broken down into several small sections, so for example you will learn the basics of Excel (what is a cell, very simple formulas), how to create data and charts, how to share your information (or data) with others, and how to make documents faster than ever before, just to name a few. Microsoft 2007 Official website also provides training in all of the Microsoft programs including Access, Communicator, Live Meeting, OneNote, Outlook, PerformancePoint Server, PowerPoint, Project Publisher, SharePoint Server, Visio, and Word.
3) One last reference for learning Excel is from the Family Computer Club. This is another website that provides very thorough information to learn Excel programming. They assure you that you will be comfortable creating reports and spreadsheets on the job.
The teaching approach they employ is to provide thorough reading material about Excel, with an accompanying Youtube video explaining the reading, so you get both the reading and a visual. It may be advantageous to print the reading material as a reference while taking the courses.