Fall Semester 2025 | Excel Crash Course Complete Study Guide | 200+ Verified Practice Exercises with Step-by-Step Solutions | Updated 2025/2026 Edition | Microsoft Excel Formulas, Functions, Data Analysis & Spreadsheet Skills Training

Fall SemeSter 2025 | excel craSh courSe
complete Study Guide | 200+ VeriFied practice
exerciSeS with Step-by-Step SolutionS |
updated 2025/2026 edition | microSoFt excel
FormulaS, FunctionS, data analySiS &
SpreadSheet SkillS traininG

QUESTION 1:
What is the primary purpose of Microsoft Excel?
A. Word processing
B. Database management
C. Spreadsheet management
D. Graphic design
CORRECT ANSWER: C. Spreadsheet management
RATIONALE: Excel is primarily used for managing and analyzing data in spreadsheet
format.


QUESTION 2:
Which of the following is a basic formula to add values in Excel?
A. =SUM(A1:A10)
B. =TOTAL(A1:A10)
C. =A1 + A2 + A3
D. =ADD(A1:A10)
CORRECT ANSWER: C. =A1 + A2 + A3
RATIONALE: While =SUM is commonly used, the basic addition can be done with the '+'
operator.


QUESTION 3:
What is the function of the 'AutoFill' feature in Excel?
A. To create graphs
B. To fill cells with a series of data
C. To format text
D. To insert images
CORRECT ANSWER: B. To fill cells with a series of data
RATIONALE: AutoFill allows users to quickly fill cells with repetitive or sequential data.

,QUESTION 4:
How can you apply conditional formatting to a cell?
A. Right-click and select format
B. Use the Conditional Formatting option in the Home tab
C. Format as table
D. Use the Filter option
CORRECT ANSWER: B. Use the Conditional Formatting option in the Home tab
RATIONALE: Conditional formatting is applied through the Home tab to visually
highlight data.


QUESTION 5:
Which function would you use to find the average of a range of cells?
A. =SUM()
B. =AVERAGE()
C. =COUNT()
D. =MEDIAN()
CORRECT ANSWER: B. =AVERAGE()
RATIONALE: The AVERAGE function calculates the mean of a specified range of cells.


QUESTION 6:
What does the VLOOKUP function do?
A. Looks up a value in a table and returns a corresponding value
B. Searches for a file
C. Validates data entries
D. Creates charts
CORRECT ANSWER: A. Looks up a value in a table and returns a corresponding
value
RATIONALE: VLOOKUP is used to search for a value in the first column of a table and
return a value in the same row from another column.


QUESTION 7:
What is the purpose of pivot tables in Excel?
A. To create graphs
B. To summarize and analyze data
C. To format text
D. To enter data

,CORRECT ANSWER: B. To summarize and analyze data
RATIONALE: Pivot tables allow users to quickly summarize large datasets for analysis.


QUESTION 8:
Which chart type is best for showing trends over time?
A. Pie chart
B. Line chart
C. Bar chart
D. Scatter plot
CORRECT ANSWER: B. Line chart
RATIONALE: Line charts are ideal for displaying data trends over a period of time.


QUESTION 9:
What shortcut is used to save a workbook in Excel?
A. Ctrl + P
B. Ctrl + S
C. Ctrl + C
D. Ctrl + A
CORRECT ANSWER: B. Ctrl + S
RATIONALE: Ctrl + S is the standard shortcut for saving files in most applications,
including Excel.


QUESTION 10:
What feature allows you to protect a worksheet from editing?
A. Formatting
B. Sorting
C. Protect Sheet
D. Filter
CORRECT ANSWER: C. Protect Sheet
RATIONALE: The Protect Sheet feature restricts editing capabilities to maintain data
integrity.


QUESTION 11:
How can you quickly change the format of a cell to currency?
A. Right-click and select currency
B. Use the Format Cells dialog

, C. Use the Currency option in the Home tab
D. Apply conditional formatting
CORRECT ANSWER: C. Use the Currency option in the Home tab
RATIONALE: The Home tab provides quick options for formatting cells, including
currency.


QUESTION 12:
What does the COUNT function do?
A. Counts unique values
B. Counts the number of cells containing numbers
C. Counts non-empty cells
D. Counts text entries
CORRECT ANSWER: B. Counts the number of cells containing numbers
RATIONALE: COUNT specifically counts only those cells that contain numeric data.


QUESTION 13:
Which feature would you use to filter data in Excel?
A. Sort
B. Filter
C. Pivot Table
D. Format
CORRECT ANSWER: B. Filter
RATIONALE: The Filter feature allows users to display only the rows that meet certain
criteria.


QUESTION 14:
What is the purpose of using the CONCATENATE function?
A. To find the average
B. To calculate totals
C. To combine text from multiple cells
D. To format numbers
CORRECT ANSWER: C. To combine text from multiple cells
RATIONALE: CONCATENATE (or CONCAT) combines text from two or more cells into
one.


QUESTION 15: