In-depth practical study notes you can use for revision and quick
I’ll cover each exam section, include exam tips, common commands/steps, example
tasks, and quick cheat-sheets you can memorise.
1. Word Processing - What examiners expect
Key skills to master
• Document setup: margins, orientation, page size, page breaks.
• Styles: Heading 1/2/3, Normal; apply and modify styles (consistency = marks).
• Automatic features: Table of Contents (TOC) from headings, automatic
numbering, multilevel lists.
• Headers & footers: page numbers (different first page), date, document title.
• Sections: create section breaks for different headers/footers or orientation.
• Tables: create, merge/split cells, auto fit, apply table styles, sort table rows.
• Images/objects: insert, wrap text (square/tight/inline), set size, captions.
• References: footnotes, endnotes, captions, cross-references.
• Mail merge: create data source, insert merge fields, preview, print/export.
• Proofing & review: track changes, accept/reject, comments, spelling &
grammar.
• Exporting: save as DOCX/PDF, proper file naming.
• Accessibility: alt text for images, logical headings.
• Templates: use or create templates; use placeholders.
Common tasks & shortcuts
• Bold/italic/underline: Ctrl+B / Ctrl+I / Ctrl+U
• Save: Ctrl+S, Save As: F12
• Undo/Redo: Ctrl+Z / Ctrl+Y
• Find/Replace: Ctrl+F / Ctrl+H
• Insert page break: Ctrl+Enter
• Insert section break: Layout → Breaks
• Create TOC: References → Table of Contents (based on styles)
• Mail merge: Mailings → Select Recipients → Insert Merge Field → Finish &
Merge
• Format painter: double-click to copy style to multiple places
, Common exam tasks & how to approach
• “Format the letter/document to match sample” → use styles (do NOT format
every paragraph manually).
• “Create a table of contents” → ensure headings use Heading styles, update
TOC.
• “Insert figures/images & captions” → Insert → Caption; use cross-reference to
refer to figure numbers.
• “Use mail merge to create labels” → prepare recipient list in Excel, link and
insert fields.
Marking focus
• Consistency and use of automated features (styles, TOC, captions) often
carry marks.
• Neatness and readability: spacing, alignment, fonts, and headers/footers.
2. Spreadsheets - What examiners expect
Key skills to master
• Cell referencing: relative (A1), absolute ($A$1) and mixed ($A1, A$1).
• Formulas & functions: arithmetic, SUM, AVERAGE, COUNT, COUNTA,
COUNIF(S), IF, nested IF, VLOOKUP/HLOOKUP, XLOOKUP (if available),
INDEX+MATCH, TEXT, DATE functions.
• Data tools: sort, filter, advanced filter, data validation (dropdown lists).
• Conditional formatting: highlight rules, formula-based rules.
• Charts: create appropriate chart type, label axes, chart title, legend, data
series formatting.
• PivotTables: create, group data, use values/rows/columns, refresh.
• Named ranges: create and use in formulas.
• What-if analysis: Goal Seek, Data Table (if applicable), scenario manager.
• Protection: lock cells, protect sheet/workbook.
• Import/export: save CSV, link external data.
• Printing: print area, page orientation, fit to page, repeat header rows.
I’ll cover each exam section, include exam tips, common commands/steps, example
tasks, and quick cheat-sheets you can memorise.
1. Word Processing - What examiners expect
Key skills to master
• Document setup: margins, orientation, page size, page breaks.
• Styles: Heading 1/2/3, Normal; apply and modify styles (consistency = marks).
• Automatic features: Table of Contents (TOC) from headings, automatic
numbering, multilevel lists.
• Headers & footers: page numbers (different first page), date, document title.
• Sections: create section breaks for different headers/footers or orientation.
• Tables: create, merge/split cells, auto fit, apply table styles, sort table rows.
• Images/objects: insert, wrap text (square/tight/inline), set size, captions.
• References: footnotes, endnotes, captions, cross-references.
• Mail merge: create data source, insert merge fields, preview, print/export.
• Proofing & review: track changes, accept/reject, comments, spelling &
grammar.
• Exporting: save as DOCX/PDF, proper file naming.
• Accessibility: alt text for images, logical headings.
• Templates: use or create templates; use placeholders.
Common tasks & shortcuts
• Bold/italic/underline: Ctrl+B / Ctrl+I / Ctrl+U
• Save: Ctrl+S, Save As: F12
• Undo/Redo: Ctrl+Z / Ctrl+Y
• Find/Replace: Ctrl+F / Ctrl+H
• Insert page break: Ctrl+Enter
• Insert section break: Layout → Breaks
• Create TOC: References → Table of Contents (based on styles)
• Mail merge: Mailings → Select Recipients → Insert Merge Field → Finish &
Merge
• Format painter: double-click to copy style to multiple places
, Common exam tasks & how to approach
• “Format the letter/document to match sample” → use styles (do NOT format
every paragraph manually).
• “Create a table of contents” → ensure headings use Heading styles, update
TOC.
• “Insert figures/images & captions” → Insert → Caption; use cross-reference to
refer to figure numbers.
• “Use mail merge to create labels” → prepare recipient list in Excel, link and
insert fields.
Marking focus
• Consistency and use of automated features (styles, TOC, captions) often
carry marks.
• Neatness and readability: spacing, alignment, fonts, and headers/footers.
2. Spreadsheets - What examiners expect
Key skills to master
• Cell referencing: relative (A1), absolute ($A$1) and mixed ($A1, A$1).
• Formulas & functions: arithmetic, SUM, AVERAGE, COUNT, COUNTA,
COUNIF(S), IF, nested IF, VLOOKUP/HLOOKUP, XLOOKUP (if available),
INDEX+MATCH, TEXT, DATE functions.
• Data tools: sort, filter, advanced filter, data validation (dropdown lists).
• Conditional formatting: highlight rules, formula-based rules.
• Charts: create appropriate chart type, label axes, chart title, legend, data
series formatting.
• PivotTables: create, group data, use values/rows/columns, refresh.
• Named ranges: create and use in formulas.
• What-if analysis: Goal Seek, Data Table (if applicable), scenario manager.
• Protection: lock cells, protect sheet/workbook.
• Import/export: save CSV, link external data.
• Printing: print area, page orientation, fit to page, repeat header rows.
