Can I take the course for free?

No, you cannot take this course for free. When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. If you cannot afford the fee, you can apply for financial aid.

Will I earn university credit for completing the Specialization?

This Specialization doesn't carry university credit, but some universities may choose to accept Specialization Certificates for credit. Check with your institution to learn more.

Foundations of Business Analytics with Excel Specialization

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Foundations of Business Analytics with Excel Specialization

Excel-Based Business Analytics Foundations.

Use Excel to analyze data, model decisions, and communicate business insights.

Instructors: Manuel Laguna

Included with Learn more

4 course series

Get in-depth knowledge of a subject

from 5,955 reviews of courses in this program

Beginner level

Recommended experience

4 weeks to complete

at 10 hours a week

4 course series

Get in-depth knowledge of a subject

from 5,955 reviews of courses in this program

Beginner level

Recommended experience

4 weeks to complete

at 10 hours a week

What you'll learn

Use Excel tools to organize, analyze, and visualize business data for clearer insights.
Apply statistics, probability, simulation, and optimization to support business decisions.
Communicate analytics results using clear visuals, context, and actionable recommendations.

Skills you'll gain

Tools you'll learn

Details to know

Shareable certificate

Add to your LinkedIn profile

Taught in English

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Advance your subject-matter expertise

Learn in-demand skills from university and industry experts
Master a subject or tool with hands-on projects
Develop a deep understanding of key concepts
Earn a career certificate from University of Colorado Boulder

Specialization - 4 course series

Build practical business analytics skills using Excel and Excel-based analytics tools. In this Specialization, you will learn how to organize and visualize data, apply statistical concepts, model business decisions using optimization and simulation, and communicate analytics results to stakeholders. Learners will also explore predictive and prescriptive analytics without needing programming experience.

Applied Learning Project

Learners will complete applied Excel-based activities that involve organizing data, visualizing patterns, calculating statistics, and modeling business decisions. Projects emphasize authentic analytics tasks such as evaluating alternatives, interpreting uncertainty, and presenting insights that can support business decision making.

Everyday Excel, Part 1

Course 1, 25 hours

What you'll learn

Navigating Excel, editing the worksheet (including inserting/deleting cells, columns, and rows), and cell formatting.
Expression entry and common Excel formulas (including logical functions, text functions, and financial functions).
Data management (sorting, filtering, consolidating, removing duplicates, data validation, and one-way lookups).
Data visualization (scatter plots, column charts, pie charts, Slicers, Sparklines, and Pivot Tables).

Skills you'll gain

Category: Data Visualization

Category: Data Sharing

Category: Data Management

Category: Data Validation

Category: Excel Formulas

Category: Data Cleansing

Category: Plot (Graphics)

Category: Data Entry

Category: Problem Solving

Category: Data Import/Export

Category: Microsoft Excel

Statistics and Data Analysis with Excel, Part 1

Course 2, 17 hours

What you'll learn

Calculate descriptive statistics (traditional and robust estimators).
Understand probability and apply probability rules.
Utilize statistical functions in Microsoft Excel.
Visualize univariate and bivariate data in Microsoft Excel.

Skills you'll gain

Category: Probability

Category: Histogram

Category: Excel Formulas

Category: Data Cleansing

Category: Box Plots

Category: Data Analysis

Category: Microsoft Excel

Category: Probability & Statistics

Category: Statistical Methods

Category: Statistical Visualization

Category: Descriptive Statistics

Category: Statistics

Category: Scatter Plots

Category: Data Transformation

Category: Probability Distribution

Business Analytics for Decision Making

Course 3, 9 hours

What you'll learn

Describe the significance of optimization in identifying optimal solutions for complex business problems
Implement optimization techniques to identify the best possible course of action among multiple alternatives
Judge the appropriateness of optimization techniques in finding optimal solutions for practical business challenges

Skills you'll gain

Category: Decision Making

Category: Data-Driven Decision-Making

Category: Data Analysis

Category: Statistical Methods

Category: Analytics

Category: Business Modeling

Category: Model Optimization

Category: Microsoft Excel

Category: Risk Modeling

Category: Business Analytics

Category: Simulation and Simulation Software

Category: Exploratory Data Analysis

Category: Risk Analysis

Communicating Business Analytics Results

Course 4, 7 hours

What you'll learn

Identify the challenges of presenting analytics findings to decision makers
Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of different communication methods for conveying analytics results to non-technical audiences

Skills you'll gain

Category: Storytelling

Category: Analytics

Category: Data Presentation

Category: Analysis

Category: Data Visualization

Category: Data-Driven Decision-Making

Category: Presentations

Category: Data Storytelling

Category: Data Analysis

Category: Business Analytics

Category: Technical Communication

Category: Data Collection

Category: Correlation Analysis

Earn a career certificate

Add this credential to your LinkedIn profile, resume, or CV. Share it on social media and in your performance review.

Instructors

Manuel Laguna

University of Colorado Boulder

4 Courses153,551 learners

Offered by

University of Colorado Boulder

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Learner reviews across Foundations of Business Analytics with Excel

avg. across 4 courses

5 stars
78.12%
4 stars
15.70%
3 stars
3.21%
2 stars
0.92%
1 star
2.03%

Course: Everyday Excel, Part 1

5.0

Reviewed on Jun 25, 2022

I really enjoyed this course. The instructor presented the information in a way that was easy to understand. I would recommend this course to anyone who wants to improve their Excel skills.

Course: Statistics and Data Analysis with Excel, Part 1

5.0

Reviewed on Jul 23, 2025

This course was excellent in helping me understand the basics of statistics and probability!

Course: Business Analytics for Decision Making

5.0

Reviewed on Jul 11, 2017

The instructor is great. However, I would like to know the solutions for the exam. I sometimes pass the exam but struggle with certain questions but had no clue how to resolve it.

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Frequently asked questions

This course is completely online, so there’s no need to show up to a classroom in person. You can access your lectures, readings and assignments anytime and anywhere via the web or your mobile device.

Yes! To get started, click the course card that interests you and enroll. You can enroll and complete the course to earn a shareable certificate. When you subscribe to a course that is part of a Specialization, you’re automatically subscribed to the full Specialization. Visit your learner dashboard to track your progress.

Yes. In select learning programs, you can apply for financial aid or a scholarship if you can’t afford the enrollment fee. If fin aid or scholarship is available for your learning program selection, you’ll find a link to apply on the description page.