Data · Intermediate
Automate your Excel data preparation with Power Query and M
A practical video course where every skill is trained on real-world tasks and the practice work is reviewed, so the knowledge sticks.
- 42 practical video lessons
- 30+ academic hours of content
- 11 hands-on lab assignments
- Reviewed practice work
- 365 days of access
- 14-day refund policy
Stop rebuilding the same report by hand
If you work with Excel every day, you probably know the routine: export a file, delete the junk rows, split a column, paste the new data under the old, fix the formulas, and do it all again next week. Each step is small, but together they eat hours that could go to analysis.
Power Query is a modern tool built into Excel and Power BI, available from Excel 2010 onwards. It lets you describe the data preparation once as a query and then refresh it with one click, whether the source is a text file, a folder of workbooks or a web page.
Many people use only a few familiar buttons in the Power Query window and stop when a task gets tricky. They never see how queries are really built, so every unusual file means starting from scratch or giving up on automation.
This course takes you from the interface to the M formula language behind it. You learn to design queries properly, combine them into solutions and handle messy, real-life data structures with confidence.
What you will be able to do
- Import data from different sources
Bring text, CSV and Excel files and web pages into Excel as refreshable queries.
- Transform data with confidence
Group, merge, append, pivot and unpivot tables to get the structure you need.
- Normalise awkward layouts
Turn multi-level headers and block-style reports into clean, analysis-ready tables.
- Consolidate scattered data
Collect data from many files and sheets into a single table that updates itself.
- Read and write M code
Understand query syntax, data types, lists, records and tables, and edit formulas by hand.
- Create parameters and custom functions
Pass values from a worksheet into a query and reuse logic across queries.
- Handle errors gracefully
Use conditional logic and error handling so refreshes do not break on unexpected input.
- Build complete multi-query solutions
Combine several linked queries into one reliable, maintainable workflow.
- 42
- practical video lessons
- 30+
- academic hours of content
- 11
- lab assignments, including 2 final ones
- 5
- core modules
Practice you cannot skip
Most video courses fail at the same point: people watch the lessons and never do the exercises. Yet skill with a tool only appears when you solve tasks yourself, and ideally solve them more than once.
That is why this course is built around practice. Most lessons end with a task, and the results are reviewed by the teaching team. Nine of the lessons are checkpoints: you move on only after your earlier practice has been checked and accepted.
All tasks are based on real situations from working analysts and accountants, so what you build can often be adapted to your own files straight away.
- Practice task after most lessons
- Nine checkpoint lessons that keep the pace honest
- Nine interim and two final lab assignments
- Video walkthroughs of the lab solutions
How the course works
The course is a library of recorded video lessons that you take on your own schedule. You can pause or rewind any lesson, change the playback speed from 0.5x to 2x, and watch on your phone through the learning app as well as on a computer.
After the lessons you complete practice tasks and lab assignments and submit them for review. You get feedback on mistakes and less efficient approaches, with hints on how to think about the problem. You can ask questions in your personal account or in the mobile app.
Access to the lessons lasts 365 days, which leaves room to go back and repeat the topics that matter most for your work. After successful completion you also get access to a private chat of graduates.
The programme
Five core modules plus a short introduction and a final exam. Lab assignments come with video walkthroughs of the solutions.
1IntroductionSet up your tools and learn the rules that make data easy to process.5 lessons · 54 min
- How to take the course
- Installing Power Query for Excel 2010 or 2013
- Enabling the Power Pivot add-in
- Keyboard shortcuts for working with text
- Rules for organising data
2Module 1 — Getting to know Power QueryThe interface, loading options and your first imports.4 lessons plus 2 labs · 2 h 20 min
- Power Query interface and basics
- Result loading types
- Refreshing queries and refresh errors
- Importing a TXT or CSV file with simple transformations
- Labs 01 and 02 with solution walkthroughs
3Module 2 — Solving tasks with the interfaceImports, merges, pivots and unpivots, all through the graphical tools.Over 20 lessons · 6 h 11 min
- Importing from Excel files
- Simple web import
- Extracting data from the HTML code of a page
- The Changed Type step explained
- Unpivoting columns, including multi-level unpivot
- Merging, appending and pivoting queries in depth
- Tricky normalisation using only the interface
- Labs 03 to 07 with solution walkthroughs
4Module 3 — The Power Query formula language (M)Understand what the interface generates and write your own formulas.Over 10 lessons · 4 h 16 min
- Why understanding M matters
- M syntax and the structure of a query
- Simple data types and getting help on M functions
- Lists, records and tables
- Conditional logic and error handling with try and otherwise
- Creating and using custom functions
- Normalising data structures using M
- Web import: extracting a list of currencies from a web page
- Lab 08 with solution walkthrough
5Module 4 — Additional professional toolsParameters, relative paths and flexible sources.7 lessons · 2 h 40 min
- A parameter table that passes user input to a query
- Relative paths to data sources
- Bonus: creating the parameter table and function with a macro
- Creating parameters and converting a query into a custom function
- Merging tables on a composite key using a filter
- Web import with a variable URL
- Lab 09 with solution walkthrough
6Module 5 — Data consolidationCollect data from many sources into one reliable table.5 lessons · 4 h 39 min
- Auto-consolidation: pros and cons
- Consolidating Excel files with normalisation
- Multi-page web import
- Consolidating Excel files with block-style normalisation
- Combining tables with variable columns
7Final examTwo larger lab assignments that bring everything together.2 labs · 43 min of walkthroughs
- Final lab 10
- Final lab 11
- Final lab 10: solution walkthrough
- Final lab 11: solution walkthrough
What you get
- 42 practical video lessons
More than 30 academic hours of recorded teaching.
- Eleven lab assignments
Nine interim and two final labs, plus over three hours of video solution walkthroughs.
- Reviewed practice
Your work on practice tasks and labs is checked and you receive feedback.
- Support and questions
Ask the teaching team questions in your personal account or the mobile app.
- Learning on any device
Watch on a computer or on your phone through the learning app.
- Flexible playback
Change video speed from 0.5x to 2x and pause or rewind whenever you like.
- 365 days of access
Enough time to finish the course and revisit lessons later.
- Graduate chat
Access to a private chat after successful completion of the course.
Is this course for you?
This course is for you if…
- You use Excel regularly and spend hours preparing and consolidating data
- You are comfortable with formulas and PivotTables and want the next step
- You work with Power BI and want to understand queries rather than click by guesswork
- You want to learn the M language, even if you have never programmed
- You prefer learning by solving real tasks with feedback
Probably not a fit if…
- You are new to Excel and have not yet worked with formulas and PivotTables
- You are looking for a short overview you can finish in an evening
- You do not plan to complete the practice tasks and lab assignments
- You want a course on advanced dashboards or charts rather than data preparation
After the course
You open a new, messy file and know how to approach it. You choose the right transformations, build the query step by step and check the result, instead of searching for a workaround.
Reports that used to be assembled by hand from several sources can be refreshed with a single click. When the source changes, you can open the M code, find the cause and fix it yourself.
You can design solutions from several linked queries, use parameters and custom functions, and write queries that other people can understand and maintain. Power Query stops being a set of buttons and becomes a tool you control.
Questions before you order
How much time do I need each week?
The course contains more than 30 academic hours of video, plus time for practice tasks and labs. Spending around three to five hours a week is a comfortable pace, and you can go faster or slower within your 365 days of access.
What do I need to know before starting?
The course is designed for experienced Excel users who are at least at an intermediate level with formulas and PivotTables. You do not need any programming experience, because the M language is taught from the basics.
Which versions of Excel can I use?
Power Query is available from Excel 2010. The introduction explains how to install and enable the tool for Excel 2010 and 2013, and newer versions have it built in.
How does access work after payment?
After you pay, you receive access to the course in your personal account and can start straight away. Access lasts 365 days from the start.
What format are the lessons in?
They are recorded video lessons with practice tasks and lab assignments. You can watch on a computer or on your phone through the learning app, and change the playback speed.
Will I get feedback on my work?
Yes. Practice tasks and lab assignments are submitted for review, and you receive comments on mistakes and more efficient approaches. Nine checkpoint lessons require your earlier practice to be accepted before you continue.
Will the material stay available after I finish?
Yes, for the whole access period of 365 days. You can rewatch lessons and revisit lab walkthroughs whenever you need to refresh a topic.
What is the refund policy?
You can request a refund within 14 days of purchase. If the course is not what you expected, contact support within that time and we will take care of it.
Make your data work for you
Start the course today and turn repetitive Excel preparation into queries that refresh in one click.