This document provides a summary of a beginner course on finding data within Excel. The course covers two main methods: [1] Using the find function to search for individual data; [2] Using filters to narrow down large amounts of data by column. By the end of the course, students will be able to quickly find both individual data and multiple data using these functions. The course also briefly mentions more advanced methods covered in an intermediate course such as using formulas like Vlookup and Hlookup.

1. Finding Data within Excel –
Beginner Course

2. Course Contents
• Learning Objective
• What is Microsoft Excel?
• What is a Database?
• Finding Data:
– The find function.
– Filtering data.
• Advanced Methods
• Summary

3. Learning Objective
• This course will teach you two different ways
to find data within a database in Microsoft
Excel.
• By the end of the course, you will be quickly
find both individual and multiple data.

4. What is Microsoft Excel?
• Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheet program
developed by Microsoft.
• It provides a variety of data analysis tools.
• It is the industry standard for spreadsheets,
and forms part of Microsoft Office.

5. Databases and Spreadsheets
• In Excel, data
is arranged
in rows and
columns.
Reference Surname First Name Organisation Score
99862 Atkins Dominga Acme, inc. 87
99230 Matthews Audrea Widget Corp 86
99882 Acosta Carmon 123 Warehousing 32
99243 Guerrero Amos Demo Company 76
99230 Vaughan Marisol Smith and Co. 71
99988 Andrade Judi Foo Bars 39
99934 Farrell Sean ABC Telecom 84
99129 Wilkinson Zenia Fake Brothers 35
99361 Bray Sheri QWERTY Logistics 84
99916 Rodriguez Yessenia Demo, inc. 51
Candidate Details
• In the example above, there is one header row and
10 rows of data.
• Each row contains data on one candidate who has
taken the Lumina software proficiency test.
• This data forms a database.

6. Working with Large Databases
• It is easy to find
data within this
example as it
only has 10
rows and five
columns.
Reference Surname First Name Organisation Score
99862 Atkins Dominga Acme, inc. 87
99230 Matthews Audrea Widget Corp 86
99882 Acosta Carmon 123 Warehousing 32
99243 Guerrero Amos Demo Company 76
99230 Vaughan Marisol Smith and Co. 71
99988 Andrade Judi Foo Bars 39
99934 Farrell Sean ABC Telecom 84
99129 Wilkinson Zenia Fake Brothers 35
99361 Bray Sheri QWERTY Logistics 84
99916 Rodriguez Yessenia Demo, inc. 51
Candidate Details
• However, databases can contain hundreds of
columns and millions of rows.
• There are several ways of finding data in Excel
which enable users to work with databases of
this size.

7. Data Analysis Method 1 - Finding
• The Find button allows you to find data
within a database.
• Click the Find & Select button on the
Home ribbon and select “Find...”.
• The Find and Replace
box comes up.
• Type the data you
want to find into the
“Find What” field and
press return.

8. Data Analysis Method 1 - Finding
• A video demonstration of finding data.

9. Data Analysis Method 2 - Filtering
• Using the Find button is suitable if you just
want to find certain individual data quickly.
• If your database contains a lot of content, it
can be difficult to find information quickly.
• Filters can be used to narrow down the data,
allowing you to view only the information you
need.

10. Data Analysis Method 2 - Filtering
• For filtering to
work correctly,
your worksheet
should include a
header row with
the names of
each column.
• Select the header
row of the database.
• Go to the Data
ribbon, then click the
Filter command
Reference Surname First Name Organisation Score
99862 Atkins Dominga Acme, inc. 87
99230 Matthews Audrea Widget Corp 86
99882 Acosta Carmon 123 Warehousing 32
99243 Guerrero Amos Demo Company 76
99230 Vaughan Marisol Smith and Co. 71
99988 Andrade Judi Foo Bars 39
99934 Farrell Sean ABC Telecom 84
99129 Wilkinson Zenia Fake Brothers 35
99361 Bray Sheri QWERTY Logistics 84
99916 Rodriguez Yessenia Demo, inc. 51
Candidate Details

11. Data Analysis Method 2 - Filtering
• The drop-down arrow will appear in the
header cell for each column.
• Click the drop-down arrow for the column
you want to filter.
• The Filter menu will appear.

12. Data Analysis Method 2 - Filtering
• Uncheck the box
next to Select All
to quickly deselect
all data.
• Check the boxes
next to the data
you want to filter,
then click OK.

13. Data Analysis Method 2 - Filtering
• The data will be filtered, temporarily hiding
any content that doesn't match the criteria.
In our example, only candidates from 123
Warehousing and ABC Telecom are visible.

14. Data Analysis Method 2 - Filtering
• A video demonstration of filtering data.

15. Advanced Methods
• Both the Find and Filter functions in Excel
have more advanced ways to select and find
data.
• You can also find data using formulae such as
Vlookup and Hlookup.
• These will be covered in the intermediate
course – sign up today!

16. Summary
• This course has taught you two different ways
to find data within a database in Microsoft
Excel.
• You are now able to:
– Use the find function to quickly search a database
for individual data; and
– Use the filter function to quickly narrow down
data within a database.
• Thank you for attending this course.

17. Any Questions?