1. 3 Useful Secrets to Excel for the Student
Microsoft Excel seems to be the bane of many people’s existence. It’s the embodiment of math in a
program.
Anyone that hated math in high school dislikes Excel by default, and yet it can be helpful in so many
professions that you can’t avoid it. Many classes require students to keep track of statistics in an Excel
sheet.
Excel Isn’t Just for Math
Companies will use it to organize long lists of information, in non-math related ways. It offers an
incredibly powerful platform to not just list, but use information.
So whether you like math or not, Excel is a program you will want to know inside and out. It will prove
helpful in your career, even if you pursue a degree to become a nurse case manager.
Excel can be a bit difficult to master at first, merely because many people don’t know what it is capable
of. The following are three secrets to excel that even nurse case manager students should know in
college.
First, learn how to filter the information in front of you. Filtering means that
Excel will auto-organize your rows according to criteria that you set, i.e.
alphabetizing by last name, or displaying people from youngest to oldest.
Highlight the entire data table (including labels for the columns) and click
“Data.” Find the “Filter” button and click it (if another menu appears, click
“auto filter”).
Excel will grey out the top row of boxes and give you a white box with an arrow pointing down for each
column filtered. Click on the box to get a drop menu with options to sort your information.
For example, if you created a filter for a data set that has three separate cells labeled last name, first
name, and date of birth. Click on the box for last name.
Excel will display a few options to sort it from A to Z, Z to A, by color, or custom order. When your
selection is made, Excel sorts all of your rows accordingly.
This can be an extremely helpful tool in a nurse case manager position, as well as any position of
leadership you’ll be given. Sorting is one of the most needed functions Excel offers.
Charts and Pictures
Second, import data from a webpage. If your boss ever asks you to copy a chart, figures, or information
from a webpage, import it instead of directly copy paste.
Click “File,” then “Open.” Paste the link URL into the box and click “Open.”
2. The webpage will be imported and formatted for Excel, making it easier for you to copy information
without having to reformat it. It saves you a lot of time and
frustration.
Third, export everything you want to present as a PDF file
instead of trying to copy-paste a table into a document or
presentation. PDFs preserve the integrity of the tables you
create.
The program essentially takes a picture of the screen and
makes the picture available for use. Cell proportions, color
schemes, and information are preserved as a photo.
PDFs can then be imported into any other program for use at will. All you have to do is go to File, then
press “Save.” Under “File Types” choose “Create PDF.”
Excel is useful for every profession, even nurse case management. Learn to master it as a student and it
will help you throughout your career.
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lockergnome/5396525082/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jurvetson/2275614130/
