Advanced Excel Interview Questions and Answers for Freshers

If you need to work with data, Microsoft Excel is the best tool. Excel can do everything from basic math to making reports. In today's world, it's important to know how to use Excel. Companies use Excel to keep track of their data and look at it. People who want to work in jobs that need advanced Excel abilities should be ready to answer a lot of essential questions during interviews.

This blog will talk about important advanced Excel interview questions and answers for freshers that might help you figure out how well you know and understand the program.

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You can learn all the concepts by enrolling in an Advanced Excel course in Noida. By learning from a comprehensive curriculum, you can answer all the questions in your interview. Here are some important interview questions and answers. 

Q:1 What is a Power Query?

Power Query does the work of importing, changing, and cleaning data for you. It is quite helpful for putting data from different sources into one table.

Q:2 What is VLOOKUP?

The VLOOKUP function looks for a value in the first column of a table and gives you a value from a certain column in the same row.

But it has a restriction because it can only glance to the right.  

Q:3 What is INDEX/MATCH? 

INDEX/MATCH is a combination of two functions that gives you more options. INDEX gives you the value of a cell in a certain row and column, and MATCH gives you the position of a value in a range.

You can look up values in any direction using this combination (left, right, above, or below).

Q:4 What do macros do in Excel?

Macros record a series of steps to automate processes that need to be done over and over. They are written in VBA (Visual Basic for Applications) and can save you a lot of time.

Q:5 Why should I use INDEX-MATCH instead of VLOOKUP()?

INDEX-MATCH in Excel has a number of benefits over VLOOKUP(). For example, it is more flexible because it can return a value in a column to the left of the lookup column, while VLOOKUP() can only work left to right. INDEX-MATCH is also better at processing, especially with big datasets, because it only looks at certain columns instead of the whole row. Adding or removing columns is less likely to cause mistakes since INDEX-MATCH employs column references that don't change when columns are changed.

Q:6 What is the difference between a subroutine and a function in VBA?

Q:7 How can you fix a VBA code?

The F8 key lets you debug a VBA code line by line. You can also set a breakpoint to stop the program anywhere you choose.

The code will start running from the top, and every time you press F8, it will run the following line until it reaches the end. The yellow arrow and the line that is highlighted show you where the program is now running.

Q:8 What do wildcards mean in Excel? How do you use them?

In Excel, wildcards are special characters that can stand in for one or more characters in text searches and functions. This makes searching and matching more versatile and powerful.

The asterisk (*), which stands for any number of characters; the question mark (?), which stands for a single character; and the tilde (~), which is used to escape wildcard characters, are the three most common wildcards.

You can utilize wildcards in Excel operations like SEARCH, FIND, REPLACE, SUBSTITUTE, and in features like filters and conditional formatting. 

Q:9 What is Goal Seek in Excel?

Goal Seek in Excel is a feature that helps you figure out what input value you need to get a formula to reach a certain goal or objective. It works by changing one input value so that the formula's result matches the intended conclusion. You can find Goal Seek by going to the Data tab and clicking on the What-If Analysis button. There, you may choose the cell with the formula, the target value, and the cell to alter to reach this target.

Q:10 How to apply a slicer to narrow down the data?

Before you can use a slicer to filter data in Excel, be sure that the data is either in a table or part of a PivotTable. To add a slicer, click anywhere in the table or PivotTable, then go to the Ribbon and click on the Insert tab. In the Filters group, click on Slicer. In the dialog box that opens, check the box next to the column(s) you wish to use for slicing and then click OK. You can use a slicer to filter the data in the table or PivotTable by clicking on the different options in the slicer.

Q:11 How do INDEX and MATCH operate together?

INDEX gives you the value of a cell at a certain row and column, and MATCH tells you where a value is in a range. Together, they do advanced lookups. 

Q:12 What is Solver in Excel?

Solver is a powerful optimization tool that helps you find the optimal solution to a problem with a lot of restrictions. People commonly utilize it to plan, optimize portfolios, and allocate resources.

Q:13 How do you automate Excel reports?

You can use macros (VBA) or Power Query to automatically update reports. To deal with updates that happen over and over, use dynamic ranges and pivot Tables.

Q:14 What are pivot tables and how do you utilize them?

Excel's pivot tables are quite useful since they let you summarize, analyze, explore, and show vast volumes of data in a clear way. They let users get useful information by dragging and dropping fields into rows and columns to make their own views.

Q:15 How do you use conditional formatting to make certain cells stand out based on certain rules?

 To use conditional formatting based on certain rules:

• Choose the cells you want to work with.
• Click on Conditional Formatting under the Home tab.
• Click "New Rule" and then "Use a formula to decide which cells to format."
• Type in your criteria formula, like =A1>100.
• Choose the formatting options you want.

Q:16 How do you keep an Excel workbook safe?

To keep an Excel workbook safe:

• Click on the Review tab.
• Click "Protect Workbook."
• Choose whether you want to protect the windows or the building.
• If you want, set a password.
• Click "OK" and enter your password again.

Q:17 How do you make charts with your data?

To make charts from your data:

• Choose the data range you want to see.
• Click on the Insert tab.
• Pick the type of chart you want, like a column chart or a line chart.
• Use Chart Tools to change the layout and styles of your chart.

Q:18 What are array formulas, and how do you utilize them?

You can use array formulas to do more than one calculation on one or more items in an array. They can give you one answer or more than one answer. You usually have to press Ctrl + Shift + Enter instead of just Enter to make an array formula. For instance:

{=SUM(A1:A10*B1:B10)}

This formula takes each matching element from the two ranges, multiplies them, and then adds them up.

Q:19 What are some good ways to organize big sets of data in Excel?

Some of the best things to do are:

• Use Tables: Turn ranges into tables to make things easier to find and filter automatically.
• Consistent Formatting: To make things clear, keep the formatting the same throughout all rows and columns.

• The bottom line

  For professionals who work with data in many different fields, it is quite important to know how to use advanced Excel features. The questions above not only test technical skills but also problem-solving skills and understanding of how to use those skills in real life. These are all important traits that companies look for in candidates during interviews. Join 4Achievers to enhance your skills and become competent for today's world.