{
  "assessmentTests": {
    "excel_skills": {
      "name": "Excel Skills Test",
      "desc": "30 scenario questions on formulas, lookup, data handling and presentation — find out whether your Excel matches what a job posting means by Advanced Excel.",
      "recommendation": "Your Excel skills profile",
      "results": {
        "beginner": {
          "name": "Beginner",
          "desc": "You can find your way around a spreadsheet and get a total onto the screen, but the questions you missed cluster around the things Excel does FOR you — absolute references, lookup functions, tables that grow by themselves. That matters at work because the manual workaround for each of them is where errors get in: a dragged formula that quietly zeroes out, a sorted column that separates people from their salaries. None of this is difficult, and it is the single fastest skill to move: an hour on absolute references and SUMIF changes more of your day than a week on anything else.",
          "recommendation": "Start with three things, in this order: absolute references with the F4 key, SUMIF and COUNTIF, and converting a range to an Excel Table so it expands on its own. Microsoft has free Excel training built into support.microsoft.com, and the ExcelJet reference pages cover each function with a worked example."
        },
        "intermediate": {
          "name": "Intermediate",
          "desc": "You handle the everyday work — formulas that survive being copied, filters, basic charts — and you would not be slowed down by a normal admin or coordinator role. The gap between here and Advanced is mostly lookup and data structure: joining two lists reliably, keeping formulas pointing at the right field when someone inserts a column, getting a summary out of twelve thousand rows in the time a call allows. Those are the skills a job posting is actually asking for when it lists Advanced Excel, and there are only a handful of them.",
          "recommendation": "Focus on lookup and structure: INDEX and MATCH together, or XLOOKUP if your version has it, then pivot tables from end to end — build one, group by two fields, refresh it. Then Data Validation and Remove Duplicates, which is most of what data cleaning turns out to be."
        },
        "advanced": {
          "name": "Advanced",
          "desc": "This is the level most job postings mean by Advanced Excel. You reach for the right tool without hunting for it, you know why a lookup broke rather than only that it did, and you can turn a raw export into an answer the same morning it arrives. What separates this band from the top is the defensive side of the work: building sheets other people cannot break, and knowing which of two correct-looking approaches survives contact with a colleague inserting a column next week.",
          "recommendation": "Push into the parts that protect the work: worksheet protection with unlocked input cells, named ranges instead of raw addresses, and error handling with IFERROR as a habit rather than a patch. If your work is repetitive, Power Query is the next real step up and it is built into Excel already."
        },
        "expert": {
          "name": "Expert",
          "desc": "You scored at the top of every area — calculation, lookup, data handling and presentation. Practically, that means you can be handed an unfamiliar export and produce something decision-ready from it, and you can inherit a sheet somebody else built and find what is wrong with it, which is the harder of the two. At this level Excel is rarely the limiting factor in your work; the limit is usually the shape of the data arriving, which is why the next step tends to be upstream of the spreadsheet rather than inside it.",
          "recommendation": "The returns are now in automation and scale: Power Query for anything you repeat monthly, Power Pivot and the data model once your rows outgrow a single sheet. If you are being screened for a role, say what you have built rather than naming functions — a rebuilt reporting pack is worth more in an interview than a list."
        }
      },
      "questions": [
        {
          "question": "Cell B1 holds a VAT rate. In C2 you write =B2*B1 and drag it down the column, but every row below the first returns zero. What is wrong?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Excel cannot multiply a column by a single cell, so the rows below return zero"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "The VAT rate has to be entered as a decimal or the multiplication fails"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "The reference to B1 shifted down as you dragged — it needs to be absolute, $B$1"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "You dragged from the wrong corner of the cell, which copies the value instead of the formula"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "Column A lists regions and column B the sale amounts. You need the total for the North region only. Which formula gives it?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=SUM(B:B,\"North\")"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=SUMIF(A:A,\"North\",B:B)"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=IF(A:A=\"North\",SUM(B:B))"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=COUNTIF(A:A,\"North\")*SUM(B:B)"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "A division formula returns #DIV/0! wherever the denominator is still empty, and the report goes to a client tomorrow. What is the right fix?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Wrap the formula in IFERROR so those cells show a blank or a dash instead"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Change the font colour of the error cells to white so they do not print"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Delete the rows with empty denominators before sending the file"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Turn off error checking in Excel options, which stops the error appearing"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "A column of 500 rows holds a mix of numbers, text notes and blanks. You need to know how many rows actually contain a number. Which function?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "COUNTA"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "COUNT"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "ROWS"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "SUM"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "You type =A1+A2 into a cell and instead of a total the cell displays the formula itself as text. What is the most likely cause?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "A1 and A2 are on a different worksheet, which Excel cannot add"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "The workbook is open in read-only mode"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "The cell was formatted as Text before you typed the formula"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Formulas need to start with a plus sign rather than an equals sign"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "A column of scores contains several zeros for people who did not sit the test. You need the average of the people who did. What do you use?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=AVERAGEIF(B:B,\">0\")"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=AVERAGE(B:B)-0"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=SUM(B:B)/COUNTA(B:B)"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=MEDIAN(B:B)"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "You want the average of A1 and A2, then that result multiplied by 3. Which formula does that?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=A1+A2/2*3"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=A1+A2/(2*3)"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=A1+(A2/2)*3"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=(A1+A2)/2*3"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "Last month sold 400 units, this month 460. Which formula returns the percentage change?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=(460-400)/400"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=(460-400)/460"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=460/400"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "=(460-400)/100"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "Your VLOOKUP returns the right answer for some rows and a plainly wrong one for others. You omitted the last argument. What is happening?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "VLOOKUP can only handle 100 rows before it starts returning stale results"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "With the last argument left out VLOOKUP does an approximate match — it needs FALSE for an exact match"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "The lookup column has to be sorted alphabetically or VLOOKUP fails silently"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "The last argument only controls whether errors are shown, not which row is matched"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "The employee ID sits in column D and the name you need is in column B, to its left. VLOOKUP cannot look left. What is the standard answer?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Sort the sheet by column B so the name moves to the right of the ID"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Use VLOOKUP with a negative column index number"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Use INDEX and MATCH together, or XLOOKUP"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Use HLOOKUP, which searches in the opposite direction"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "A colleague inserts a column in the middle of the source table and every VLOOKUP on your sheet now returns the wrong field. Why does INDEX/MATCH avoid this?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "It stores a hidden copy of the source table, so changes to the original do not affect it"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "It refuses to calculate until the workbook is refreshed, which prevents silent errors"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "It always returns the whole row, so no field can be picked wrongly"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "It matches the column by its position in a named range you point at, not by a counted offset that shifts when a column is inserted"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "You have two lists of client codes and need to know which codes on list A do not appear on list B. What is the quickest reliable check?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Sort both lists and compare them visually side by side"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Subtract the row count of list B from the row count of list A"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "COUNTIF each code from list A against list B and look for the zeros"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Paste list B underneath list A and remove duplicates"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "A VLOOKUP against a list of product codes returns #N/A for rows you can clearly see in the source table. What is the usual cause?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "The source table has more than 1,000 rows, which is the VLOOKUP limit"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "The lookup values carry trailing spaces or are stored as text against numbers in the source, so they do not match exactly"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "#N/A means the file needs to be saved before lookups resolve"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "The lookup column has to be the first column in the whole worksheet"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "Your lookup table sits in F2:H50 on another sheet. You write the formula once and drag it down 300 rows. What must you do to the table range?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Nothing — ranges on another sheet never shift when a formula is copied"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Convert the range to text so Excel treats it as a fixed label"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Lock it with absolute references, $F$2:$H$50, so it does not shift as the formula is copied"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Copy the lookup table onto the same sheet, because cross-sheet ranges cannot be dragged"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "You want a lookup to show the words Not found instead of #N/A when there is no match, using XLOOKUP. How?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "XLOOKUP has no such option — the formula has to be wrapped in IF"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Pass it as the fourth argument of XLOOKUP, which is the if_not_found value"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Set it in the workbook error-checking options for the whole sheet"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Type Not found into the first blank row of the lookup table"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "An exported customer list contains rows that repeat in full. You need one row per customer, keeping the rest of the data intact. What do you use?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Sort the list and delete the repeated rows by hand"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "A pivot table, which drops duplicate rows automatically"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Find and Replace, replacing the duplicate values with blanks"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Data > Remove Duplicates on the selected range"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "You are given 12,000 rows of transactions and asked for a total by region and by month, on a call in ten minutes. What is the fastest route?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Write a SUMIF for every region and month combination"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Sort by region, then subtotal each block manually"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Filter to one region at a time and read the status bar total"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Build a pivot table with region as rows and month as columns"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "Six people fill in the same sheet and the Department column is coming back with spellings that do not match. What stops that at the point of entry?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Conditional formatting that colours the odd spellings"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Protecting the sheet so only you can edit that column"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "A comment on the header cell explaining the correct spellings"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Data Validation with a list of the allowed departments"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "You add new rows at the bottom of a data range and your filters, formulas and chart all keep pointing at the old range. What prevents this?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Re-apply the filter every time you add rows"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Convert the range to an Excel Table, which expands to include new rows automatically"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Leave a blank row at the bottom so Excel knows where the data ends"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Select whole columns instead of a range in every formula"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "You select just the Salary column, sort it descending, and now every salary belongs to the wrong person. What should you have done?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Selected a single cell in the column and sorted, so Excel keeps the rows together"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Sorted the Name column first and the Salary column afterwards"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Copied the data to a new sheet before sorting"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Used Sort Descending twice, which restores the row pairing"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "One column holds names as Smith, John and you need surname and first name in separate columns for 2,000 rows. What is the tool?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Data > Text to Columns, split on the comma"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Find and Replace, swapping the comma for a column break"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Insert a column and retype the names"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Sort the column, which separates the two parts"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "Scrolling through a long sheet, you lose sight of which column is which. How do you keep the header row visible?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Bold the header row so it stands out while scrolling"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "View > Freeze Panes, freezing the top row"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Split the workbook into one sheet per screenful"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Set the header row to repeat with Print Titles"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "Your manager wants any margin below 10 percent flagged in red, and it must stay correct as the numbers change. What do you set up?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Fill the low cells red manually and refresh them each month"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "A filter that hides the rows above 10 percent"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Conditional formatting with a rule for values under 10 percent"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "A separate column that writes the word LOW next to each one"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "A column of figures suddenly displays as ##### in every cell. What does that mean?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "The formula behind those cells has an error"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "The column is too narrow to display the number at its current format"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "The numbers exceed the maximum value Excel can store"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "The cells are protected and their contents hidden"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "A report needs figures shown as 1,234,567 with a thousands separator, but the underlying values must stay untouched for later calculation. What do you do?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Apply a number format with a thousands separator — formatting changes the display only"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Use Find and Replace to insert commas into the numbers"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Retype each figure with commas as you go"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Convert the column to text and add the commas there"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "Dates pasted from another system sit on the left of their cells and refuse to sort chronologically. Why, and what fixes it?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "They are stored as text, not dates — convert them to real date values and they will sort"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "The column is sorted by a hidden second key that overrides the dates"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Excel cannot sort dates written in day-month-year order at all"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "The sheet needs a Date column type set before any sort will work"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "A ten-page table prints with the last two columns orphaned onto their own pages. What is the correct fix?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Reduce the font size until the columns happen to fit"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Delete the two columns and add them as a note"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "In Page Setup, scale the sheet to fit one page wide by however many pages tall"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Print in draft quality, which compresses the layout"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "You need to show how four product lines each contributed to total revenue across twelve months. Which chart carries that?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "A pie chart for the twelve months combined"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Twelve separate pie charts, one per month"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "A scatter plot of revenue against month"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "A stacked column chart, one column per month"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "A printed report runs to eight pages and only page one carries the column headings. How do you repeat them on every page?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Page Layout > Print Titles, set the header row to repeat at top"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Freeze Panes on the header row before printing"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Copy the header row manually to the top of each print page"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Insert a page break above every screenful of rows"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "question": "A shared template keeps having its formulas overwritten by the people entering data. How do you leave the input cells editable and lock the rest?",
          "options": [
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Protect the whole worksheet, which always leaves data-entry cells editable"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Hide the formula rows so nobody can click into them"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Save the file as read-only and ask people to enter data in a copy"
            },
            {
              "icon": "",
              "label": "Unlock the input cells, then protect the worksheet — protection applies only to locked cells"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "optionOrderVersion": "0638fd453435a49e"
    }
  }
}