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Excel tests for job applications

Excel test for admin jobs

Administrative assistants, office coordinators, HR assistants and secretaries keep lists of people, dates and bookings in Excel, and the Excel test for those jobs reflects that. This practice test has 20 office tasks, from tidying names and phone numbers to deadlines in working days, absence, mileage and notice periods, in a live grid with a 30-minute clock.

20 questions · 30 minutes · passing score 70%

Question 1 of 20

The list has a few empty rows. In D2, use COUNTA to count how many names there are in A2:A10.

D2
ABCDEF
1Name Session Signed up
2Sofie Morning
3Jonas Afternoon
4
5Freja Morning
6Oscar Morning
7
8Ida Afternoon
9Victor Afternoon
10Clara Morning
11

No tips during the test. I'm back with help when the clock stops.

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What admin employers test

An Excel test for an admin job checks that you can keep a list in order and answer questions about it. Expect counts with COUNTA, COUNTBLANK and COUNTIFS, text clean-up with TRIM, PROPER, LEFT and FIND, names joined and split, and lookups of a department or a code with VLOOKUP.

Dates come up often: a deadline counted in working days around public holidays with WORKDAY, a 25-year anniversary with EDATE, a week number and the birthdays in a month. The trap with week numbers is WEEKNUM, which starts weeks on Sunday; ISOWEEKNUM gives the week numbers used in European calendars.

How this practice test works

You have 30 minutes for 20 questions. Each question has its own small sheet, written for this test only: a staff list, an absence log, mileage claims or an export from the HR system. Click the answer cell, type your formula and press Enter, as in Excel.

Nothing is marked until you hand in. Every answer has to be a formula that keeps working when the list changes, so typing the answer does not count. Afterwards you see your score, every question you missed and where to practice it.

How to prepare

Take the free preview of the first 10 questions to see where you stand. Then practice the text functions and the date functions, which together make up most of this test. The Indeed practice test is a good warm-up if SUM, COUNT and IF are new to you.

What the test covers

Each question practices one of these skills. Follow a link to practice it before you start.

  1. 1Count the sign-ups
  2. 2Date of a 25-year work anniversary
  3. 3Tidy up a badly typed name
  4. 4Count the missing phone numbers
  5. 5Three-letter initials for a staff list
  6. 6Reply deadline in working days
  7. 7Join first and last name
  8. 8Sick days for one employee
  9. 9Phone numbers in pairs of digits
  10. 10Overtime hours over 37
  11. 11Week number the European way
  12. 12First name from a full name
  13. 13Remove the separators from a phone number
  14. 14Domain from an email address
  15. 15Count full-time staff in one department
  16. 16Mileage allowance for one employee
  17. 17Look up a department by employee ID
  18. 18Turn "Last, First" into "First Last"
  19. 19Birthdays in a given month
  20. 20Notice period from length of service

Questions

What Excel skills do admin jobs need?

Counting with COUNTA, COUNTBLANK and COUNTIFS, text clean-up with TRIM, PROPER, LEFT and FIND, joining names, date formulas such as WORKDAY and EDATE, and VLOOKUP. This practice test covers all of them.

Is an admin Excel test hard?

It is usually easier than a finance test, but it is timed and checks details like extra spaces, the right week number and holidays in a deadline. Practicing against the clock makes the difference.

How long is this practice test?

30 minutes for 20 questions. The free preview has the first 10 questions in 15 minutes.

What score should I aim for?

The passing score here is 70%, 14 of 20. Aim for 80% or more before the real test.

Do I get a certificate?

Yes. Pass the full test with a verified email and you get a certificate with a public link for your résumé or LinkedIn.

Read the guide

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