Microsoft Access
Build a real database rather than a spreadsheet that has outgrown itself. Covers table design, relationships and referential integrity, queries and SQL, and the forms and reports people actually use.
Before you start
Access is Windows-only and is included in Microsoft 365 Apps for business and enterprise, and in Office Professional. There is no Mac version and no full browser version. Check which edition you have before assuming something is missing — and note that the Google Workspace half of this program has no Access equivalent for the same reason.
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Course Modules
Work through the modules in order — each builds directly on the last.
Introduction to Access
What a database does that a spreadsheet cannot, the four Access object types, and how to design tables before you build them.
Tables & Relationships
Create tables with data types that reject bad entries, then link them so Access enforces the connections your design assumes.
Queries
Ask questions of your data with the query grid, read the SQL underneath it, and summarize with calculated fields and totals.
Forms & Reports
Build forms that make correct data entry fast and incorrect entry difficult, and reports that organize data for a reader.
What You'll Need
- • Microsoft Access (Microsoft 365 or Office 2024), Windows only
- • Roughly 3 hours across four modules
- • Paper for the design exercises — the first one is done away from the computer