Inte​​rmediate Excel Test vs. Advanced Excel Test

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What’s one of the most inflated skills on resumes? If you said Excel skills, you’re right. People love to claim Excel proficiency, but what does that really mean? Does it mean they can sum a column? Use VLOOKUP? Create a PivotTable?

Here’s the problem: Unlike a lack of Word or Outlook knowledge, which may only slow down productivity, Excel errors can lead to real, costly mistakes. A single incorrect formula can throw off financial reports, mess up client quotes, and create forecasting disasters.

And yet, hiring managers continue to trust self-reported Excel skills. The real question is: Can you afford to take that risk? How do you tell who’s the real deal before you hire them? The solution may be simpler than you think: pre-employment Excel tests

But wait…should you give candidates an Intermediate Excel Test or an Advanced Excel Test?

Intermediate Excel Test vs. Advanced Excel Test: What’s the Difference?

Not every role requires an Excel expert. Some positions need only foundational to intermediate Excel skills, while others demand deeper expertise.

Intermediate Excel Test: Best for Administrative & General Business Roles

The Intermediate Excel Test covers essential functions for handling data efficiently in daily business tasks. If a role involves managing spreadsheets but doesn’t require heavy data analysis, this is the test to use.

What’s Tested in the Intermediate Excel Test?

• Basic to Mid-Level Formulas & Functions – SUM, AVERAGE, AutoSum, 3-D References
• Sorting & Filtering Data – Organizing information quickly with AutoFilter
• Data Entry & Formatting – Wrap text, merge and center cells, apply accounting number format
• Basic Charts & Graphs – Creating visual representations of data
• PivotTables – Creating a blank PivotTable and adding slicers to filter data
• Printing & Page Layout – Setting print areas, adjusting margins, and print preview
• Workbook Management – Saving to OneDrive, marking as final, and customizing Quick Access Toolbar

A candidate who passes the Intermediate Excel Test can comfortably handle spreadsheets, organize data, and create basic reports. However, a more advanced test is necessary if the job requires data analysis, automation, or complex modeling.

Advanced Excel Test: Best for Analysts, Finance, & Operations Roles

The Advanced Excel Test is for professionals who need to work with large datasets, automate workflows, and generate insights from numbers. This is where Excel becomes a powerful analytical tool.

What’s Tested in the Advanced Excel Test?

• Advanced Functions & Formulas – INDEX-MATCH, 3-D References
• Data Analysis Tools – PivotTables (modifying types, moving fields, changing report layouts), adding timelines
• Automation & Macros – Recording and using macros for efficiency
• Data Validation & Security – Locking cells, protecting workbooks, encrypting files
• Sorting & Organizing Data – Multi-field sorting, inserting subtotals
• Text & Data Management – Text-to-Columns, Goal Seek, and Inspect Workbook

Candidates who score well on the Advanced Excel Test can handle complex data tasks, automate repetitive processes, and provide valuable insights. This is the test you need if the role involves financial analysis, data science, or high-level reporting.

Which Excel Test Should You Use?

Not sure which test fits your hiring needs? Here’s a quick guide:

How to Accurately Test Excel Proficiency Before Hiring

1. Don’t Trust Resumes—Test Instead

Resumes lie. Interviews aren’t much better. A candidate might talk a big game, but the only way to know if they can actually work in Excel is to test them.

2. Choose the Right Level of Testing

If a candidate only needs basic spreadsheet skills, don’t waste time testing them on advanced macros. Meanwhile, if the role requires deep data analysis, a basic test won’t cut it. What if it’s a mix of both? You can use either an Intermediate test or a custom test that fits the job requirements.

3. Use Real-World Scenarios

Good Excel tests don’t just ask random trivia. You need tests that present candidates with realistic business challenges, like cleaning up a messy dataset or building a forecast model.

4. Get Instant, Data-Driven Results

Pre-employment Excel assessments give you immediate, detailed reports on a candidate’s strengths and weaknesses—so you can make confident hiring decisions.

The Cost of Overstating Excel Proficiency

Hiring an employee who exaggerates their Excel skills is more than an inconvenience. It can lead to costly mistakes that ripple through an organization. Here are some of the most common ways Excel errors impact businesses:

1. Financial Statement Miscalculations

A junior financial analyst inputs a formula incorrectly in a budget spreadsheet. Instead of calculating projected revenue accurately, the formula skews the numbers. No one notices the mistake until months later—when the company realizes it has significantly overestimated profits. The result? Financial chaos.

Did you know? JP Morgan Chase experienced a $6 billion loss due to a simple Excel mistake. An employee was transferring data between spreadsheets and accidentally used the sum total instead of the average.

2. Data Loss and Corruption

Poor data organization, formatting errors, and manual workflows waste time and increase errors. Forbes reported that 88% of spreadsheets contain errors, often leading to inaccurate business decisions.

3. Productivity Loss

Employees who claim to be Excel experts but struggle with basic functions slow down operations. They rely on manual data entry instead of automating tasks with PivotTables, formulas, and macros. This inefficiency adds up, causing missed deadlines and frustrated colleagues.

4. Compliance Risks

Excel errors can lead to regulatory violations in industries like finance, healthcare, and legal services. If compliance reports contain incorrect data due to formula errors, a company could face audits, fines, or even legal action.

Test Before You Hire—Reduce the Risk

Hiring an Excel-heavy role? Don’t rely on guesswork.

With Excel assessments, you can:

• Accurately measure real-world Excel skills
• Reduce costly hiring mistakes
• Get instant test results and insights

Want to see how it works? Get a sample Intermediate Excel Test or Advanced Excel Test, or schedule a free consultation today!