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Microsoft Excel Basics

Lesson 13

Working With Built In Functions

Descriptive Statistics - 2 Excel Built In Functions - 3 Paste Function (Built In Functions) - 6

Paste Function Dialogue Box - 7 Built In Statistical Functions - 12 Generalized Built In Formula - 16

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Numerical Descriptive Statistics

In statistical analysis, we are often concerned with developing statistics which numerically describe data. For example, the average, standard deviation, and variance.

We all are familiar and perhaps even remember some of these formula.

Average = X = X

Variance(X X)

n 1

Standard Deviation = Variance

i

i2

i 1

n

i

n

1

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Excel Built In Functions

The developers of Excel recognized the need to be able to calculate formula like these and created built in functions to handle these calculations.

In addition, they created built in functions to handle many other common formulas such as

. Financial

. Date & Time

. Mathematical & Trigonometric

. Statistical

. Lookup & Reference

. Database

. Logical

. Etc.

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We will use multiple numbers (e.g. sample data) in this course. These sample data can be arranged in a sequence (usually in a column)

Let’s compute the 4 descriptive statistics for these 10 numbers.

. Count

. Average

. Variance

. Standard Deviation

We all know how to calculate these statistics using a calculator. But let’s look at how quickly we can do it with Excel without looking up a formula we may have forgotten.

Numerical Descriptive Statistics

Sample1 72 83 94 15 26 37 68 79 810 9

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First, set up this format in your Excel spreadsheet. We will use the green cells for input and the blue cells for the result of our formula for each descriptive statistic.

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Let’s do the Count formula first.

Left click cell F4, then left click the (Paste Function) button on the Standard Toolbar

f x

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Note: An = sign automatically comes up in cell F2. This is where the results of our built in formula will appear.

This brings up the Paste Function Dialogue Box where you can see the many types of built in functions that are available to us.

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The Paste Function Dialogue Box

The Paste Function Dialogue Box is divided into two parts. On the left is the Function Category and on the right is the Function Name.

Scroll

We can scroll through the Function Categories and Function Names independently using the scrolling bars.

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The Paste Function Dialogue Box

The Function Category represents all of the different types of common formula that are built in functions in Excel.

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The Paste Function Dialogue Box

The Function Name represents all of the different built in functions for the selected Function Category.

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The Paste Function Dialogue Box

The bottom of the Paste Function Dialogue Box describes the built in function along with its format.

In this example, NPER is one of the Most Recently Used functions and calculates the financial formula for the number of periods …

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Left click Statistical, scroll through the Function Names, left click COUNT, OK (COUNT is the Excel built in function to count non-void cells)

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You may need to move the COUNT dialogue box away from the data (hold left mouse button down on box while dragging it to this position).

Hilight green cells, OK

Note: A blinking dotted line appears around the green cells (C4:C13), and the green cells (C4:C13) appear in the Value 1 portion of the COUNT dialogue box.

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Note: The result in cell F4 is 10 which is the COUNT of the number of non-void green cells (C4:C13).

The formula pasted in cell by the previous actions is

=COUNT(C4:C13).

Repeat this procedure for the . Average ( , Statistical, AVERAGE). Variance ( , Statistical, VAR). Standard Deviation ( , Statistical, STDEV).

Set the decimal place accuracy for this output to 2.

f xf x f x

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Use your calculator to verify that these calculations are correct and then save this as F07-Built In Functions.

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We learned earlier that once we create a formula we can then use it at a later date. The same is true for built in functions. Use the previously developed spreadsheet F07-Built In Functions to quickly calculate the following descriptive statistics for this sample.

. Count

. Average

. Variance

. Standard Deviation

Numerical Descriptive Statistics

Sample1 28.762 42.893 53.844 75.985 42.636 63.89

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Begin by Clearing the Contents of the green cells (C4:C13). In case you forgot how,

hilight the cells C4:C13, left click, Clear Contents.

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Now enter the 6 numbers and notice what happens to the blue cells as you enter the numbers.

Quite remarkable isn’t it!

If your curious, you might want to verify the calculations with a calculator.

We have now created a generalized set of built in formula to handle these descriptive statistics calculations for up to 10 numbers.