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Tableau Desktop Specialist Certification Guide (Udemy.com)

Tableau Desktop Specialist Certification Exam Subjects Covered in Detail! + Real World Case Study & 2 Practice Tests

4.3
997 reviews

Created by: John David Ariansen

Last updated May 2019

Our take

Based on the ratings of 997 students, a sample of their written reviews and the syllabus, as the course stood in May 2019. No course pays to be reviewed.

This is a compact exam prep course: about 3.8 hours across 48 lectures, organized around the Tableau Desktop Specialist exam guide. John David Ariansen, a working analytics consultant, covers connecting to and preparing data, exploring and analyzing it, and the core Tableau concepts, using a sales-data case study as the thread. Quizzes follow the sections and there are two practice tests. The syllabus shows a refresher more than a full Tableau class, and the reviewers who liked it most tended to have some hands-on Tableau already.

Students like the structure. Reviewers say it follows the skills-measured list closely, the lessons are short, and the teaching is clear and to the point. One reviewer passed the exam afterward and another says it taught everything needed to pass. The complaints are consistent too. Videos cut off abruptly, the speaker hesitates, and the sample dataset is very basic. Some say the practice tests are easier than the real exam and a few answers are wrong. Others find it thin for beginners, and a 2024 reviewer called it outdated and not enough on its own to pass.

The course was last updated in May 2019, and reviewers say the exam format has changed since, including a note that Tableau itself may not be open during the test. Check the current exam guide before relying on it. With 4,426 students and 799 of 997 ratings at four or five stars, it is liked more than not, but the low-star reviews are not noise. Treat it as one piece of a prep plan, alongside real practice in the software, rather than the whole plan.

Best forPeople who already use Tableau at work and want a fast pass over the exam guide before test day.
Skip it ifYou are brand new to Tableau, or you need material that matches the current exam format, which reviewers say has changed.

Pros

  • Short lessons laid out to match the exam guide's skills measured list
  • A sales-data case study ties the exam topics to a practical problem
  • Quizzes after sections plus two practice tests to check yourself
  • One reviewer passed the exam after it; another says it covered all they needed

Cons

  • Last updated May 2019, and reviewers say the exam format has changed since
  • Practice tests run easier than the real exam, with a few wrong answers reported
  • Thin for true beginners; videos cut off abruptly and the sample data is basic
Course content was excellent in order to prepare for the exam. The only reason I did not give it five full stars is because the exam format has changed from when this course was recorded.
Aileen Simmons Bantau, a student

Labeled beginner, but reviewers say it works best if you already have some hands-on Tableau experience.

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What you will learn

  • Connecting to Data in Tableau
  • Preparing Data in Tableau
  • Joins, Unions & Data Blending
  • Analyzing Data in Tableau
  • Basic Visualizations
  • Customizing Visualizations
  • Managing Data Properties
  • Combined vs. Dual Axis Bar Chart
  • Stacked Bar Chart
  • Histogram & Bins
  • Groups vs. Sets
  • Trend Lines
  • Tableau Calculations
  • Sharing Insights
  • Building Dashboards
  • Building Stories
  • Creating Interactive Dashboards
  • Dimensions vs. Measures
  • Continuous vs. Discrete
  • Using Tableau in a Time Effective Manner
  • Exam Walkthrough
  • Bonus: How to grow your analytics career advice

Course content

6 sections · 48 lectures · 3.8 hours of video 7 quizzes, 2 practice tests, 1 article

  1. 1Introduction 3 free previews9 lectures · 19 min
  2. 2Connecting to & Preparing Data 2 free previews6 lectures · 1 quiz · 29 min
  3. 3Exploring & Analyzing Data 1 free preview15 lectures · 1 quiz · 1.1 hours
  4. 4Sharing Insights7 lectures · 1 quiz · 33 min
  5. 5Understanding Tableau Concepts6 lectures · 2 quizzes · 19 min
  6. 6Conclusion5 lectures · 2 quizzes · 1.1 hours

Who it is for

The instructor says it suits

  • Those who plan on taking the Desktop Specialist Certification Exam soon

What you need before you start

  • Have computer compatible with Tableau

How it compares

Against the other 59 rated Udemy courses in Tableau on CourseDuck:

  • Rating4.3 out of 5higher than 13% of them
  • Reviews997#32 of 60 by number of reviews
  • Length3.8 hoursshorter than 80% of them
  • Last updatedMay 2019earlier than 88% of them

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Course Description

Are you planning on taking the Desktop Specialist Certification Exam soon?


In this course we will work through all the concepts covered in the Desktop Specialist Certification Exam plus we will apply these concepts to a case study. By the end of the course you will be taught each concept and also tested as there are quizzes after each section and a practice test modeled after the real exam. Applying the concepts in a case study will really hammer home the concepts… It’s much easier to remember something you’ve done than something you’ve just passively watched someone else do!


Use Tableau to Analyze and Visualize Sales Data To Develop Actionable Insights


Visualizing current and historical sales data can result in huge insights that aren’t
readily apparent in the day to day grind. The right visualizations help quickly identify trends and
outliers (positive or negative), which help to adjust course for more profitable sales & marketing
as well as a more efficient and informed supply chain.


Contents and Overview


Throughout this course we will work through a sample consulting engagement where the client wants us to conduct a data discovery on their sales data. They need help planning for the upcoming year both in their marketing department and also their supply chain. We will use their raw sales data to come up with insights for both teams.


This project will focus our approach to Tableau forcing us to learn the basics while solving a real world business problem. My hope is that you’ll feel like you’re learning a new problem solving tool not just a series of functions in a software interface. The course structure is modeled after the Tableau Certification Exam Guide and broken down into the following sections:


  1. Introduction

  2. Connecting To & Preparing Data

  3. Exploring & Analyzing Data

  4. Understanding Tableau Concepts

  5. Conclusion
Read More Beginner Beginner Level product length iconTime: 3.8h

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Instructor Details

John David Ariansen

I tell stories through data. Currently I am the Director of Analytics and Co-founder of Silvertone Analytics. We focus on three main verticals - Manufacturing, Marketing and Nonprofit Impact Analysis.

Outside of my consultancy, I work with students helping them break into the analytics field and I am also on the Board of Directors for Triad Local First, a nonprofit that promotes localism here in the Greensboro, NC. On the board I advise on how to leverage data to drive strategy but I also teach classes available to the 360 local member businesses on how they can use their data to drive their decision making process. I love getting to work with these small businesses!

I post weekly content to my Youtube channel focused on Tableau and how you can grow your Analytics Career.


Read More

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Reviews

4.3

997 ratings on Udemy

Select a bar to show only those reviews.Select the bar again to show every rating.

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By Thais Paulino on 9/13/2024

I found the content of this course to be outdated, which impacted its relevance and accuracy. One major issue was the misinformation provided regarding the use of Google on test day—this is misleading and can set the wrong expectations for learners. Unfortunately, this course alone was insufficient preparation for passing the exam.

By Jessica Riley on 1/19/2022

The majority of the videos could use some editing. They cut off abruptly and sometimes even cut the speaker off. Still overall a good course to use in preparation for the Desktop Specialist exam. The latest exam guide states that the Tableau software will not be accessible or utilized during the exam. A shift to focusing less on the hands on questions might be a valuable update.

By Hung-Chun Chen on 5/4/2021

Overall, this course is a good source for a quick review before the exam because it's well organized in line with the "Skill measured" part in the exam guide. However, if you don't have any experience with Tableau before, the content could not be in-depth enough. Besides, the mock tests are relatively easier than the real exam.

By Swanand Deshkar on 12/27/2020

Wonderfully designed course and exam questions. Thanks John!

By Trevor Hoffart on 12/20/2020

Getting started is usually the hardest part. I found the first few videos incredibly helpful at getting started and getting into a dataset.

By James Walsh on 12/20/2020

Not a good course to study for the Tableau certification. Creator goes through the very basics and gives a brief overview of each section.

By Kevin Waters on 12/13/2020

Yes, I am able to follow the instructor very well!

By Sam Stuart on 12/13/2020

Slow to get going. The guy speaking currently sounds like he really doesn't want to be here.

By Matt Vogl on 12/6/2020

I love that its addressing topics specific to what the Tableau Desktop Specialist exam will test on. One suggestion I would offer is to take the time to introduce each data source and how its configured every time you start a new section. That part took some time for me to get set up and ready for following along.

By Mishra Abhishek Kumar on 11/10/2020

This course quickly covered all the key concepts in tableau. The bonus section about how to get into job with Tableau Certification was quite interesting as it discussed where to start.

By David L Haynes on 10/21/2020

I like the way the topics are discussed straigth to the point. I have taken other courses where its hard to focus because of over explaining. This is right on for me.

By Hitesh Kashyap on 10/11/2020

No doubt As a beginner on Tableau it was an amazing course to me. Highly recommended for those who are starting towards Tableau. Course is arranged in a well mannered way. I just wanna give a feedback regarding no. of quizes in between the sections should be increased. Overall I am very happy after taking this course.
Thanks a lot to John David Ariansen :) Would love to see some more courses on this from you.

Showing 12 of 124 reviews

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Overall Score : 86 / 100

Tableau Desktop Specialist Certification Guide
Visit course on Udemy Write a review
  • Video Duration: icon 3.8h
  • Price: See price on Udemy
  • Provider: icon Udemy
  • Updated: icon May 2019
  • Level: Beginner Beginner
  • Language: icon English
  • Certificate: icon Yes
  • Lectures:48 in 6 sections
  • Practice:7 quizzes, 2 practice tests
  • Students:4,426
  • Subtitles:1 language
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