Study material for Exam PL-300: Microsoft Power BI Data Analyst

By: Sean Lee   |   Updated: 2022-06-14   |   Comments (3)   |   Related: More > Professional Development Certifications

Problem

PL-300: Microsoft Power BI Data Analyst is a Microsoft’s replacement exam for DA-100: Analyzing Data with Microsoft Power BI which officially retired on 03/31/2022. As a replacement exam, PL-300 covers the same knowledge base as DA-100 did, but PL-300 reorganizes the exam structure, such as consolidates the number of subject areas, gives different weighting (i.e., the expected number of questions in the test) to various topics. What are some of the best materials I can use to study for this exam?

Solution

In this tip, we will provide you with the basic information on this exam and the appropriate study materials including web links, books, online courses, practice test and tips you can use to prepare for and pass the exam.

What is the Audience of PL-300 Exam?

This exam PL-300 Analyzing Data with Microsoft Power BI is aimed at Data Analysts who want to validate their skills. Candidates should have a fundamental understanding of data repositories and data processing both on-premises and in the cloud, as well as be proficient using Power Query and writing expressions by using DAX.

What is the Format, Duration, Number of Questions of the exam?

• The exam duration is 180 Minutes.
• The exam format includes multiple-choice and multiple response questions with case studies.
• The exam has 40-60 questions.

What is the score to pass?

• 700/1000

What certificate do you get after passing the exam?

• Microsoft Certified: Power BI Data Analyst Associate

Which books would you recommend for this exam?

Exam Ref Pl-300 Power Bi Data Analyst by Daniil Maslyuk. This Exam Ref is the official study guide for the new Microsoft Exam PL-300: Microsoft Power BI Data Analyst. This title has not yet been released as of this writing, but you can preorder the book at Amazon.com.

The Definitive Guide to DAX Second Edition by Marco Russo and Alberto Ferrari. As DAX is an included topic in the exam, this comprehensive and authoritative guide to the DAX language will be very useful to prepare for and pass the exam.

Learn Power BI 2nd Edition by Greg Deckler. This newly revised and expanded edition of Learn Power BI covers all of the latest features in a clear, concise way using real-world examples.

Do you recommend practice tests for this exam?

mindhub.com provides the online Microsoft Official Practice Test powered by MeasureUp. This test contains 173 questions and all objectives of the exam are covered in depth so you'll be ready for any question on the exam.

Are there courses for this exam?

Microsoft Learning paths provides some free online modules to gain the fundamental skills needed to become certified. The Learning path PL-300 collections have the following modules:

• Discover data analysis
• Get started building with Power BI
• Get data in Power BI
• Clean, transform, and load data in Power BI
• Design a data model in Power BI
• Introduction to creating measures using DAX in Power BI
• Optimize a model for performance in Power BI
• Work with Power BI visuals
• Create a data-driven story with Power BI reports
• Create dashboards in Power BI
• Perform analytics in Power BI
• Work with AI visuals in Power BI
• Create and manage workspaces in Power BI
• Implement row-level security

Udemy has several courses covers the content required for the PL-300 certification exams, among them the one by Phillip Burton has the most detailed and in-depth coverage of all the exam subject topics, this course is updated often and highly rated by students.

Can you provide some links to study for the exam?

Here are the best study materials links that we recommend organized by the Exam PL-300: Microsoft Power BI Data Analyst – Skills Measured outline:

Prepare the Data (15-20%)

• Get data from different data sources
  • Identify and connect to a data source
  • Change data source settings
  • Select a shared dataset or create a local dataset
  • Select a storage mode
  • Use Microsoft Dataverse
  • change the value in a parameter
  • Connecting to a data flow
• Clean, transform, and load the data
  • Profile the data
  • Resolve inconsistencies, unexpected or null values, and data quality issues
  • Identify and create appropriate keys for joins
  • Evaluate and transform column data types
  • Shape and transform tables
  • Combine queries
  • Apply user-friendly naming conventions to columns and queries
  • Configure data loading
  • Resolve data import errors

Model the Data (30-35%)

• Design a data model
  • Define the tables
  • Configure table and column properties
  • Design and implement role-playing dimensions
  • Define a relationship's cardinality and cross-filter direction
  • Design a data model that uses a star schema
  • Create a common date table
• Develop a data model
  • Create calculated tables
  • Create hierarchies·
  • create calculated columns
  • Implement row-level security roles
  • Set up the Q&A feature
• Create model calculations by using DAX
  • Create basic measures by using DAX
  • Use CALCULATE to manipulate filters
  • Implement Time Intelligence using DAX
  • Replace implicit measures with explicit measures
  • Use basic statistical functions
  • Create semi-additive measures
  • Use quick measures
• Optimize model performance
  • Remove unnecessary rows and columns
  • Identify poorly performing measures, relationships, and visuals
  • Reduce cardinality levels to improve performance

Visualize and Analyze the Data (25-30%)

• Create reports
  • Add visualization items to reports
  • Choose an appropriate visualization type
  • Format and configure visualizations
  • Use a custom visual
  • Configure conditional formatting
  • Apply and customize a theme
  • Apply slicing and filtering
  • Configure the report page
  • Use the Analyze in Excel feature
  • Choose when to use a paginated report
• Create dashboards
  • Manage tiles on a dashboard
  • Configure mobile view
  • Use the Q&A feature
  • Add a Quick Insights result to a dashboard
  • Apply a dashboard theme
  • Pin a live report page to a dashboard
• Enhance reports for usability and storytelling
  • Configure bookmarks
  • Create custom tooltips
  • Edit and configure interactions between visuals
  • Configure navigation for a report
  • Apply sorting
  • Configure Sync Slicers
  • Group and layer visuals by using the selection pane
  • Drilldown into data using interactive visuals
  • Export report data
  • Design reports for mobile devices
• Identify patterns and trends
  • Use the Analyze feature in Power BI
  • Identify outliers
  • Choose between continuous and categorical axes
  • Use groupings, binnings, and clustering
  • Use AI visuals
  • Use the Forecast feature
  • Create reference lines by using Analytics pane

Deploy and Maintain Assets (20-25%)

• Manage files and datasets
  • Identify when a gateway is required
  • Configure a dataset scheduled refresh
  • Configure row-level security group membership
  • Providing access to datasets
  • Manage global options for files
• Manage workspaces
  • Create and configure a workspace
  • Assign workspace roles
  • Configure and update a workspace app
  • Publish, import, or update assets in a workspace
  • Apply sensitivity labels to workspace content
  • Configure subscriptions and data alerts
  • Promote or certify Power BI content

Next Steps

For more information and exam prep tips, refer to the links below:

• Exam PL-300: Microsoft Power BI Data Analyst
• How to Crack Microsoft Certified: Power BI Data Analyst Associate (PL-300) Exam

About the author

Sean Lee has been a SQL Server Database Administrator for over 20 years. He obtained his MCSE Data Management and Analytics in 2016. He is also the founder of SharpSQL.com.

This author pledges the content of this article is based on professional experience and not AI generated.

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