Of all of Microsoft's products, Access is the one that users find most challenging. Relational databases require a change in thinking and carry an intimidating learning curve. It makes using Access something that is difficult to pick up quickly.

MS Access courses are a big help to the new or even experienced user. Courses taught by experienced and certified instructors can lead a student through the confusing corridors of database terminology and design.

Courses are an important first step but true proficiency comes only with experience. Students who are prepared to learn will find that Access becomes easier and their databases will become more powerful and easy to use with practice.

Online Tutorials


After taking formal MS Access courses, a student can often pick up more tips by looking for one of the countless free online tutorials out there. Although these tutorials can be confusing to the new user, a student from a traditional course will have the skills to take advantage of these online opportunities to their fullest.

Something as simple as doing a search for "ms access courses" in your favorite search engine can reveal hundreds of Access examples to give you more practice and insight into efficient database design.

Support Forums


It is amazing how concepts that seem so simple in the classroom suddenly become baffling once you are faced with them at work. Communicating with more experienced Access users is a great way to get answers to your questions and pick up new tips.

Start with the company that offered the MS Access courses you took. Many training companies offer support forums for students of their classes. These forums are often monitored by Microsoft-certified instructors who bring years of real-world experience and the teaching skills to explain the steps clearly.

How Do You Get To Carnegie Hall?


Practice, practice, practice!

MS Access courses with certified instructors give users an edge when learning the art of database design but nothing replaces the benefits that come from simply using the software. The more you do with it, the more you learn from it.

Find excuses to create databases. For example, even if your business has contacts with only a handful of vendors, enter them into a table and generate a few reports. A small project like this gives you the opportunity to try the techniques you learned in MS Access courses.