The Advanced Learning Certificate in Data Visualization & Communication leverages tools like Excel and PowerPoint that are already on your computer to build your skills at visualizing data and communicating it to various audiences.
Applications for Spring 2025 open through March 3, 2025 by 5:00 p.m., Central Time.
Schedule
March 14 & 28, April 11, and May 2, 2025
Online Program: The 4 session online program includes live meetings via Zoom with asynchronous work in between the meetings. Class meets by Zoom on alternate Fridays, 8:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. (CST).
Program Description
In a fast-paced world with ever more information surrounding us, the ability to share information succinctly and use data to tell compelling stories has become a vital skill. This certificate program will be helpful to professionals in a range of settings who create reports, presentations, and other communications using data.
Class meetings provide students with opportunities to learn and apply data visualization best practices for developing charts in Excel and other visuals for dissemination products, such as presentations, dashboards, reports, and one-pagers. During the session, the participants will learn the importance of creating a dissemination plan to tailor products to specific audiences, learn strategies to engage stakeholders with data findings, and strategies for telling stories with data. The certificate program offers a variety of hands-on activities so the participants have opportunities to practice their new skills.
By the end of the program, participants will:
- Understand and apply data visualization and communication theories, best practices, and principles to generate their own equitable and inclusive data visualizations.
- Identify best practices for communicating and presenting both quantitative and qualitative data.
- Gain a fundamental understanding of how to apply visualization best practices to create different chart types in Excel.
- Develop a dissemination plan that includes the identification of tailored products for different stakeholder groups/audiences.
- Understand a process for facilitating stakeholder engagement in data interpretation and communicating and using data,
- Understand strategies and processes for producing data insights strategically and effectively.
The instructors encourage participants to bring their own dataset or projects to the class and used for class assignments and activities to create products that will be useful for their own agency setting or interests.
Instructors
Meihsi Chiang, MSW
Assistant Director (she/her/hers)
- Phone: 314-935-2031
- Email: chiang.m@nospam.wustl.edu
Meihsi is the assistant director of evaluation and dissemination at the Evaluation Center. She manages projects with a focus on process and outcome evaluation, evaluation capacity, survey design, and quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis. She offers an extensive background in project management and visual communications. Meihsi brings her creativity and passion for data visualization together to develop products and approaches that communicate research data and evaluation findings in meaningful and understandable ways. She also co-manages the center’s brand and visual presence, including website design and marketing materials.
Ann is a mixed methods data analyst at the Evaluation Center with experience in program evaluation, qualitative research, data analysis, dashboard development, and data visualization. She is proficient at using tools like Excel and Airtable to simplify data collection, organization, and analysis. Her work helps partners make sense of their data by using visual tools to support shared understanding and action. She also works with partners to build their capacity for creating data visualizations. Ann facilitates workshops on Excel and qualitative data collection and analysis for project partners and the Brown School’s Professional Development program.
Is This Program for Me?
The program is appropriate for professionals who have not been trained as graphic artists but who have an interest in more skillfully accessing widely available software programs (such as Excel and PowerPoint) to improve the effectiveness of their presentation of data.
Participants should have a basic working knowledge of Excel and PowerPoint, as well as comfort manipulating descriptive statistics. The class content does not include computer coding or advanced statistical methods.
Learn More & Apply
Learn more and register online through Brown School Professional Development.
This course will be conducted via a virtual Zoom meeting online format and WUEx. Access to a computer/laptop with internet access is required. Please contact Professional Development with any questions.
Price & CEU/CPH
$995
Continuing Education Information:
- 30 social work CEs in Missouri and Illinois,