The Lynda - Office 365: PowerPoint Essential Training (now part of LinkedIn Learning) is a comprehensive course designed to help beginners and intermediate users master Microsoft’s flagship presentation software. Led by expert instructors like Jess Stratton, the course covers everything from basic slide creation to advanced AI-powered features like Microsoft Copilot. Course Overview and Structure
The training is structured into bite-sized, topic-based video lessons, making it easy to learn at your own pace. Total Duration: Approximately 2 hours and 44 minutes.
Target Audience: Ideal for PowerPoint beginners or professionals who haven't used the software recently and want to catch up on Microsoft 365’s cloud-integrated features.
Interactive Elements: Includes downloadable exercise files for hands-on practice and quizzes at the end of each section to test your knowledge. Key Learning Objectives
The curriculum is designed to move students from "blank screen" to a professional, polished presentation. Key modules include:
Course Description:
Take your PowerPoint skills to the next level with this essential training course. In this course, you'll learn the fundamental skills needed to create engaging and professional presentations using PowerPoint in Office 365. You'll start with the basics, including navigating the interface, creating and editing slides, and formatting text and images.
Course Outline:
Module 1: Getting Started with PowerPoint
Module 2: Creating and Editing Slides
Module 3: Formatting and Designing Your Presentation
Module 4: Working with Images and Shapes
Module 5: Adding Interactivity and Animation
Module 6: Collaborating and Sharing Your Presentation
Module 7: Advanced Tips and Tricks
Conclusion:
By the end of this course, you'll have the skills and confidence to create engaging and professional presentations using PowerPoint in Office 365. You'll be able to effectively communicate your ideas and create visually appealing presentations that capture your audience's attention. Lynda - Office 365- Power Point Essential Training
Skill Level: Beginner
Software: Office 365, PowerPoint
Duration: Approximately 4 hours
Target Audience: Anyone who wants to learn the basics of PowerPoint in Office 365, including business professionals, students, and educators.
The PowerPoint Essential Training (Microsoft 365) course, originally from Lynda.com and now on LinkedIn Learning, is a beginner-level program designed to help users create, edit, and share professional presentations. Course Overview
Instructor: Led by Jess Stratton, a technology coach and author. Duration: Approximately 2 hours and 44 minutes. Skill Level: Beginner.
Released: Updated recently (July 2025) to include modern tools like Microsoft Copilot. Key Topics Covered
The training is structured into logical modules to build your skills from the ground up:
Master Your Presentations: A Deep Dive into PowerPoint Essential Training
In today’s professional landscape, a presentation is more than just a deck of slides—it’s a visual narrative that can win over clients, align teams, or secure funding. While many of us "know" how to use PowerPoint, truly mastering it requires moving beyond the basics. The PowerPoint Essential Training (Microsoft 365) course, available on LinkedIn Learning (formerly Lynda.com), offers a comprehensive roadmap to doing just that.
Whether you're starting from scratch or looking to update your skills for the cloud-based Office 365 era, here is why this training is a game-changer for your professional development. 1. Building from a Solid Foundation
The course begins by ensuring you understand the fundamental ecosystem of Microsoft 365. Instructor Jess Stratton guides users through the interface, explaining how to choose between building a presentation from a professional template or starting from a blank canvas.
Slide Layouts: Learn to move beyond the standard "Title and Content" slide to use layouts that actually fit your message.
The Power of the Master Slide: One of the most critical lessons is mastering the Slide Master. This tool allows you to make universal changes—like adding a logo or changing a font—across every slide at once, ensuring perfect consistency. 2. Modern Design Without the Designer Tag
You don't need a degree in graphic design to create a beautiful presentation. The training highlights modern AI-driven tools that do the heavy lifting for you:
PowerPoint Designer: This feature automatically suggests professional-looking layouts based on the content you add to a slide. The Lynda - Office 365: PowerPoint Essential Training
SmartArt: Transform boring bullet points into dynamic diagrams with a few clicks, making complex information easier to digest.
Object Alignment: Discover how to use the Arrange and Align tools to ensure your images and text boxes aren't just "close enough," but mathematically perfect. 3. Dynamic Motion and Multimedia
To keep an audience engaged, static slides aren't always enough. This course dives deep into adding life to your presentation through movement:
Morph Transition: A standout feature of Office 365, Morph allows you to create seamless animations that make objects appear to grow, shrink, or move across the screen between slides.
Zoom: Use the Zoom tool to create a "non-linear" presentation style, allowing you to jump to specific sections and back to a main overview for a more interactive experience.
Video and Audio: Learn how to embed, trim, and format media files so they play perfectly every time without technical glitches. 4. Collaboration and Accessibility
In a hybrid world, collaboration is key. The training covers how to share your deck with colleagues for real-time co-authoring and how to use Comments and Version History to keep track of changes.
Importantly, the course also emphasizes Inclusive Design. You’ll learn how to use the Accessibility Checker to ensure your slides are readable for users with disabilities, including adding Alt Text to images and checking color contrast. 5. Delivering with Confidence
The final phase of the training focuses on the actual delivery. Even the best slides fail if the speaker is unprepared. PowerPoint Essential Training (Microsoft 365) Online Class
The LinkedIn Learning course "PowerPoint Essential Training (Microsoft 365)" led by Jess Stratton provides a comprehensive overview of creating professional presentations, ranging from slide management to advanced AI-powered tools. It covers modern features like Microsoft Copilot, PowerPoint Designer, and Morph transitions, alongside collaboration tools for effective presentation delivery. Explore the full course on LinkedIn Learning PowerPoint Essential Training (Microsoft 365) Online Class
The PowerPoint Essential Training (Microsoft 365) course, originally from Lynda.com and now hosted on LinkedIn Learning, is a beginner-level program designed to help users create, edit, and share professional presentations. Led by staff instructor Jess Stratton, the course covers everything from basic slide creation to advanced AI-driven features like Microsoft Copilot. Core Learning Objectives
The training is structured to take users through the entire lifecycle of a presentation, ensuring they can:
Start Quickly: Use built-in templates and themes or create custom presentations from scratch.
Manage Content: Add and format text, images, charts, and diagrams for maximum clarity.
Enhance Visuals: Work with shapes, SmartArt, and object layering to design professional layouts.
Dynamic Delivery: Incorporate video, audio, transitions, and animations like Morph and Zoom. Welcome to PowerPoint Touring the interface Creating a
Collaborate: Share slide decks for co-authoring and manage version history. Key Course Features
Accessibility: Strategies for creating inclusive presentations for users with disabilities.
AI Tools: Demonstrations of Microsoft Copilot for creating and summarizing presentations, and Designer for automated layout suggestions.
Professional Prep: Using Presenter Coach to rehearse timing and Presenter View to manage the live show.
Multi-Format Exporting: Saving work as PDFs, JPEGs, or animated GIFs. Course Structure Key Topics Covered Getting Started
Navigation, workspace interface, and using the Presentation Gallery. Working with Slides
Adding/rearranging slides, changing layouts, and utilizing Slide Masters for consistency. Media & Multimedia
Inserting stock images, background removal, and adding live webcam feeds with Cameo. Data & Charts
Creating and formatting tables, charts, and SmartArt diagrams. Final Delivery
Adding speaker notes, rehearsal techniques, and running unattended slideshows.
This course is ideal for beginners or those transitioning from older versions of PowerPoint who want to leverage the latest cloud-based features of Microsoft 365. PowerPoint Essential Training (Microsoft 365) Online Class
Here’s a solid guide to making the most of the Lynda / LinkedIn Learning course: Office 365: PowerPoint Essential Training.
Note: Lynda.com is now fully integrated into LinkedIn Learning. Same content, different login.
Whether you are a student preparing a thesis defense, a business professional pitching a quarterly report, or a teacher organizing lecture notes, Microsoft PowerPoint remains the gold standard for presentations. However, there is a massive difference between simply knowing how to open the program and knowing how to create a compelling, professional slide deck.
For those looking to bridge that gap, the "PowerPoint Essential Training (Office 365)" course on LinkedIn Learning (formerly Lynda.com) is widely considered the definitive starting point.
In this post, we break down why this course is a must-watch and the key takeaways you can expect to walk away with.
While the Lynda - Office 365 - Power Point Essential Training is the best all-around course, here are alternatives based on specific needs:
For 90% of users, Jess Stratton’s Lynda/LinkedIn Learning course is the superior choice because it is succinct, authoritative, and directly tied to Office 365’s evolving feature set.