A realistic six-week plan at roughly 8 hours per week. Keep Power BI Desktop open and do every task hands-on. Add two weeks if you are new to Power BI.
| Week | Focus | Checkpoint |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Connect to sources; clean and shape data in Power Query | You can turn a messy file into a clean table |
| 2 | Profile data, handle errors, append and merge queries | You can combine multiple sources reliably |
| 3 | Star schema, relationships, cardinality, filter direction | You can build a correct model |
| 4 | DAX measures, calculated columns, basic time intelligence | You can write measures and explain filter context |
| 5 | Visuals, slicers, drill-through; manage workspaces and row-level security | You can build a report and secure it |
| 6 | Free practice assessment and full-length timed reviews | You consistently pass timed reviews |
Final tips
Modelling and DAX (Weeks 3–4) are the conceptual core - give them the most time. Build a star schema rather than a flat table, and learn filter context, not just function names. “Manage and secure” is the smallest area but the easiest marks once you have set up row-level security yourself. Remember PL-300 is platform-specific: if your employers use Tableau, the Tableau Desktop Specialist is the better target. Avoid “exam dump” sites - they breach Microsoft policy and copyright.