Getting started with Power Platform in 7 weeks

In 7 weeks from zero to your own app with a flow and a first agent. For people without an IT background who work with Microsoft 365 every day.

Duration: 7 weeks
Effort: 3 to 4 h per week
Total: about 22 h
Cost: free

Start with week 1

Roughly what your practice app looks like. Plus a flow (an automated process) for approvals and an agent (a chat assistant) for questions.

Before you start

Three points so that week 1 does not fail on the technology.

Work or school accountMicrosoft 365 with SharePoint and Power Apps. A personal account such as Outlook.com or Hotmail is not enough.
One-minute checkOpen make.powerapps.com and sign in with your work account. If you see the Power Apps home page, you are set.
Time in your calendar3 to 4 hours per week, ideally two fixed slots. You can read on your phone, but for practising you need a computer with Edge or Chrome.

Does your company block Power Apps?

Ask your IT for an environment to learn in. A sentence like "I am doing a free learning path on Power Apps and Power Automate and need an environment to practise" usually does it. If you planned to practise with the free Developer Plan, read the note on the practice environment in week 1 first. Go to the note in week 1

The 7 weeks

Week 1: Overview and listPower Platform and SharePoint2 h 35 minList with test data is ready
Week 2: First appPower Apps3 h 3 minFirst app runs on your phone
Week 3: Search and sharingPower Apps3 h 9 minApp runs for a colleague
Week 4: First flowPower Automate3 h 21 minApproval by flow
Week 5: Expressions and errorsPower Automate3 hReminder runs every weekday
Week 6: First agentCopilot Studio2 h 59 minAgent answers questions
Week 7: Your projectEverything together3 h 38 minSolution shown

Your progress is stored only in this browser. To use another device, take it along as a link.

What you build

One example runs through all weeks: lending equipment within a team. Today laptops, projectors or cameras are lent by shouting across the office or via Excel. At the end you have an app to borrow equipment, an approval flow, a reminder when something is overdue and an agent that answers questions about the rules. If you have your own example from work, use that one.

Who it is for

Professionals from office, administration, sales, workshop or school who know Excel and Teams and want to make a process in their team simpler. You don't need to know how to code.

Roughly what your practice app looks like. Plus a flow (an automated process) for approvals and an agent (a chat assistant) for questions.

Two fixed slots per week

Fixed times in your calendar make it easier to keep going. Pick your first learning slot. The page turns it into a calendar file with two slots per week for 7 weeks. If you have already finished weeks, the file starts with the first open week. The file is created in your browser, nothing is sent.

You open the file (.ics) with Outlook, Google Calendar or your phone calendar. Each slot lasts half of the weekly time and contains the link to the week page.

And then: certification

The path covers the basics Microsoft tests in the entry-level certification Microsoft Certified: Power Platform Fundamentals (PL-900). According to the study guide (skills measured as of 24 July 2026) they are: business value of Power Platform, managing the environment, Power Apps, Power Automate and agents in Copilot Studio. Power BI is no longer part of it.

The exam takes 45 minutes, is proctored and also available in German. The price depends on the country. Microsoft recommends registering with a personal Microsoft account so your credentials stay with you when you change jobs.
Preparation: the PL-900 learning path on Microsoft Learn and the free practice assessment on the certification page.
If you want to show that you build and don't just know: the Applied Skills Create and manage canvas apps with Power Apps and Create and manage automated processes by using Power Automate test you in a hands-on lab, also in German.

My recommendation: after this path, take the PL-900 practice assessment first. If you are comfortably above the pass mark, register. If you already work with apps and flows every day, an Applied Skill gives you more. Microsoft retired the former PL-200 exam on 31 August 2026. Information as of 17 October 2026; check Microsoft Learn before you register.

Learning with support

Prefer not to learn alone? In Dojo Mentoring you can continuously find 1:1 support for 3 months with a Sensei. The Power Platform User Group Deutschschweiz (German-speaking Switzerland) meets online every two weeks on Friday from 1 to 2 pm, free and in German.