February 3, 2011 at 12:11 pm
I made this post over at another forum but thought to post here as well. I believe it should still be alright verbiage-wise.
Hello,
I’m brand new to these forums having heard about them from a friend who is scheduled to begin courses at WGU. I’m just getting started in my IT studies mostly just self-study for the A+ at the moment but do plan on enrolling at WGU in their Database program. I would like to solicit some folks who are currently in the database administration field and/or enrolled in the WGU’s Database program for any information that you might be able to provide regarding what to expect either for employment opportunities, typical job duties and what you might think about the Database program and whether you think it’s a good way to “break in” to the database administration job role (Whatever that might be as I'm pretty much grasping at straws here).
Some background on me to know whom you’re dealing with: zero formal education in the field of computers however have been “attached” to one in some form or another since around 1999-2000. Have tinkered with one here and there before that as far back as early 1980’s with a Texas Instruments TI-86 monstrosity. Seeking a career change: at 35 years of age, husband and father of 3 and being the sole provider for the household, I need something more than the dead end data entry jobs I’ve been accustomed to over the last decade. Looking forward to finally getting off my duff and starting to be constructive with my time by learning the multitude of topics within the IT industry. Right now I’m leaning more towards database studies because straight networking, while fascinating, is not something I think I want to focus on. My friend suggested database as I would like to do some programming but didn’t think focusing solely on programming was a wise or stable choice with the whole outsourcing deal which I don’t really want to get into. So that leads me to probably one of my first questions: Is there a lot of programming in database administration? I see a javascript course or two in the program so I’m not entirely sure.
Long story short ( I know, too late ), I’m hoping to get some feedback and any advice that I might use to further drive home my decision on whether I want to focus on database administration. My overall knowledge of what each “branch” in the IT world does is rather limited so the more information I can get before I take the plunge at WGU, the better. In the meantime I’ll continue working on my A+ certification as that seems to be standard across the board.
Thank you for reading and I’m happy to be part of these forums.
February 3, 2011 at 1:20 pm
If you don't mind a little self promotion, I've written an article for people in your position here[/url].
It's an overview of the industry. Now, to answer your question about job availability. App/Frontend coding is easier to outsource because of the lack of data security issues. They may even do some database development. The administration of the data, however, will primarily always stay in house. The reason for this is security. The more hands on the data, the better the chance for exposure.
Database Administration in particular is a good, safe, local job. You won't see many companies do much outsourcing on that. It's also a bit difficult to jump straight into.
The reason you'll see some front end programming software in official training courses is because you want to at least be able to prototype some front ends to your data to make sure they work, and Java was common for a while. I personally use MS Access as my front end prototyping, but to each their own. 🙂
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February 4, 2011 at 4:54 am
Along the lines of the self-promotion...
I've also written an article, Changing Career Gears[/url], for SSC. I moved into SQL Server administration from a non-IT career. My biggest problem, at the time, were that most of the jobs were senior level DBA positions and I very much was a junior DBA.
My biggest strength was that I didn't just do classes, though. If you want to be a DBA, you really need to show initiative by doing more than just a few computer classes. There are several things you can do which will help you along. Take a look at the articles we've referenced and let us know if you have more questions.
February 4, 2011 at 7:24 am
I will also self-promote, but only after I promote a couple of others.
There are three books that I really like that deal with being a DBA, not so much SQL Server. I'd suggest you get a copy of Craig Mullins "Database Administration." It's a fantastic overview of the job. Even though it's almost 10 years old now, it's still very accurate. I can also suggest Tom LaRocks "DBA Survivor" Again, a great overview of the job, not so much SQL Server. Finally, Brad McGehee's "How to Become an Exceptional DBA" is a great place to learn. It gets more into the technical side of SQL Server, but it's still mostly a great general resource. Specifically, it offers a lot of suggestions on areas you should study more. (Full Disclosure: I work with Brad at the same company).
Finally, if you're just getting started as a DBA, my book, SQL Server 2008 Administration is geared towards the beginner. It's a decent resource. It is however, completley focused on the technical side of things and not so much on what you're actually asking for. I'm just jumping on to what should be your next question.
"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood"
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SQL Server Query Performance Tuning
February 4, 2011 at 7:25 am
For what it's worth, I came into databases from development. I got into development after film school and four years in the Navy as a nuclear power monkey mate. I have no formal IT training either (by formal, I mean college. I've attended classes with various people).
"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood"
- Theodore Roosevelt
Author of:
SQL Server Execution Plans
SQL Server Query Performance Tuning
February 4, 2011 at 11:37 am
Awesome! Thanks so much for the replies everyone. I really appreciate it. It's good to hear from folks who have moved into such a field with little to no prior experience. To know that it can be done by a lug like me, albeit with a good deal of work, is reassuring. I will definitely check out your suggestions. Again thank you!
February 4, 2011 at 4:36 pm
Thanks for all the replies in this thread. Steve, the OP, and I are friends in real life. I, too, am thinking about becoming a database admin, so I read the articles linked and will check out some of those books!
I was wondering if the MCITP: Database Developer (2008) was an appropriate cert for a DBA looking to get an entry level position, or should I look at getting other certifications along the way? Thanks!
February 4, 2011 at 5:15 pm
argaen21 (2/4/2011)
Thanks for all the replies in this thread. Steve, the OP, and I are friends in real life. I, too, am thinking about becoming a database admin, so I read the articles linked and will check out some of those books!I was wondering if the MCITP: Database Developer (2008) was an appropriate cert for a DBA looking to get an entry level position, or should I look at getting other certifications along the way? Thanks!
Opinions honestly differ. Personally, I'm very underwhelmed by certifications. I don't have one. But I know great people who do.
"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood"
- Theodore Roosevelt
Author of:
SQL Server Execution Plans
SQL Server Query Performance Tuning
February 7, 2011 at 5:28 am
If you have any IT experience at all, the certs are iffy as to whether or not they'll help you get the job. If you have no official IT experience, they can help, but only if you don't rely on them solely for your qualifications.
When I first jumped in the waters, the certs helped me was because I could demonstrate that I'd done more than boot-camp memorization to earn them. Otherwise, I would have been ignored as just another IT wanna-be poser who thought "Hey, that job's easy and I can make a lot of money for doing nothing."
Believe me, there are plenty of those types out there. Get the cert if it helps you learn, but go beyond the cert. Otherwise, you're just wasting your money.
February 7, 2011 at 10:54 am
Yeah, I basically have no formal training at all so these certs will help me to learn some basics and get my foot in the door so to speak. Thank you for all the responses!
February 7, 2011 at 11:17 am
I got into being a DBA from a sales and marketing position, but it was an opportunity that knocked, so I really can't give you much guidance there.
I can say, judging by the number of recruiters who call me every week, that there's some demand in the market. I don't know about demand for a junior DBA, but if you can get a few years of experience and can prove your skills, there's definitely strong demand for experienced DBAs.
As far as programming goes, you'll probably spend more time writing SQL of one flavor or another (T-SQL if you go into MS SQL Server, PL/SQL if you end up in the Oracle world, and so on) than you will on other programming languages. It's good to learn a bit of one or another, so that when you need to work with a software developer, you can speak their language. (Trust me, they won't speak yours. DBAs have to understand devs, but devs mostly have no clue the other way around.)
"DBA" itself is a broad job title. It can be purely administrative, in which case you won't build any databases or write any code, you'll mainly be charged with keeping things running and backup/recovery plans/testing. It can be architectural, which means lots of design work, but not a lot of administration or coding. It can be performance tuning and development, which will involve a lot of database coding and some architecture. And, most often in small-medium businesses, it can involve various measures of all three.
You'll want to pick a specialization, most likely. There's more money in architecture and coding than in administration, but also more stress and pressure to be consistently creative and "solution oriented" (buzzwords they like on resumes). Even working for small businesses and covering all DBA tasks, you'll probably want to specialize a bit.
You'll also want to decide relatively early on if you want to get into troubleshooting and short-term contracts, longer term specialist contracts, or if you want a regular job. Different career-paths and skillsets for each of those.
It's probably easiest to get an administrative DBA job with some coding responsibilities, working contract-to-hire, in a small-medium business, when you start out. That'll also be the most demanding (since you'll be solely responsible for the whole show), but probably the easiest to break in to.
I also highly recommend spending time in SQL communities. Both online, like this site, and in-person, like PASS chapters. Networking will make success MUCH easier, regardless of your status as junior or senior DBA, regardless of what skillset(s) you focus on.
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February 8, 2011 at 1:41 am
Awesome! It would seem I have a great deal to ponder regarding what avenue I want to veer down as far as specialization is concerned however the more responses and the more research I do are helping me towards that end. Thank you very much for your response.
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