Career in Database Administration
If you’re on the lookout for a career that will have almost no risk of layoffs, even with company downsizing, look no further. You probably couldn’t choose a more secure job field than database administration. The Database Administration field is “hot” right now with huge opporunity. As company databases continue to grow, there is a huge need for individuals to maintain, manage, and help develop new ways to organize this information. Typically a database administrator is responsible for various aspects of databases such as initial set up/design, setting parameters to maximize performance, and troubleshooting problems. While IT fields like Java Development and Web Development are more well known to IT graduates than database administration, it is a field with huge opportunity and is continuing to grow.
Responsibilities of a Database Administrator
At some companies, the typical responsibilities of a database administrator are divided among several job types. At other companies, one person plays all of these roles. Examples of some of these job types that fall within the database administrator specialty include:
- Database Administrators work with business areas to set up and maintain their databases. They are concerned with database objects like tables, indexes, tablespaces, stored procedures, etc.
- Database Systems Administrators are responsible for supporting the database system itself. These individuals are concerned with the actual code that runs the database and how that integrates with the platforms on which it runs and the applications trying to access data from a database.
- Database Designers help business areas design their databases. They figure out what tables are needed and how those tables should relate to one another.
How to Become a Database Administrator
To become a Database Administrator (DBA), a four year degree in database administration, Information Technology, or Applied Computer Science is preferred. Take as many database courses that the school you attend offers. There are also database-specific certifications that one can get (IBM, Oracle, SQL Server) that help better prepare database administrators. Internships are also valuable to help you land a job in database administration.
Entry-level positions in database administration are harder to come by than jobs calling for more experienced database administrators. Therefore, don't be afraid to take a different job in IT initially. Many database administrators start out as programmers, analysts, or other IT professionals before moving into the database administration field.
As for interview preparation for a job in database administration, most interviews for entry level positions aren't too technical. The focus is more on the soft skills stuff...."talk about a time when you had to resolve a conflict".....'talk about a time when you had to exhibit leadership skills." But, it's good to bone up on the technical stuff too. A prospective DBA should be able to talk about relational databases, SQL, and some data modelling concepts.
Database Administration Internships
A lot of schools have departments that handle internships. As an IT student, it is a good start to contact the internship department, if your school offers one. An enterprising student could also target companies they are interested in interning for directly. Most companies are very open to offering internships in hopes to gain qualified long term employees but not have to commit to hiring them until they see what they are capable of. Some companies offer volunteer internships while others pay their interns. This varies from one company to the next.Database Administrator Titles
- Administrator
- Database Administrator (DBA)
- Oracle Database Administrator
- Oracle DBA
- SQL Server Database Administrator
- SQL Server DBA
Day in the Life of a Database Administrator
Below are examples of individuals who work in the database administration field and their experiences and viewpoints about the field.
- Phil Mcmillan - Database Systems Administrator
- Ryan Austin - Database Administrator/Database Developer
Other Database Administration Categories
To learn more about Database Administration careers, degrees, schools, and salaries, visit the following links/pages.
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