the road to becoming a database developer?

[Sidro]

Hi,
I dont know if this is an appropriate forum to post this question. But Im going to try anyway. Hopefully, someone in here has been there, done it, and can give an advice.

How does one become a database developer? What topic does one study to prepare themselves? Whats the starting salary?

 

[RiverGuy]

I'm sure the starting salary would vary.

But what I would do if I was you would take a class or two in Database Management. You can do this at a community college. The classes I took helped a lot.

Then, get some software to practice with at home. For example, SQL Server 2000 Developer version costs only $40. Get a couple good books too.

 

[MDXer]

Depends on what type of DB developer you want to become. DW or OLTP the two while sharing the same platforms and SQL languages are very different in theory and implementation. To do either I feel some type of exposure to business or finance is needed. I wouldn't focus on what SQL platform Oracle, MS SQL etc you want to do, ecause in my opinion it is the theories of the How and why that are important PL-SQL, T-SQL there are differences but they can easily be overcome with a little effort and hard work. Other than that as river guy stated some basic courses and lots and lots of practice is what will make you a good db developer. Who knows you may start it and realise you hate DB development.

Shoot Me! Shoot Me NOW!!!
- Daffy Duck

 

[CmptrTk]

Hello: To answer your question simply. Get some training. If you're unemployed check with your local unemployment office. They may be offering free training through local educational institutions. If you're just graduating highschool and thinking of attending area universities or colleges check out their web sites to see if they offer degrees in computer science or management of information systems. I would also advise that you check to see what your local job market has to offer in IT before beginning any training. This will give you an idea of whether or not you will have to move in order to pursue your career choice or if you will have to, say, go into web design instead of database developing. If you find that pursuing IT in your home State isn't possible your next move would be to find what areas are offering jobs in your field. Finally check out trends in IT. You may find that you want to start out as a database developer but then move into project management or systems architecture since a good number of programming jobs have been offshored/outsourced and that trend is showing no signs of easing. Sorry for the wordy answer but making a career choice is more than just doing what we would like to do. The best we can do is get as close as possible to our desired profession while still paying the bills. I wish you all the best and hope that you're successful.