jessica_l_bemis wrote:
> I am currently looking into exploring other career paths within the IT
> industry, specifically the DBA role. I am hoping that someone will be able
> to provide some insight into the DBA role, for example, which is the best
> path to go...DB2, Oracle, SQL, etc.? Are there any books you can
> recommend? What is life like in the day and life of a DBA? What are the
> different avenues available to a DBA? What certifications do employers
> look for in a DBA?

My $0.02:

- unless you're already strong on microsoft technology, avoid sql server
since it pays less than oracle or db2

- consider postgresql and mysql - since a vast number of these databases
are springing up, and now require hard to find administration skills.

- much better documentation, training, and tools exist for oracle than
db2, but db2 is simpler and easier to administer. On the other hand,
db2's market share slipped a little last year. Hopefully that's not a
trend.

- cerfication is great when you're starting out, but you need real
experience as well.

- certification and experience with just a single product is scarey -
results in dbas that only know one vendor's proprietary methods.

- I'd consider all of the following to be good topics to be every
familiar with:
- hardware configuration & tuning
- scripting via perl & unix shell (or python & ruby nowadays)
- data modeling
- data privacy
- data security
- data quality
- change management
- software development (python, ruby, perl, java, c#, etc)

- consider a combination of development & production dba roles. Makes
for the most fun - and best quality results.

- find a mentor for the production support side. Lots of best practices
there, and these are often at odds with vendor's recommended new tools &
techniques.

- on the development side, take a look at what's going on with data
modeling patterns, agile data modeling, and business intelligence.


Good luck,

Ken Farmer





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