Database Administration Certificate of Achievement

This certificate includes instruction and practice in interacting with and administering SQL databases. It prepares prospective entry-level database administrators. It can also prepare students for an industry SQL administration certification exam.

We estimate that 10 students will complete this certificate annually in the first few years.

Upon completion of this program, students will be able to:

• Design and create queries in SQL for accessing and updating data.
• Develop and test procedural and transactional MySQL routines.
• Manage SQL database user accounts, network access, performance, and backup.
• Write shell scripts to accept command-line arguments and capture program output.

This 13-unit program can be completed in three semesters.

Semester 1:

·     3 units: CS 150A – Introduction to SQL Databasesand NoSQL

·     2 units: CS 160A – Introduction to Unix/Linux

·     2 units: CS 160B – Unix/Linux Shell Scripting

Semester 2:

·     3 units: CS 155P - MySQL Programming

Semester 3:

·     3 units: CS 155B – MySQL Database Administration

            OR

·     3 units: CNIT 415 – SQL Server Administration

Total:13 units

Students completing this certificate program will be prepared to enter the workforce as entry-level database administrators.

The following colleges in the area have similar programs. Similarities/differences are noted. College of San Mateo has a program called Database Programming. While this program is similar to ours, it does not require Linux-related coursework. A member of our Industry Advisory Committee who is a professional database administrator (DBA) indicated that a thorough knowledge of Linux is important for prospective DBAs. De Anza College has a program called Database Development Practitioner. Like the program above, this program does not require Linux-related coursework. It has "Database Tuning" as a requirement but does not necessarily cover the administration side of databases as thoroughly as would be necessary (more programming-heavy, does not require Linux-related coursework, has “Database Tuning” but does not necessarily cover the administration side of databases as thoroughly as would be required for a prospective DBA. Finally, this program is more programming-heavy. While programming is a useful tool for any technologist, it is an unnecessary delay in the path of someone looking to become a professional DBA as quickly as possible. Diablo Valley College has a program called Database Management, which does not cover the administration side of databases. As such, this program is not particularly comparable. Laney College has a program called Database Management With SQL. This program has two issues that have also been mentioned above - it does not require Linux-related coursework (essential) and requires programming (an unnecessary delay). Ohlone College has a program called Database Administration that requires programming, making it less expedient than our program. For this particular certificate, the CCSF Computer Science Department believes there is sufficient job demand for database administrators that this certificate would be warranted even if it did not have so many distinctions from other similar programs. Finally, for San Francisco residents, only the CCSF program will be able to provide the necessary coursework for becoming a DBA at no cost. No other college in the region can provide this.