(no subject)

My manager just came in to the room to strongly encourage (to quote, 'I should get my ass in gear') me to take some classes while he can still get the company to pay for them. He has no idea whether I, the rest of the help desk, or even himself, will still have jobs in six months as this merger goes on.

Wow. I guess I'm taking some classes.

So I think I really want to be a DBA. Can anyone on my friends list offer any insight, practical or otherwise, on the matter? What kind of certs or classes do you need to get hired as a DBA? Is it just a certificate or two, or is it more involved an complex? I used to love programming, and I still love organizing data, and I think that writing SQL queries and managing a database would be a great combination of those.

I'm going to look into local programs in northern Illinois and Southeast Wisconsin, but any advice about that sort of thing from anywhere would be very much appreciated!

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Ok, I may try going through some of the SQL courses here. I can try one or two since they're fairly cheap and see how they go. Good start?

(no subject)

Here's an even better question. If you were, as I am, a help desk technician who has experience with hardware/software support, some systems administration, and a little bit of experience directing temps we've had in in the performance of other departmental tasks, and your manager told you he wanted you to take some classes and pay for it:

What would you be interested in learning to do and why? I think I'd like to look into being a DBA, but I'm not 100% sure. Any suggestions? What do you find interesting to work with?

(no subject)

I'm going on a picnic with a pretty girl today! *bounces*