By Philip Yiga | September 9, 2018

Today, becoming a database engineer can be very rewarding and lucrative. However, most companies will require a database engineer with at-least bachelor’s degree in computer science or a related field course coupled with some professional experience through internships and freelance work. So, below are some of the steps that will help you become a great database engineer and how you can apply for a job in this field.

 

How To Acquire Education In Database Engineering:

1. Go for 2-years of training in technical school: Although most database engineers have a bachelor’s degree, it is also possible to get a job with a 2-year degree or technical certification. So, consider searching online for vocational or technical school within your area if you don’t want to for bachelor’s degree. Additionally, acquiring strong professional experience through internships and freelance client referrals will help make your application stronger especially if you lack a bachelor’s degree.

 

2. Take a 4-year computer science degree program: Most companies prefer hiring database engineers with a bachelor’s degree. So, you will need to look for a college or university that offers a degree in computer-science, information-technology, information-systems, data-management or systems-engineering. Likewise, consider seeking advice from friends in this field about the right degree program to take.

 

3. Find a degree-program within your budget but when it fulfills your needs: If you don’t have money for college-degree program, then your best option might be enrolling for an online degree program. However, you can also look for universities with affordable degree programs or even apply for grants and loans to fund your education.

 

4. Complete all core information-technology courses: core courses usually include; programming-language and software-design. So, enroll in these core classes as soon as possible because they will help you gain knowledge needed for internships and freelance-work. Additionally, try to build your professional experience while you finish up your required non-major courses.

 

5. Keep educating yourself throughout your career: continuing to educate yourself is very essential whether you pursued a degree, specialist certification or simply trained yourself using free online resources. This is because there are constant technological developments in industries related to information technology and that’s why staying up-to as your field evolves will actually make you a better employee and job-applicant. So, use websites like; ComputerScience.org for professional development resources and Code Conquest for training resources and recommendations.

 

How To Gain Experience As A Database Engineer And Apply For A Job:

1. Apply for internship: Some degree programs will help you secure internships while you are enrolled but you can also search online and browse for professional organizations offering internship. In fact, you will need to acquire at least one internship in-order to land on a good job after graduating. All in all, the better your performance as an intern, the stronger the chances of landing on a better job in the future.

 

2. Try to get freelance work: Freelance work will help you develop hard skills related to programming and database maintenance. It will also help you improve on your soft skills like; communication and client relations. So consider searching and posting for freelance opportunities on professional sites like Guru, Craigslist, Freelancer.com, etc.

 

3. Search for entry-level job postings: After graduating, apply for entry-level jobs like; help-desk, junior database analyst and a lot more. Although a junior position might not be your dream job, it will help you gain professional experience required to land your first database engineer title.

 

4. Take advantage of networking opportunities: Networking is very essential for any search. In fact, your internship and entry-level job will provide you with opportunities to meet and seek advice from people who have experience in this field. Additionally, try to find-out the database engineers for the company you’re working in as an intern and ask them for some advice.

 

5. Highlight specific professional-skills in your resume: A well-crafted resume will let your potential employer know what you’re capable of. In fact, a database engineer needs specific hard skills and that’s why you will need to include these skills within your resume. On top of that, include your educational and professional experience that demonstrates your programming and data-maintenance abilities. For example, list the programming-languages, network-systems and platforms you have ever worked with in the past.

 

6. Include soft-skills in your resume: A database engineer should have other soft-skills like; thinking, solving-problems independently, satisfying a client, communication and teamwork. So, you will need to include these skills in your resume coupled with internships, past jobs and freelance experience.

 

7. Make research on a particular company before an interview: In case you’re called for an interview y a given company, try to access their website and learn about their culture and value. In fact, the best way to prepare for an interview is by becoming familiar with your potential employer.

 

8. Demonstrate your skills on an interview: you will to show-off your skills in an interview and describe to your interviewer how you have excelled in the past. Additionally, include a digital portfolio of your work within your resume.