Re: Oracle Education

Columbia is an excellent school. Don't bug out on it.

Getting into this business without actual database experience is hard enough, without trying to cut corners on tuition. I would tend to expect that Columbia would require that you use the proper, i. e. Oracle's own, books.

Get Oracle's "Complete Reference" for Oracle 7.3 or 8, no matter what other books you're given, if you want to learn Oracle SQL without wasting your time on junk like "SQL in 21 days".

Columbia will also steer you to UNIX and other commercial platforms and languages, (Java, C++ and Visual Basic), that employers want you to know in addition to SQL and PL/SQL, (all three of those languages are hot right now), as well as the tools that DBAs and developers use.

Save money now, and lose it later, in the form of lower salaries and a longer time to get to the job and pay levels you want to hit.

Good Luck,

CJ Gillis, Oracle7.3-certified DBA

Kevin wrote in message <36E710B7.8960CF89_at_mindspring.com>...
>I'm interested in changing professions. I currently work in the
>financial field but I'm seriously considering going into DB management.
>I started to take Columbia's CTA program for database management and did
>well the first semester but decided to hold off partly because I had
>difficulty justifying the 2,500 dollar tuition. I have seen a number of
>computer school ads in periodicals like Computer User offering Oracle
>training for much less money. Any advise out there on the best route to
>take that will provide me with the skills I need to be marketable but
>will not bankrupt me in the processes
>
>Thanks All
>
Received on Thu Mar 11 1999 - 16:47:19 CST