An Oracle DBA consultant career requires dedication and commitment. Oracle DBA work usually extends past or commences after normal working hours. One must be prepared to work late nights, during weekends and even on public holidays. Given that Oracle databases are used in many mission critical systems, system downtime will require urgent attention whatever time of day or night that it happens. The DBAs are among the last people to leave the office in certain institutions such as banks since they need to run or oversee critical end of day processes. As an Oracle DBA expert you must keep abreast of developments in the database technology world.
Potential Salary as a DBA
Though there is no doubt that the Oracle DBA professional has a strenuous work schedule, the remuneration is usually just as substantial. Top Oracle DBA professionals can earn as much as a company vice president or at the very least, senior-level management. However, remuneration varies depending on job level, responsibilities, experience, and past achievements as a database administrator.
There are four tiers of Oracle DBA pay levels. Low tier DBAs without college training or past experience earn about $25,000 annually, middle tier DBAs with university certification and ten years experience earn $105,000 annually, senior DBAs with Masters Degrees and 20 years plus experience earn up to $180,000 annually while superstar DBAs who hold several certifications and a record of consistent top performance managing an Oracle DB can clock an annual pay of $210,000. Though these figures look enticing, Oracle DBA experts cannot afford to rest on their laurels - one must find ways of staying relevant and up to date with market developments by acquiring higher level certification and attending Oracle seminars, workshops and new product launches.
Requirements for an Oracle DBA Expert
To be considered an Oracle DBA expert, you must have both the technical qualifications and years of experience. Oracle DBA work would require you to hold at the very least a four year university degree in computer science. However many companies would prefer hiring persons that have a Masters level degree. The Masters can be in an information technology related field even though many successful Oracle DBA professionals hold advanced business administration degrees as this helps them understand the business processes that the Oracle database seeks to automate.
A DBA must possess good problem solving skills, excellent communication abilities and a strong background in mathematics including advanced statistics. The need for communication skills cannot be overemphasized as many people pursuing IT careers often focus on the technical aspects of the job while forgetting the soft skills necessary to work in a team environment. Oracle DBA consultants will have to regularly communicate with end-users and management during training as well as when explaining a system outage.
One important aspect critical to beginning your career in Oracle DBA consulting is networking. The first step is finding organizations that utilize Oracle as well as key decision makers in the organization. You can do this by attending Oracle user group meetings and technical conferences such as the Independent Oracle User Group and Application Oracle User Group forums. You can also use the internet to locate companies that offer Oracle DBA work.
Though most companies post Oracle DBA consulting job advertisements with stringent requirements, they are willing to train you as a DBA if you demonstrate potential and a willingness to learn. During the interview process you should sell yourself both in terms of your technical skills as well as your interpersonal skills. You should show the interviewer the confidence you have in your abilities but at the same time express a willingness to learn.
To perform Oracle DBA work you need to be willing to commit to a lifetime of learning. The added benefit of attending classes to increase your certification is that you get to further grow your network with other Oracle DBA consultants. To find Oracle DBA consulting jobs, check out 100KCrossing.com. By signing up for a FREE trial account today, you can get access to the thousands of listings on the site.
