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Information Technology | Database Administrator

Database Administrator

What Does a Professional in this Career Do?

A Database Administrator uses software to store and organize data, such as an organization's records or financial information. Ensures that users can easily access the information they need, and that data are protected from unauthorized access.

Job Outlook

There were 435 Database Administrator job postings in North Carolina in the past year and 15084 in the United States.

In combination with other careers in the Database Administrator industry, which includes the Database Administrator career, the following graph shows the number of people employed for each year since 2015:

Salary

Many new Database Administrator jobs have salaries estimated to be in the following ranges, based on the requirements and responsibilities listed in job postings from the past year.

National

The average estimated salary in the United States for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $103,507.

State

The average estimated salary in North Carolina for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $100,362.

Percentiles represent the percentage that is lower than the value. For example, 25% of estimated salaries for Database Administrator postings in the United States in the past year were lower than $92,072.

Education and Experience

Posted Database Administrator jobs typically require the following level of education. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list education requirements.

Education LevelPercentage
Associate's Degree0%
Bachelor's Degree58.61%
Master's Degree9.14%
Doctoral Degree1.38%
Other5.64%

Posted Database Administrator jobs typically require the following number of years of experience. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list experience requirements.

Years of ExperiencePercentage
0 to 2 years12.62%
3 to 5 years45.95%
6 to 8 years23.53%
9+ years17.9%

Skills

Below are listings of the most common general and specialized skills Database Administrator positions expect applicants to have as well as the most common skills that distinguish individuals from their peers. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is also listed.

Baseline Skills

A skill that is required across a broad range of occupations, including this one.

  • Troubleshooting (Problem Solving) (45.56%)
  • Management (33.42%)
  • Communication (32.25%)
  • Problem Solving (25.36%)
  • Operations (22.85%)
  • Information Technology (19.14%)
  • Planning (14.51%)
  • Detail Oriented (10.9%)
  • Writing (10.76%)
  • Customer Service (9.41%)

Defining Skills

A core skill for this occupation, it occurs frequently in job postings.

  • Computer Science (34.32%)
  • Database Administration (85.48%)
  • Database Design (22.19%)
  • Database Tuning (13.04%)
  • Performance Tuning (31.34%)
  • Database Security (15.95%)
  • Query Optimization (7.46%)
  • Database Servers (7.46%)
  • Microsoft SQL Servers (28.42%)
  • SQL (Programming Language) (57.89%)

Necessary Skills

A skill that is requested frequently in this occupation but isn’t specific to it.

  • Database Management (16.87%)
  • Database Systems (21.98%)
  • Data Maintenance (7.77%)
  • Agile Methodology (7.97%)
  • Data Analysis (7.77%)
  • Microsoft Access (14.22%)
  • Backup Devices (21.55%)
  • Change Management (6.94%)
  • Technical Support (8.14%)
  • Microsoft Azure (18.99%)
  • Database Management Systems (17.08%)
  • Operating Systems (12.37%)
  • Information Systems (9.63%)
  • Disaster Recovery (27.45%)
  • Extract Transform Load (ETL) (12.59%)
  • Data Management (7.81%)
  • Linux (17.41%)
  • Windows Servers (7.16%)
  • Application Development (8.96%)
  • Oracle Databases (9.14%)
  • MySQL (15.51%)
  • Scalability (11.25%)
  • Automation (19.09%)
  • Amazon Web Services (21%)
  • Business Requirements (8.89%)
  • Data Modeling (15.29%)
  • MongoDB (7.96%)
  • Auditing (12.71%)
  • Unix (10.14%)
  • Relational Database Management Systems (9.24%)
  • IT Capacity Management (12.39%)
  • Data Warehousing (10.93%)
  • Data Entry (2.73%)
  • Data Integrity (11.51%)
  • Relational Databases (11.13%)
  • IBM DB2 (13.13%)
  • Python (Programming Language) (13.56%)
  • Project Management (10.67%)
  • PostgreSQL (21.74%)
  • Windows PowerShell (10.89%)
  • Stored Procedure (12.74%)
  • SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) (8.79%)
  • Transact-SQL (7.8%)
  • SQL Server Reporting Services (7.69%)
  • Scripting (19.43%)

Distinguishing Skills

A skill that may distinguish a subset of the occupation.

  • Sybase (Software) (4.23%)
  • Database Architecture (6.82%)
  • Database Upgrades (5.73%)
  • Oracle Database Administration (DBA) (3.32%)
  • Cloud Database (3.35%)
  • Recovery Manager (RMAN) (2.89%)
  • Oracle Enterprise Manager (1.63%)

Salary Boosting Skills

A professional who wishes to excel in this career path may consider developing the following highly valued skills. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is listed.

  • Database Architecture (10.74%)
  • Recovery Manager (RMAN) (4.56%)
  • SQL (Programming Language) (91.22%)
  • Indexing (8.92%)

Alternative Job Titles

Sometimes employers post jobs with Database Administrator skills but a different job title. Some common alternative job titles include:

  • SQL Database Administrator
  • Db2 Database Administrator
  • PostgreSQL Database Administrator
  • Postgres Database Administrator
  • Storage Administrator
  • GIS Database Administrator
  • Data Administrator
  • Lead Database Administrator
  • Cloud Database Administrator

Similar Occupations

If you are interested in exploring occupations with similar skills, you may want to research the following job titles. Note that we only list occupations that have at least one corresponding NC State Online and Distance Education program.

Common Employers

Here are the employers that have posted the most Database Administrator jobs in the past year along with how many they have posted.

United States

  • Ensono (258)
  • Leidos (238)
  • Accenture (237)
  • GovCIO (207)
  • Old Dominion Freight Line (166)
  • Robert Half (162)
  • Uline (152)
  • Insight Global (146)
  • Syms Strategic Group (111)
  • Allegis Group (109)

North Carolina

  • Genesis10 (10)
  • Old Dominion Freight Line (10)
  • MetLife (10)
  • Accenture (10)
  • Fidelity Investments (7)
  • Empower Company S.R.O. (7)
  • General Dynamics (6)
  • Ensono (6)
  • State of North Carolina (6)
  • University of North Carolina (5)

NC State Programs Relevant to this Career

If you are interested in preparing for a career in this field, the following NC State Online and Distance Education programs offer a great place to start!