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Where Can I Learn SQL?

Because there are so many SQL courses, many beginners encounter difficulty knowing where to start learning SQL. Rather than give a long list of recommendations that will add to your confusion, I recommend starting with just one course: The Complete SQL + Databases Bootcamp from Andrei Neagoie and Mo Binni.

Organized into video tutorials, The Complete SQL + Databases Bootcamp provides a solid introduction to SQL for beginners. If you have gotten bored in the past trying to learn independently from SQL tutorials or encountered difficulty installing your first database, you will likely enjoy this course Andrei and Mo.

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What Is SQL?

Before I say more about the course, I’ll discuss SQL and why you might want to learn it.

SQL stands for structured query language and is a programming language designed for managing data. SQL databases use a relational database management system. Other forms of SQL, called NoSQL, store unstructured data.

Why Learn SQL?

There are many professions that require SQL skills. If you want to work in the field of data science, as a web developer, or a marketing analyst, you will eventually need to master SQL and understand how to work with data in a relational database.

SQL also provides a great introduction to technical skills. Learning SQL is less challenging than learning a programming language, such as Java, Python, or JavaScript. Acquiring SQL skills will give you a solid foundation to eventually learn a programming language or work as a database administrator.

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Database Administrator

Why PostgreSQL?

The Complete SQL + Databases Bootcamp covers PostgreSQL, a very common, open-source form of SQL that many business and technology professionals use to query databases and report on the data. This course provides a necessary introduction to relational databases, allowing you to acquire skills used in many industries.

PostgreSQL for Data Science

If you want to work as a data scientist or machine learning engineer, The Complete SQL + Databases Bootcamp course will provide solid first steps that you need to eventually master SQL. 

Many data scientists also use PostgreSQL. In addition to performing data analysis, they access and manipulate data with PostgreSQL. Through SQL querying, they gain insights into their data and use Python or R to create data visualizations. Before they can create visualizations, they need to use SQL to understand data. 

Why The Complete SQL + Databases Bootcamp Is a Great Course

The Zero to Mastery instructors have real-world experience. Many of them learned the technical skills they needed to succeed on their own without formal training. They understand the difficulty beginners experience when getting started. This course even shows you how to install PostgreSQL so you can get started learning quickly.

To help beginners overcome challenges, Andrei Neagoie started a Discord channel just for his students. He often says it’s one of the top benefits of enrolling in one of his courses, and I completely agree. Mo maintains an active membership and often answers students’ questions in the #databases channel.

big data key on keyboard
Big data key on keyboard

Other Types of SQL

Once you build a solid foundation from The Complete SQL + Databases Bootcamp course, you can decide if you’re interested in learning Microsoft SQL server, Oracle SQL, or going deeper into PostgreSQL. There are other forms of SQL as well, such as SQLite and MySQL.

Web developers typically use SQLite and mySQL, but they also use the other types of SQL mentioned above. If all of this sounds overwhelming, do not worry. The different forms of SQL possess many similarities. If you learn one form, you can easily learn another when you need to do so.

In addition to the other forms of SQL mentioned, data scientists and data engineers often use Cassandra and MongoDB. These forms of SQL, often referred to as big data, help manage massive amounts of unstructured data, such as documents, photos, videos, audio files, etc.

If you would like to learn more about which jobs require SQL skills, check out How Long Does It Take to Learn SQL?

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