Career
Database administrators
Keep an organization's data organized, secure and available.
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Modify existing databases and database management systems or direct programmers and analysts to make changes.
- Plan, coordinate, and implement security measures to safeguard information in computer files against accidental or unauthorized damage, modification or disclosure.
- Plan and install upgrades of database management system software to enhance database performance.
- Specify users and user access levels for each segment of database.
- Test changes to database applications or systems.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on information & systems, then ideas & analysis?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Modify existing databases and database management systems or direct programmers and analysts to make changes.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Critical Thinking, Complex Problem Solving, Reading Comprehension, Judgment and Decision Making.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
4 years of education after high school (bachelor's degree), for a median of $104,620 a year and 3,300 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Computer and Information SciencesSee the degree →
- Information Technology ManagementSee the degree →
- Computer and Information Sciences, GeneralCIP 11.0101
- Data Modeling/Warehousing and Database AdministrationCIP 11.0802
- Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information AssuranceCIP 11.1003
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Database Architects$139,500 · +9.4%
- Computer Systems Analysts$105,850 · +7.9%
- Network and Computer Systems Administrators$99,130 · -4.1%
- Software Developers$135,980 · +10.2%
- Computer Systems Engineers/Architects
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.