Introduction to Databases for Back-End Development from Coursera

Back-end developers write applications that end-users use to interact with databases. Some common tasks that end-users carry out using these applications include storing, searching, extracting and manipulating data.

Therefore, it’s essential that all back-end developers possess strong knowledge and experience with how databases work.

In this course, you’ll receive an introduction to databases and explore the different ways in which they can be used to store and manage data. You’ll also learn to distinguish between different types of database management systems. You’ll then practice basic creation and data selection tasks with the use of Structured Query Language (SQL) commands.

By the end of this course, you’ll be able to:

- Demonstrate a working knowledge of the concepts and principles that underpin how databases work

- Identify and explain the different types of core technology and management systems used in

databases

- Identify and interpret basic SQL statements and commands

- Manipulate records in a database with the use of SQL statements and commands

- Outline alternatives to SQL

- and plan and design a simple relational database system

You’ll also gain experience with the following:

- Fundamental concepts in database

- Basic MySQL syntax and commands

- Database management systems

- Relational databases

What's inside

Syllabus

Introduction to Databases

In this module, you’ll receive an introduction to the course and explore possible career roles that you could follow as a database engineer. You’ll also review some tips on how to take this course successfully and discuss what it is that you hope to learn. As part of your introduction, you’ll learn about the basics of databases and data and how they work. You’ll then receive an introduction to SQL, or Standard Query Language, the coding syntax used to interact with databases. Finally, you’ll explore the basic structure of databases and discover the different types of keys they use.

Create, Read, Update and Delete (CRUD) Operations

In this module, you’ll explore CRUD, or Create, Read Update and Delete operations. You’ll begin with an exploration of SQL data types and learn how to differentiate between numeric data, string data and default values. You’ll also embark upon several exercises in which you’ll learn how to utilize these different data types within your database projects. You’ll then move on to learn how to Create and Read data within a database. You’ll discover how to create databases and tables and populate them with data using SQL statements. Lastly, you’ll explore the SQL statements used for updating and deleting data in a database. And to demonstrate your ability with CRUD operations, you’ll complete exercises that will task you with creating and managing data.

SQL Operators and sorting and filtering data

In this module, you’ll explore SQL operators and learn how to sort and filter data. You’ll begin this module with a lesson on SQL operators. As part of this first lesson, you’ll explore the syntax and process steps used to deploy SQL arithmetic and comparison operators within a database. Next, you’ll discover how to sort and filter data using clauses. The clauses that you’ll learn about include the Order By clause, Where clause and Select Distinct clause. In each lesson item, you’ll receive an overview of how each clause is used to sort and filter data in a database. You’ll also view demonstrations of these clauses and then receive an opportunity to try them for yourself.

Database design

In this module, you’ll learn about database design. In the first lesson, you’ll receive an overview of how to design a database schema. As part of this overview, you’ll learn about basic database design concepts like schema and find out about different types of schemas. The next lesson focuses on relational database design. In this lesson, you’ll explore how to establish relationships between tables in a database using keys. You’ll also learn about the different types of keys that are used in relational database design, such as primary keys and foreign keys.

Graded assessment

In this module, you’ll have an opportunity to recap what you learned and identify your strengths as well as target topics that you would like to revisit in this course.

Good to know

Know what's good

, what to watch for

, and possible dealbreakers

Teaches essential database principles, which are useful for software developers

Develops skills necessary for managing databases, which is critical for software engineers

Taught by experienced Meta staff, who are recognized for their work in this field

Covers topics that are highly relevant to the software development industry

Provides hands-on labs and interactive materials, which can enhance learning

Advises students to take other courses first, which may indicate that it is not suitable for complete beginners

Activities

Be better prepared before your course. Deepen your understanding during and after it. Supplement your coursework and achieve mastery of the topics covered in Introduction to Databases for Back-End Development with these activities:

Review your notes and assignments from previous database courses

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Brings to the forefront what you have learned about databases in the past.

Browse courses on Database Management

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Review your notes from previous database courses
Review the assignments you completed in previous database courses
Take a practice test to assess your knowledge

Organize and compile your notes and assignments

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Review materials pertaining to the course in a cohesive way.

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Gather your notes and assignments
Put them in order
Create a system for organizing your materials

Read 'Database Systems: The Complete Book'

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Provides a comprehensive overview of database systems and will help you understand the fundamental concepts and principles that underpin how databases work.

View Database Systems: The Complete Book on Amazon

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Read the first five chapters
Complete the exercises at the end of each chapter
Create a mind map of the key concepts
Present your mind map to a classmate

Five other activities

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Show all eight activities

Learn MySQL from the MySQL Tutorial

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The MySQL Tutorial is a great resource for learning MySQL and practicing SQL queries.

Browse courses on MySQL

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Complete the first five lessons of the MySQL Tutorial
Try out the examples in the tutorial
Ask questions in the MySQL forums

Practice SQL queries on HackerRank

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Will provide you with an opportunity to practice your SQL skills and gain confidence in writing queries.

Browse courses on SQL

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Solve 10 easy SQL problems
Solve 10 medium SQL problems
Time yourself to see how long it takes to solve each problem

Create a database schema for a real-world problem

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Will give you an opportunity to apply your knowledge of database design and modeling.

Browse courses on Database Design

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Identify a real-world problem that requires a database
Design a database schema for the problem
Create a database and implement your schema
Populate your database with data

Become a mentor for other students in the course

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Will help you reinforce your understanding of the material and improve your communication skills.

Browse courses on Mentoring

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Sign up to be a mentor in the course
Meet with your students regularly
Answer their questions
Provide feedback on their work

Contribute to an open source database project

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Will give you an opportunity to learn from real-world database projects and contribute to the community.

Browse courses on Database Management

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Find an active database project on GitHub
Read the documentation and join the community
Identify a bug and fix it
Submit your changes for review
Merge your changes into the project

Career center

Learners who complete Introduction to Databases for Back-End Development will develop knowledge and skills that may be useful to these careers:

Database Security Analyst

Database Security Analysts protect databases from unauthorized access and data breaches. As a Database Security Analyst, you would use your knowledge of databases and SQL to identify and mitigate security risks. This course can help you build the skills you need to succeed in a career as a Database Security Analyst by providing you with a foundation in database concepts, SQL, and database security.

See salaries and explore the career path for Database Security Analyst

Database Architect

Database Architects design and implement database systems. As a Database Architect, you would use your knowledge of databases and SQL to design and implement databases for organizations. This course can help you build the skills you need to succeed in a career as a Database Architect by providing you with a foundation in database concepts, SQL, and database design.

See salaries and explore the career path for Database Architect

Database Designer

Database Designers design and implement databases. As a Database Designer, you would use your knowledge of databases and SQL to design and implement databases for organizations. This course can help you build the skills you need to succeed in a career as a Database Designer by providing you with a foundation in database concepts, SQL, and database design.

See salaries and explore the career path for Database Designer

Data Integration Architect

Data Integration Architects design and implement data integration solutions. As a Data Integration Architect, you would use your knowledge of databases and SQL to design and implement data integration solutions for organizations. This course can help you build the skills you need to succeed in a career as a Data Integration Architect by providing you with a foundation in database concepts, SQL, and data integration.

See salaries and explore the career path for Data Integration Architect

Data Analyst

Data Analysts use data to solve business problems and make informed decisions. As a Data Analyst, you would use your knowledge of databases and SQL to extract and analyze data from databases. This course can help you build the skills you need to succeed in a career as a Data Analyst by providing you with a foundation in database concepts, SQL, and data analysis.

See salaries and explore the career path for Data Analyst

Data Engineer

Data Engineers build and maintain data pipelines and infrastructure. As a Data Engineer, you would use your knowledge of databases and SQL to extract, transform, and load data from databases. This course can help you build the skills you need to succeed in a career as a Data Engineer by providing you with a foundation in database concepts, SQL, and data engineering.

See salaries and explore the career path for Data Engineer

Data Scientist

Data Scientists use data to build predictive models and solve complex problems. As a Data Scientist, you would use your knowledge of databases and SQL to extract and analyze data from databases. This course can help you build the skills you need to succeed in a career as a Data Scientist by providing you with a foundation in database concepts, SQL, and data analysis.

See salaries and explore the career path for Data Scientist

Information Architect

Information Architects design and manage the organization of information in databases. As an Information Architect, you would use your knowledge of databases and SQL to design and implement information architectures for organizations. This course can help you build the skills you need to succeed in a career as an Information Architect by providing you with a foundation in database concepts, SQL, and information architecture.

See salaries and explore the career path for Information Architect

Data Warehouse Manager

Data Warehouse Managers manage data warehouses for organizations. As a Data Warehouse Manager, you would use your knowledge of databases and SQL to design, implement, and manage data warehouses. This course can help you build the skills you need to succeed in a career as a Data Warehouse Manager by providing you with a foundation in database concepts, SQL, and data warehouses.

See salaries and explore the career path for Data Warehouse Manager

Database Administrator

Database Administrators are responsible for the day-to-day operation and maintenance of databases. As a Database Administrator, you would use your knowledge of databases and SQL to ensure that data stored in databases is accurate, secure, and accessible to users. This course can help you build the skills you need to succeed in a career as a Database Administrator by providing you with a foundation in database concepts, SQL, and database design.

See salaries and explore the career path for Database Administrator

Data Governance Analyst

Data Governance Analysts help organizations manage and govern their data. As a Data Governance Analyst, you would use your knowledge of databases and SQL to help organizations manage and govern their data. This course can help you build the skills you need to succeed in a career as a Data Governance Analyst by providing you with a foundation in database concepts, SQL, and data governance.

See salaries and explore the career path for Data Governance Analyst

Data Privacy Analyst

Data Privacy Analysts help organizations protect their data from unauthorized access and data breaches. As a Data Privacy Analyst, you would use your knowledge of databases and SQL to help organizations protect their data from unauthorized access and data breaches. This course can help you build the skills you need to succeed in a career as a Data Privacy Analyst by providing you with a foundation in database concepts, SQL, and data privacy.

See salaries and explore the career path for Data Privacy Analyst

Business Analyst

Business Analysts help organizations improve their business processes and make better decisions. As a Business Analyst, you may use your knowledge of databases and SQL to extract and analyze data from databases. This course can help you build the skills you need to succeed in a career as a Business Analyst by providing you with a foundation in database concepts, SQL, and data analysis.

See salaries and explore the career path for Business Analyst

Web Developer

Web Developers design, develop, and maintain websites. As a Web Developer, you may use your knowledge of databases and SQL to interact with databases from within web applications. This course can help you build the skills you need to succeed in a career as a Web Developer by providing you with a foundation in database concepts, SQL, and web development.

See salaries and explore the career path for Web Developer

Software Engineer

Software Engineers design, develop, and maintain software systems. As a Software Engineer, you may use your knowledge of databases and SQL to interact with databases from within software applications. This course can help you build the skills you need to succeed in a career as a Software Engineer by providing you with a foundation in database concepts, SQL, and software engineering.

See salaries and explore the career path for Software Engineer

Introduction to Databases for Back-End Development

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