Databases: Advanced Topics in SQL from edX

About the Database Series of Courses

"Databases" was one of Stanford's three inaugural massive open online courses in the fall of 2011. It has been offered in synchronous and then in self-paced versions on a variety of platforms continuously since 2011. The material is now being offered as a set of five self-paced courses, which can be taken in a variety of ways to learn about different aspects of databases.

Relational Databases and SQL is the most popular course in the Databases series. It is applicable to learners seeking to gain a strong understanding of relational databases, and to master SQL, the long-accepted standard query language for relational database systems. Additional courses focus on advanced concepts in relational databases and SQL, formal foundations and database design methodologies, and semistructured data.

All of the courses are based around video lectures and demos. Many of them include quizzes between video segments to check understanding, in-depth standalone quizzes, and/or a variety of automatically-checked interactive exercises. Each course also includes an unmoderated discussion forum and pointers to readings and resources. The courses are described briefly below. Taught by Professor Jennifer Widom, the overall curriculum draws from Stanford's popular longstanding Databases course.

Why Learn About Databases

Databases are incredibly prevalent -- they underlie technology used by most people every day if not every hour. Databases reside behind a huge number of websites; they're a crucial component of telecommunications systems, banking systems, video games, and just about any other software system or electronic device that maintains some amount of persistent information. In addition to persistence, database systems provide a number of other properties that make them exceptionally useful and convenient: reliability, efficiency, scalability, concurrency control, data abstractions, and high-level query languages. Databases are so ubiquitous and important that computer science graduates frequently cite their database class as the one most useful to them in their industry or graduate-school careers.

What you'll learn

Stanford's online offering in Databases is now available as a set of five self-paced courses:

Databases: Relational Databases and SQL

Introduction to the relational model and concepts in relational databases and relational database management systems
Comprehensive coverage of SQL, the long-accepted standard query language for relational database management systems

Databases: Advanced Topics in SQL (prerequisite: Relational Databases and SQL)

Creating indexes for increased query performance
Using transactions for concurrency control and failure recovery
Database constraints: key, referential integrity, and "check" constraints
Database triggers
How views are created, used, and updated in relational databases
Authorization in relational databases

Databases: OLAP and Recursion

Star schemas, the data cube concept, and On-Line Analytical Processing (OLAP) features in relational databases including the Cube and Rollup operators
The SQL standard for queries over recursively-defined relations

Databases: Modeling and Theory

Relational algebra – the algebraic query language that provides the formal foundations of SQL
Dependency theory and normal forms in relational databases as the basis of schema design
The data-modeling component of the Unified Modeling Language (UML), how UML diagrams are translated to relations

Databases: Semistructured Data

The XML model for semistructured and self-describing data, including DTDs and some features of XML Schema
The JSON model for human-readable structured or semistructured data
The XPath language for processing XML data, and many features of the more advanced XQuery language
An introduction to the XSLT rule-based language for querying and transforming XML data

What's inside

Learning objectives

Introduction to the relational model and concepts in relational databases and relational database management systems
Comprehensive coverage of sql, the long-accepted standard query language for relational database management systems
Creating indexes for increased query performance
Using transactions for concurrency control and failure recovery
Database constraints: key, referential integrity, and "check" constraints
Database triggers
How views are created, used, and updated in relational databases
Authorization in relational databases
Star schemas, the data cube concept, and on-line analytical processing (olap) features in relational databases including the cube and rollup operators

The sql standard for queries over recursively-defined relations
Relational algebra – the algebraic query language that provides the formal foundations of sql
Dependency theory and normal forms in relational databases as the basis of schema design
The data-modeling component of the unified modeling language (uml), how uml diagrams are translated to relations
The xml model for semistructured and self-describing data, including dtds and some features of xml schema
The json model for human-readable structured or semistructured data
The xpath language for processing xml data, and many features of the more advanced xquery language
An introduction to the xslt rule-based language for querying and transforming xml data

Introduction to the relational model and concepts in relational databases and relational database management systems
Comprehensive coverage of sql, the long-accepted standard query language for relational database management systems
Creating indexes for increased query performance
Using transactions for concurrency control and failure recovery
Database constraints: key, referential integrity, and "check" constraints
Database triggers
How views are created, used, and updated in relational databases
Authorization in relational databases
Star schemas, the data cube concept, and on-line analytical processing (olap) features in relational databases including the cube and rollup operators
The sql standard for queries over recursively-defined relations
Relational algebra – the algebraic query language that provides the formal foundations of sql
Dependency theory and normal forms in relational databases as the basis of schema design
The data-modeling component of the unified modeling language (uml), how uml diagrams are translated to relations
The xml model for semistructured and self-describing data, including dtds and some features of xml schema
The json model for human-readable structured or semistructured data
The xpath language for processing xml data, and many features of the more advanced xquery language
An introduction to the xslt rule-based language for querying and transforming xml data

Good to know

Know what's good

, what to watch for

, and possible dealbreakers

Develops a strong knowledge of SQL, which is the standard query language for managing relational databases

Introduces learners to data modeling, which is a sought-after skill in software engineering and data science

Covers numerous topics in the field of databases, including semistructured data, advanced SQL, OLAP, and database theory

Taught by Jennifer Widom, who is a professor at Stanford University and a renowned expert in the field of databases

Requires learners to have some prior knowledge of databases

Covers a wide range of topics, which may be overwhelming for some learners

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 Databases: Advanced Topics in SQL with these activities:

Read and review the book 'Database Systems: The Complete Book' by Hector Garcia-Molina and Jeffrey Ullman

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Provide a solid foundation in database systems concepts and prepare for the course material.

View Database Systems: The Complete Book on Amazon

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Read the book's introduction and first few chapters.
Review the basic concepts of relational databases, such as tables, columns, and rows.
Understand the principles of SQL and how to write queries.
Complete the exercises and assignments in the book to reinforce your understanding.

Compile and organize your notes, assignments, quizzes, and exams into a central location for easy access and review

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Improve your organization and prepare for effective study and revision.

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Gather all your course materials, including notes, assignments, quizzes, and exams.
Organize the materials by topic or session.
Create a system for easy retrieval and review.
Regularly update your compilation as new materials become available.

Form a study group with classmates and discuss course topics, work on assignments together, and quiz each other

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Enhance your understanding through collaboration and peer learning.

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Find a group of classmates who are interested in forming a study group.
Establish regular meeting times and a communication channel (e.g., video conferencing, instant messaging).
Discuss course topics, review concepts, and work on assignments together.
Take turns quizzing each other to test your understanding and identify areas for improvement.

Three other activities

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Practice writing SQL queries on a database playground or using an online SQL editor

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Strengthen your understanding of SQL syntax and improve your ability to query data efficiently.

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Choose a database playground or online SQL editor.
Create a new database and import some sample data.
Write queries to retrieve data from the database, filter results, and perform calculations.
Test your queries and iterate to improve their efficiency.

Follow online tutorials or video courses on advanced SQL techniques, such as joins, subqueries, and window functions

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Expand your knowledge of SQL beyond the basics and learn how to perform more complex data manipulations.

Browse courses on Advanced SQL

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Identify online tutorials or video courses that cover advanced SQL techniques.
Follow the lessons and complete the exercises provided in the tutorials.
Apply the techniques you learn to your own database projects or assignments.

Contribute to open-source database projects by reporting bugs, suggesting improvements, or implementing new features

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Gain practical experience in database development while contributing to the community.

Browse courses on Open Source

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Identify open-source database projects that align with your interests.
Review the project's documentation and codebase.
Find bugs, suggest improvements, or implement new features.
Submit your contributions to the project's repository.
Collaborate with other contributors and maintain your contributions over time.

Career center

Learners who complete Databases: Advanced Topics in SQL will develop knowledge and skills that may be useful to these careers:

Database Administrator

Database administrators are responsible for the installation, maintenance, and security of databases. This course will give you the fundamental understanding of relational databases and SQL that database administrators need to succeed. This course will provide you with a comprehensive grounding in data modeling concepts and an in-depth understanding of SQL, which will prove useful in this role.

See salaries and explore the career path for Database Administrator

Data Analyst

Data analysts collect, clean, and analyze data to help businesses make informed decisions. This course will provide you with a comprehensive understanding of data modeling concepts and an in-depth understanding of SQL, which will prove useful in this role.

See salaries and explore the career path for Data Analyst

Data Scientist

Data scientists use scientific methods, processes, algorithms, and systems to extract knowledge and insights from data. This course will give you the foundational knowledge of databases, SQL, and data modeling concepts that will be useful for this career path.

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Software Engineer

Software engineers apply engineering principles to building software systems. This course will give you the grounding in data modeling and SQL that you need to pursue a role in designing and developing software solutions involving databases.

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Database Architect

Database architects design and build database systems. This course will give you the foundational knowledge of relational databases and SQL that will be useful for this role.

See salaries and explore the career path for Database Architect

Business Analyst

Business analysts provide insights and recommendations to help businesses improve their performance. This course will help you build a foundation in data modeling and SQL, which can be useful for understanding the data and systems involved in business analysis.

See salaries and explore the career path for Business Analyst

Data Engineer

Data engineers design, build, and maintain data pipelines and infrastructure. This course will give you the foundation in data modeling and SQL that you need to pursue a role in data engineering.

See salaries and explore the career path for Data Engineer

Information Security Analyst

Information security analysts protect computer systems and networks from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, or destruction. This course will help you build a baseline understanding of data and database systems, which can be useful for understanding the security risks and vulnerabilities in these systems.

See salaries and explore the career path for Information Security Analyst

Systems Analyst

Systems analysts design and implement solutions to improve business processes. This course will help you build a foundation in data modeling and SQL, which can be useful for understanding the data and systems involved in systems analysis.

See salaries and explore the career path for Systems Analyst

Information Technology Consultant

Information technology consultants help businesses improve their use of technology. This course will help you build a foundation in data modeling and SQL, which can be useful for understanding the data and systems involved in IT consulting.

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Project Manager

Project managers plan, execute, and close out projects. This course may be useful for project managers who need to work with databases and SQL in their projects.

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Quality Assurance Analyst

Quality assurance analysts test and evaluate software to ensure it meets quality standards. This course may be useful for quality assurance analysts who need to test software that uses databases.

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Technical Writer

Technical writers create documentation for software and other technical products. This course may be useful for technical writers who need to write documentation for software that uses databases.

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Help Desk Analyst

Help desk analysts provide technical support to users. This course may be useful for help desk analysts who need to troubleshoot issues with software that uses databases.

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Computer Programmer

Computer programmers write and maintain code for software applications. This course may be useful for computer programmers who need to work with databases in their code.

See salaries and explore the career path for Computer Programmer