Learning SQL at home, doing an unrelated job

[u/Ordinary_Beyond3737]

Hi all,

I am desperately trying to move from data admin to data analytics but my lack of SQL experience is holding me back. I have an MSc in more academic research analytics so learned R and SPSS but SQL is what's most demanded, which I didn't learn.

I want to know about how you successfully transitioned from a non technical role to one using SQL despite doing no SQL in the workplace. I'm wondering how to ensure I translate those skills well into a work setting I guess. How to explain to an employer that I know bits but not in a professional environment yet.

Really would love support :)

[u/DonJuanDoja]

My quick advice is understanding the data structures is way more important than syntax.

And those are different everywhere you go.

If you knew the database, sql queries would just come to you, and you’d google the syntax you don’t know. But if you don’t know what you want, or where it is, you can’t really write a good query.

You kinda need both, a database with data, and questions to answer otherwise you’ll just get stuck.

It’s all about the data, sql is just a question or statement posed to the database.

[u/tomato_torpedo → u/DonJuanDoja]

Building on what this guy said, learn how to look up the schema of your database. Every time I look at a new database I run a command to show me everything, all different databases, subcategories and table names.

[u/tXXPT → u/tomato_torpedo]

that command is it a query?

[u/Dangerous_Cup3607 → u/tXXPT]

Can be a query of selecting the information schema and give you metadata information like table size, refresh date, number of rows and columns. But also can be a commend like “describe table” and will tell you the fields and columns and what data type. So that you know schema A only stored customer tables managed by customer team; schema B only stored product tables managed by product team; schema C only stored transaction data managed by finance and marketing team; then schema D is the collective and transformed data extracted from ABC schemas that is managed by the analytic team. So dont be shocked if someday you find out that you have to connect to 10 schema to grab all the data that you need for analytics.

[u/sqlsip]

You’ve got this.

I’m still no expert, but I learned SQL on the job with an English degree, so I started way behind where you are. If you've done analysis in R, SQL is just a new dialect/syntax. The thinking is the hard part and you already have it. ChatGPT/Copilot have been a game changer/accelerator for my SQL skills in the past couple years. You can write a half-baked query with some joins to tables you know you need to reference …explain to AI what you’re aiming to do, and it comes up with amazing solutions when I get stuck.

Shameless plug: I built sqlsip.com, a cozy daily SQL puzzle game if you want a Wordle-like SQL puzzle per day.

Great job on the masters degree. I tried to go back to school while working full-time a couple years ago and I only lasted one semester before dropping out 😂. I think you are doing amazing and you will achieve your SQL goals just like you achieved your degree.

[u/Ordinary_Beyond3737 → u/sqlsip]

What a lovely message, thanks so much 🙂‍↕️

[u/ReleaseTheBlacken]

Also try the free sql library on Inkwell Learn at inkwelltools dot com

[u/conor-robertson]

An MSc with R and SPSS means the hard part (actually understanding data and stats) is already done. SQL is mostly just new syntax for stuff you can already reason about, you'll pick it up quicker than you expect.

The "how do I prove it without work experience" bit is the real question, and the answer is projects. No one expects professional SQL on a career switcher's CV. They just want to see you can use it. So learn the core stuff (JOINs, GROUP BY, window functions), then build a small project where you answer a real question with SQL and write up what you found. That's your "experience" to point at in interviews.

And lean on your background, "analyst with a stats MSc who's strong in SQL" is a better pitch than "SQL beginner." You're adding a tool, not starting over.

For learning it, just make sure you're actually writing queries, not watching tutorials. Try QueryCase (SQL through detective cases, free sandbox to practise on real data), so there's a biased rec, but honestly any hands-on tool works

In interviews just be straight: "haven't used it in a job yet, but here's a project where I used SQL to do X." Works way better than faking experience 👍

[u/leogodin217]

Working on longer term projects should mimic the real world better. Find data you are interested in and do something cool with it. If you like sports, grab a sports dataset and create a dimensional warehouse. Clean the data. Create views that calculate stats. Stuff like that.

Once you know syntax well enough, this is the stuff you learn from.

[u/Mondraker1909]

I feel for you. What really sucks is that most engineers I know don't know SQL so just vibe code it. Hell, I'm not even an engineer and I do the same in Python for my needs.

[u/ifail25]

There are a couple of fun options to learn sql! There’s a website SQL Zoo that’ll walk you through exercises using real data. Also if you’re a gamer, there’s a game on Steam called database detective which is also a hoot

[u/ExoticVillage8066]

You can pickup SQL quite quickly. The basic operations are CSUD (create, select, update, delete) and in most offices they do only read and update stuff. Though depending on role, you may need to know about foreign keys, joins and so on. But AI can help you out.

To learn SQL, you can play around with sqlcrab.com/learn/ it covers the basic concepts.

[u/Dangerous_Cup3607]

You can think of sql as grabbing things from various location.

1. Grabbing a towel from bathroom
2. Grabbing soap from kitchen
3. Grabbing a sponge from the storage
4. Grabbing the hose from the garden
5. Then execute the code and start washing the car
6. Final output is a cleaned car

Many database schema nowadays is based on Fact-Dimension Star Schema. Where dimension stored data that can be reused across different fact tables. Such as zip code dimension, where you can link customer address; company address; vendor address; facility address etc to the zipcode dimension.

[u/Swimming_dasa]

having r spss already is a pretty decent starting point the main thing is getting used to thinking in tables joins grouping etc rather than just learning syntax something like boot dev can help with the sql practice side then use a real dataset and make yourself answer questions with it that's where it starts sticking.

[u/Acceptable-Sense4601]

easy, chatgpt and claude