Hi guys

I am going for my OCA exam soon. After the exam, I am thinking of taking an expensive RAC, or performance tuning 5 days course, and just for kicks take the expert certification exam either 10g RAC or 11g tuning; no harm trying to chew something bigger than me and spice up my beginner CV . I know getting DBA job is quite hard even junior ones. Btw, I am a instrumentation engineer wanting to switch field after 13 years in power industry.

I have no clue what most Oracle DBAs work environment is like.
So, considering the general market demand right now, and maybe technical learning abilities, which certification would impress the interviewer more? 10g RAC certified expert or 11g tuning certified expert? Which one let the interviewer think "Gee, I think I will put this guy to work straight away, I think I will hire him".

Advance thanks.

If you have no clue, how do you know you will like or even be able to perform the job?

O common... let this clueless guy give the beautiful Oracle a fighting shot!! You said so yourself in your signature!!!

Or is that you don't have much experience with RAC...?

Next Great DBA
I downloaded oracle to my laptop today.
I will become the next great DBA.
No need for education or taking a course,
I'll use the forum and learn by brute force.
The guru's won't mind, they know it all
They are so profound, their ego's enthrall.
They have it written by steps 1 through 10.
If I don't get it once, I'll just ask it again.
I won't write it down, seems simple enough
After all, I've used Access with SQL and stuff.
Why you upset? Why you tell me to read?
I've no time for a manual, No Sir, Indeed!
Why waste my time with a book or a link,
I have this forum, no need to think.
I have no work history, just out of college,
But I'm smarter than those who are three times my age.
I'll become certified with an OCP,
Have you the answers, just give them to me.
Then we'll be equal just wait and see!
But, Why are you paid 100K more than me?

Wow, Oracle DBAs must be making a lot of dough; one usually gets straightforward answer from engineering forums.

But hell , if that is not the only reason for all this splashing, what is? I have already indicated I don't pretend to know, willing to take an expensive course, haven't mention the 8 x 3.5" books memorized for OCA and of course still don't pretend to know, not to mention did not mention I am going for DBA job straightaway even after (big) if I get expert certification, instead of jobbing first as junior DBA, PLSQL programmer, helpdesk, data entry for maybe 20 years (how did you guys get started, anyway?)

Or if that Oracle requires above average character and brain, and wannabes have to know it? From a M&E enginnering perspective, compared to say DSP and computational fluid mechanics, technically Oracle is hard but really ain't that hard. Or if to know a li-ttle bit of Oracle requires 20 years of courage and commitment....? Mmm...compared to say 5000 different control systems of a power plant which can blow up a town if something goes wrong, among other fields, it aint warrant that much of a ego exaltation.

Oracle DBAs must be making a lot of money.

I think I am going to the real Oracle forum to ask the career question in a less ego offensive flavor.

Did you stay at a Holiday Inn Express or what have you been smoking?

PS: Performance tunning is a MUST for any DBA, RAC is like an
added "specialty".
.

..which is to say, I'd better go with the RAC certification, because everyone would expect you to know performance tuning stuff anyway.

Unless you also stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night and know it all...
.

Certification will help anyway, because your future employer does not know what you know and what you don't know. Unless, of course, you stayed at Holiday Inn Express together with your future employer, in which case it does not really matter what you know, as long as nobody else knows about it.