Oracle Certification on which platform?

nettlesoup

I don't know if this is a valid question but I am considering doing oracle certifiction (OCA and OCP) and I am just wondering if these certificates are platform independent. If I did certification on say a windows platform would I be at a disadvantage when trying to work on Unix/linux paltform or vice versa. I think I am right in saying that the majority of oracle installations are on Unix/linux. The reason i ask is because i saw one course provider abroad offerring training on a windows platform.

Tom Dunne

nettlesoup wrote: »

I don't know if this is a valid question but I am considering doing oracle certifiction (OCA and OCP) and I am just wondering if these certificates are platform independent.

No, they are not platform dependent (I assume you mean that). In other words, an Oracle DBA certification does not distinguish between Oracle on Linux and Oracle on Windows. The 5-day course that I did as part of the certification was run on Linux.

nettlesoup wrote: »

If I did certification on say a windows platform would I be at a disadvantage when trying to work on Unix/linux paltform or vice versa.

Not really. They are pretty much identical. I've worked on Oracle on Windows, Linux and even VMS and the concepts are identical. One of the most obvious differences is being able to navigate the various directory structures. Oracle Enterprise Manager is identical on all platforms (not that a real DBA would be using it ). There are subtle nuances that differ between platforms, but if you can do it on Windows, you can do it on Linux (and VMS).

nettlesoup wrote: »

I think I am right in saying that the majority of oracle installations are on Unix/linux. The reason i ask is because i saw one course provider abroad offerring training on a windows platform.

Not really. In my experience (10+ years working with Oracle), older Oracle shops that would be true, but the newer ones tend to veer towards Windows.

nettlesoup

Tom, thanks for the detailed reply. It is good to know that the certificates are not dependent on platform.

nettlesoup

Tom or anybody else

Is there a big jump up in terms of learning to go from OCA to OCP? Was it easier to get the Initial OCA certification or to go from OCA to OCP?

Also if Oracle is installed on Unix is it very important to have very strong Unix scripting skills?

I know Oracle training is expensive but can anybody recommend any companies or colleges that run oracle training courses in ireland or even abroad for that matter?

Tom Dunne

nettlesoup wrote: »

Is there a big jump up in terms of learning to go from OCA to OCP? Was it easier to get the Initial OCA certification or to go from OCA to OCP?

No, I wouldn't say it is a massive leap. However, I thought the OCA certification was more general, the OCP was more specific. Then again, that could be due to the fact that I would have been more familiar with the material from my day job.

nettlesoup wrote: »

Also if Oracle is installed on Unix is it very important to have very strong Unix scripting skills?

Scripting skills are quite important, but I wouldn't say my unix scripting skills are very strong. Things such as cloning a DB (more SQL than shell scripting, tbh, but you would have to put a shell wrapper on it), crontab jobs, ftp'ing. Then again, you would need to be able to do the same things on Windows too.

nettlesoup wrote: »

I know Oracle training is expensive but can anybody recommend any companies or colleges that run oracle training courses in ireland or even abroad for that matter?

It's been a while since I did the 5-day course, but I did it in Oracle HQ in Eastpoint in Dublin. Be careful though - the course has to be run by an accredited training provider for you to get credit for it.

For the OCA, you need to have completed a 5-day course provided by Oracle or an accredited training provider.

zulfikarMD

Hi Tom,

I am looking for following training for OCA. Any idea which oracle certified training center is good and would provide it? I tried Oracle HQ and they dont have 1st course at the moment on their list.

1Z0-051 Oracle Database 11g: SQL Fundamentals I
1Z0-052 Oracle Database 11g: Administration I

Thank you.

Tom Dunne

zulfikarMD wrote: »

Any idea which oracle certified training center is good and would provide it? I tried Oracle HQ and they dont have 1st course at the moment on their list.

I did all mine in Oracle HQ in Eastpoint, so I can't really recommend any in Dublin (in the last place I worked, all the heads were ex-Oracle, so no other option was really considered).

SoupyNorman

Hey Tom,

You’re churning out some primo information in this thread. I would really love to get certified in Oracle, I’m in a system analytical position currently and have solid SQL skills, ok PHP skills and some knowledge of JAVA and UNIX scripting but I don’t have that knockout blow skill on my cv (that’s what I believe when I asses my skills). I want to be certified in Oracle not only to benefit my career prospects but also because I have a great interest in all things related to Oracle and Databases.

Ideally I’d love to slot into a junior DBA position but they are rare and ultimately I have the passion, ambition and ability to learn but I am lacking the skills!

I have to admit the prices for the courses are truly prohibitive, are the prices based on the expected subsidy you may receive from an employer? Ranging from 2-5k for the 5day courses, did you feel you got out of it what you would expect for the money? Also, I presume the exams are separate and have a separate cost attached?

Thanks for letting me hijack the thread

Tom Dunne

SoupyNorman wrote: »

I have to admit the prices for the courses are truly prohibitive, are the prices based on the expected subsidy you may receive from an employer?

No, to the best of my knowledge, the price you see is what you pay, irrespective of whether you pay it, or your employer pays it.

At the time, my employer paid for it.

SoupyNorman wrote: »

Ranging from 2-5k for the 5day courses, did you feel you got out of it what you would expect for the money?

Em, that's an interesting question. Yes, overall, I suppose I did. However, the course I did for the certification, basically followed the syllabus of the 10g Admin I test. So, I could really have gone through it myself, using books and self study.

However, as I learned to my detriment, that simply isn't enough. You do need hands-on experience and you do need a classroom environment where you can ask an expert.

So overall, yes.

SoupyNorman wrote: »

Also, I presume the exams are separate and have a separate cost attached?

Yes, the exams are a separate cost, around 90 Euro or so.

One thing I would say is to get any hands-on, real-world experience you can. Install the Express Edition at home, don't use the web interface, do it all the old-fashioned way. You will learn a lot more. Having said that, you do need to use the web interface, as there are some questions on it in the exam.

Ironically, I am in the middle of setting up an Oracle Academy here where I am working, so in a few months time, I will be giving courses.

SoupyNorman

Nice one Tom,


I agree on the experience aspect, I hate the fact that I have no way to interact with the DBA’s in my current role (they are in a sister company), day to day the deepest I’d get into Oracle in work is SQL queries and TNS names maintenance.

I have Oracle installed at home, I only ever did it the old fashioned way didn’t know there was a web front end until few months ago!! I suppose the main problem I encounter is having something tangible to do with my DB. I use the scott/tiger database and I have a pretty decent project I did for college that I can play around with but beyond that I’m at a loss as to what I can do to improve my experience.

Tom Dunne wrote: »

Ironically, I am in the middle of setting up an Oracle Academy here where I am working, so in a few months time, I will be giving courses.

Tell me more! I would certainly be interested in this provided you’re not charging Oracle University prices, or maybe you require volunteers to do the first few runs of the course

In all seriousness I would be interested; I’m not necessarily in the market for a piece of paper to say I’m qualified at something, I’m primarily looking to get experience/knowledge from an expert that I can then utilize and ultimately use to guide my career in the direction I’d like it to go.

Tom Dunne

SoupyNorman wrote: »

I have Oracle installed at home, I only ever did it the old fashioned way didn’t know there was a web front end until few months ago!! I suppose the main problem I encounter is having something tangible to do with my DB. I use the scott/tiger database and I have a pretty decent project I did for college that I can play around with but beyond that I’m at a loss as to what I can do to improve my experience.

Try downloading Oracle Application Express. You can create some pretty decent web apps with it - apps that will need a database.

SoupyNorman wrote: »

Tell me more! I would certainly be interested in this provided you’re not charging Oracle University prices, or maybe you require volunteers to do the first few runs of the course

In all seriousness I would be interested; I’m not necessarily in the market for a piece of paper to say I’m qualified at something, I’m primarily looking to get experience/knowledge from an expert that I can then utilize and ultimately use to guide my career in the direction I’d like it to go.

Only problem is, I am not based in Ireland, so you would need a plane journey or two to get to me.