What skills should a Database Administrator put on a resume?

O*NET rates Complex Problem Solving, Critical Thinking, Active Listening, Judgment and Decision Making, and Reading Comprehension among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.

What software should a Database Administrator list?

Software recorded for this occupation includes Ab Initio, Access management software, Acronis Recovery Expert, ADO.NET, and Adobe Dreamweaver. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.

What other job titles cover Database Administrator work?

O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation, including Database Administration Manager, DBA, Database Analyst, and Systems Administrator. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

What qualifications does a Database Administrator need?

In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 89% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

Will this resume pass an ATS for a Database Administrator role?

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Database Administrator resume example

A resume for a Database Administrator needs to show the work itself: administer, test, and implement computer databases, applying knowledge of database management systems. Day to day that means work like this: modify existing databases and database management systems or direct programmers and analysts to make changes; plan, coordinate, and implement security measures to safeguard information in computer files against accidental or unauthorized damage, modification or disclosure. Recruiters and applicant tracking systems both read for the tasks and tools this role actually involves, so the strongest resume names them in your own experience rather than describing the job in the abstract. Below are the tasks O*NET records for this occupation, the software and tools it uses, the titles it is advertised under, and the skills worth naming if they are genuinely yours.

Also advertised as

The same job is posted under many titles. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

Database Administration Manager
DBA
Database Analyst
Systems Administrator
Systems Admin
Database Coordinator
Database Engineer
Database Manager
IS Admin
Information Systems Administrator
ADP Planner
Cyber DBA
Data Admin
Data Management IT Specialist
DBMS Specialist
Database Software Tech
Database Tech
ETL Developer

O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation in total.

What people in this job call themselves

Titles reported by people actually doing this work, which is often not the title on the job posting.

Database Administrator (DBA)
Development and Database Administration Manager
IS Admin (Information Systems Administrator)
Systems Administrator (Systems Admin)

What this work actually involves

Tasks recorded for this occupation, in O*NET's words. If your experience covers one of these, it belongs on your resume in your own words.

Modify existing databases and database management systems or direct programmers and analysts to make changes.
Plan, coordinate, and implement security measures to safeguard information in computer files against accidental or unauthorized damage, modification or disclosure.
Plan and install upgrades of database management system software to enhance database performance.
Specify users and user access levels for each segment of database.
Test changes to database applications or systems.
Test programs or databases, correct errors, and make necessary modifications.
Train users and answer questions.
Provide technical support to junior staff or clients.
Approve, schedule, plan, and supervise the installation and testing of new products and improvements to computer systems, such as the installation of new databases.
Develop standards and guidelines for the use and acquisition of software and to protect vulnerable information.
Write and code logical and physical database descriptions and specify identifiers of database to management system, or direct others in coding descriptions.
Develop data models describing data elements and how they are used, following procedures and using pen, template, or computer software.

18 tasks are recorded in total; these are the most central.

Example bullets for this role

Built from this occupation's own tasks. The brackets stay empty on purpose: we will not invent a number for you, and a fabricated metric is the fastest way to lose an interview you had already won.

Modify existing databases and database management systems or direct programmers and analysts to make changes, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Plan, coordinate, and implement security measures to safeguard information in computer files against accidental or unauthorized damage, modification or disclosure, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Plan and install upgrades of database management system software to enhance database performance, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Specify users and user access levels for each segment of database, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].

Software used in this role

Recorded for this occupation by O*NET. An applicant tracking system matches the exact product name, so write the tool the way the posting writes it.

Ab Initio
Access management software
Acronis Recovery Expert
ADO.NET
Adobe Dreamweaver
Advanced business application programming ABAP
AJAX
Amazon Data Pipeline
Amazon DynamoDB
Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud EC2
Amazon Redshift
Amazon Simple Storage Service S3
Amazon Web Services AWS CloudFormation
Amazon Web Services AWS software

285 software entries are recorded in total.

Tools and equipment

The physical equipment this occupation is recorded as using. Worth naming when a posting asks for it by name.

Desktop computers
Hard disk drives
Mainframe computers
Notebook computers
Redundant array of independent disks RAID systems
Tape libraries

Skills an ATS reads for

Worth naming only if they are genuinely yours. Keyword overlap is one input to a resume's score, not a verdict.

Amazon Redshift
Amazon Simple Storage Service S3
AWS
Apache Airflow
Hadoop
Kafka
Spark
Git
Informatica
Linux

What this job rates as most important

O*NET rates every skill for importance to this occupation. These are the highest rated, in order.

01Complex Problem Solving
02Critical Thinking
03Active Listening
04Judgment and Decision Making
05Reading Comprehension
06Active Learning
07Programming
08Speaking
09Monitoring
10Writing

Knowledge areas

The subject knowledge this occupation draws on, rated by importance.

Computers and Electronics
English Language
Customer and Personal Service
Mathematics
Telecommunications
Engineering and Technology
Administration and Management
Education and Training

What qualifications people in this job have

From O*NET's survey of people doing this work. This is what postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

89%Bachelor's Degree
4%Post-Baccalaureate Certificate, awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.
3%Associate's Degree

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Considerable Preparation Needed”. Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.

Common questions

What does a Database Administrator do?: Administer, test, and implement computer databases, applying knowledge of database management systems. Day to day that includes work like modify existing databases and database management systems or direct programmers and analysts to make changes and Plan, coordinate, and implement security measures to safeguard information in computer files against accidental or unauthorized damage, modification or disclosure.
What skills should a Database Administrator put on a resume?: O*NET rates Complex Problem Solving, Critical Thinking, Active Listening, Judgment and Decision Making, and Reading Comprehension among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.
What software should a Database Administrator list?: Software recorded for this occupation includes Ab Initio, Access management software, Acronis Recovery Expert, ADO.NET, and Adobe Dreamweaver. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.
What other job titles cover Database Administrator work?: O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation, including Database Administration Manager, DBA, Database Analyst, and Systems Administrator. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Database Administrator need?: In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 89% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Database Administrator role?: No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Related roles

Occupations O*NET records as closest to this one, and worth looking at if this search is not moving.

What this page cannot tell you

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer’s ATS is configured, including ours.
This page makes no claim about pay, demand or how many people hold this job. O*NET does not publish that here and we will not estimate it.
Keyword overlap is one input to a resume’s score, not a verdict on you. A resume that names skills you do not have is worse than one that names fewer.

If this is the job you are aiming at, the guide to tailoring a resume covers how to aim one posting properly, and building and exporting a resume here is free.

Occupation data from the O*NET 29.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. SpartanResume is not endorsed by USDOL/ETA.