Should I Learn SQL? 4 Convincing Reasons

There are 250+ computer programming languages in popular use. Why should you learn SQL, or Structured Query Language?

Why Should You Learn SQL?

Why learn SQL? To answer this question, you should start with reflecting on your professional life. Are you interested in boosting your career? Wondering what skills are worth investing in? If you’re currently in your dream job, still searching for it, or even thinking about starting your own business, it pays to develop your technical skills. A solid technical background is highly in demand among recruiters, and it provides the necessary underpinnings for managing the IT side of your business.

There are dozens of ways you can hone your technical skills. Many people learn computer programming languages online. SQL is one of the most popular ones. So which language should I choose? Should I learn SQL or a different one?

Deciding on a Programming Language: Why Learn SQL

Deciding on a programming language isn’t easy. Worldwide, there are thousands you can learn, although some of them are far more common than others. How can you select a language that will bring consistent, stable career opportunities? One way is to flip your perspective: consider what companies want in a new hire.

When a company searches for new programming talent, they’re usually looking for people familiar with the languages and systems their organization already uses. If you’re beginning an IT career, it’s extremely important to assess which skills are important for your desired career development path. These skills should help you get a fatter paycheck, but they should also build a firm foundation for your future technical expertise. Finally, they’ll help you answer the question “Should I learn SQL?”.

Why Learn SQL? Programming Languages In Demand

To show you why you should learn SQL, let’s check out the list of the programming languages in the highest demand right now based on the jobs posted on Indeed.com.

SQL is first on the list of requested skills. According to Indeed, SQL-related jobs are also among the highest-paying.

There’s a simple reason why you should learn SQL: it is a great way to boost your income and speed your professional development.

What Is SQL?

SQL is a query language used to get data from databases. Although it cannot be used to build applications, it can communicate with the relational database systems built into many apps. All software interacts with data in one way or another, so the increasing demand for apps of all sorts means that this language is very popular right now, and that’s one of the reasons you why you should learn SQL.

4 Reasons Why You Should Learn SQL

Here are four excellent reasons why you should learn SQL before any other technology:

1. SQL IS A COMMON STANDARD

Why should you learn SQL and not any other programming language? During the last four decades, SQL has become a universal database query language. It was created by IBM engineers in the early 1980s, which means it has a long history. It has achieved widespread use and acceptance, and it is very well documented. SQL was the first DBMS (Database Management System) language deemed as a standard in relational database communication by American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).

SQL is used by all database management systems, from the lightweight (SQLite) and open-source (MySQL, PostgreSQL) to the commercial and closed-source (Oracle, SQL Server, IBM DB2). Each vendor’s implementation of SQL is slightly different, but the core language is the same. You can learn the basics of the language before you decide which database to use.

Over the years, SQL has kept its industry-leading position. There is no reason to believe this will change in the near future. This is why you should learn SQL and not any other language first.

2. SQL IS EASY TO LEARN

Is SQL easy to learn? The answer is: it is, even for IT beginners! Most common programming languages – such as C# or Java – are imperative languages. This means that you need to specify a step-by-step procedure to solve a problem, using a series of statements. SQL is a declarative language: the user tells the system what data to deliver and the SQL engine does the rest. The query either works or fails. You only need to know what data you want; it’s not your job to determine how to get it. SQL is also a high-level programming language, one that was designed for non-technical users. It resembles a natural language, so it’s easier for humans to read. It hides the entire data transition process from the user, so you don’t have to concern yourself with specifying how you want the results to happen. It is yet another reason why you should learn SQL as your first language.

3. SQL IS WIDELY USED

Why learn SQL? Because SQL databases tend to fit a lot of solutions quite well; they are tested, stable and scalable. It is a common standard for all relational databases. All major DBMS platforms support SQL. If you know SQL you can easily switch from one database to another.

4. SQL IS VERSATILE

Should you learn SQL if you’re not aiming at data science positions? The answer is, again, positive. Almost every organization needs SQL-fluent pros. This knowledge is essential for database professionals, like developers and administrators, but even if you’re not aiming to become an admin or a developer, SQL skills will certainly be worthwhile. Data analysts, data scientists, Big Data engineers, and even marketing specialists can use SQL. For example, with a bit of SQL knowledge, marketers can extract specific information from huge amounts of data. That’s why “Should I learn SQL?” seems an almost rhetorical question.

Why Should You Learn SQL?

Why learn SQL? Simply put, because SQL skills are among the most in-demand IT skills, and they have been for several years. In today’s digital world, knowing at least one computer language is almost mandatory for good career opportunities. That’s the ultimate reason why you should learn SQL, an easy and highly universal language! If you’re not sure where to start your journey, take a look at LearnSQL.com’s SQL Basics course that will help you take the first step.