SQL is one of those facets that never ends. Once you start it, you’re bound for life until you can get to a point you’re satisfied with. This fact alone scares away a large number of would be SQL learners because it’s daunting. Because of this, the common question that a lot of people will ask is “How long does it take to learn SQL?” No doubt, you’ve had this question spring to your mind as well.

An Overview of SQL

The reason a lot of people ask this question is because of the expectations that are set up. SQL is thought of as most people to be a simple aspect of programming to handle a portion of the work. When in reality, SQL is a full fledged language capable of handling high level of data and operations. It’s very easy to spend an entire lifetime dedicated to learning all the ins and outs of SQL. And even then, most professionals working in large firms have only been able to nibble away at it. SQL has been in popular use as far back as the 1970s. The fact that it’s still being used today should be a clue into how important and useful it is. Among the many functions of SQL include:

• Add, update and delete rows of data sequentially and non-sequentially
• Generate tables and entire databases
• Modify index structures and database tables
• Retrieve analytical data and information from databases for processing
• Set access privileges for who can access data tables

It’s no surprise then that SQL has been in the running for so long. Apart from providing all this kind of functionality it is also especially useful for acting as a bridge between learning other computer languages like python and JavaScript. On the plus side, SQL is its own coding language. This means that you don’t have to have any prior knowledge from any other languages to learn it. But this also means that any past experience you have will be entirely useless here.

Benefits of Learning SQL

Another common question by beginners alongside “How long does it take to learn SQL?” is “What are the benefits of learning SQL?” It’s a legitimate question as well, there are so many other languages and areas to get into. Why should you focus all your time and attention to a language that was built for a specific set of tasks? The answer is simple, because SQL is extremely important in real world use. Whether it’s a store that needs to keep track of its inventory or an organization looking to keep its data formatted and secure, everyone needs SQL. There’s no shortage of openings out there in large firms, organizations, and industries looking for database developers and programmers. It is one of those most sought after skills that an employer will be looking out for and you can make a good living from it. You’ll also have a much of deeper understanding of how data is stored, configured, and recalled.

How Long Does It Take to Learn SQL?

Our question remains, how long does it take to learn SQL? It’s a difficult question to answer. There are so many layers of depth you can go into that it can take up your entire life. But most people just want to be able to wrap their head around the basics. And while you’ll find a ton of resources out there that are advertised as great SQL learning platforms, none really deliver. If you’re learning SQL from a book, get ready to spend the next couple of months getting into the basics. Most textbooks make the learning process more difficult by having you read text and parse it without any visual feedback. You’ll also find that most of the time, the information is severely outdated making it harder to learn with the latest information. Online courses are by far the easiest and fastest when it comes to the learning experience. There are a myriad of excellent SQL courses out there like the highly acclaimed “Learn SQL in 6 days”. Like the name implies, this course manages to do what a lot of other resources lack, it manages to teach you SQL in only 6 days. The course covers everything from the basics of SQL like it components, how they function, and how you can implement them with your own data. This course comes highly recommended by professors and SQL experts alike, it’s an absolute must have.