Computer and Mathematical Occupations·SOC 15-1242

Best degree programs for Database Administrators, ranked by enrollment

Q: What degree do you need to become a Database Administrator?

Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Computer and Information Sciences, General, which awarded 73,454 degrees in 2024-25, 58.6% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Q: Which college majors lead to becoming a Database Administrator?

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 3 programs to this occupation. The largest are Computer and Information Sciences, Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management, Computer Software and Media Applications. Together they graduate about 125,389 people a year.

Q: How much do database administrators earn?

The median is $104,620 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). The middle range runs from $60,230 at the 10th percentile to $163,320 at the 90th. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.

Q: Is demand for database administrators growing?

BLS projects a -0.7% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, little or no change, with roughly 3,800 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

Q: How many schools offer programs for this career?

1,456 institutions reported graduates from at least one of the 3 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.

Q: What other job titles do database administrators work under?

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Database Analyst, Database Administrator (DBA), Database Administration Manager, Systems Administrator (Systems Admin) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 15-1242.

3 college programs and 1,456 schools train Database Administrators. Compare graduates per year, cost and pay, $104,620 median wage, 69,990 U.S. jobs. Federal data.

3 college programs at 1,456 schools train database administrators, graduating 125,389 people a year (IPEDS completions). The largest is Computer and Information Sciences, General. The job pays a median of $104,620 (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Graduates / yr

125,389

from every feeder program

Median annual wage

$104,620

BLS OEWS May 2025

Projected growth

-0.7%

Little or no change

Openings / yr

3,800

new plus replacement

Schools

1,456

with a feeder program

States with jobs

BLS reports wages

About database administrators

Administer, test, and implement computer databases, applying knowledge of database management systems. Coordinate changes to computer databases. Identify, investigate, and resolve database performance issues, database capacity, and database scalability. May plan, coordinate, and implement security measures to safeguard computer databases.

Also calledDatabase AnalystDatabase Administrator (DBA)Database Administration ManagerSystems Administrator (Systems Admin)Data MinerData EngineerDatabase TesterDatabase ManagerDatabase EngineerDatabase DeveloperDatabase ProgrammerDatabase Specialist

Background

A database administrator (DBA) is an information technology professional who is responsible for the installation, configuration, security and ongoing maintenance of computer databases. The role may include capacity planning, database design, data migration, performance monitoring, security, troubleshooting, as well as backup and data recovery.

Fields of study that lead to this job

Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level, the tier our program pages are built on. Numbers are graduates per year.

Computer And Information Sciences And Support Services

CIP 11.01

Computer and Information Sciences

73,454graduates / yr

879 schools · 1 specialization · 58.6% of pipeline

Grad earnings $57,986

Computer And Information Sciences And Support Services

CIP 11.10

Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management

48,110graduates / yr

905 schools · 1 specialization · 38.4% of pipeline

Grad earnings $48,185

Computer And Information Sciences And Support Services

CIP 11.08

Computer Software and Media Applications

3,825graduates / yr

115 schools · 1 specialization · 3.1% of pipeline

Grad earnings $33,504

3 degree programs that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are College Scorecard figures for people who finished the program, reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. That is a different measurement from the occupation-wide wages further down this page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#	Program	Graduates / yr	Share of pipeline	Schools	Grad earnings (1 yr)	Median debt
1	Computer and Information Sciences, General CIP 11.0101	73,454	58.6%	879	$57,986	$24,286
2	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance CIP 11.1003	48,110	38.4%	905	$48,185	$25,250
3	Data Modeling/Warehousing and Database Administration CIP 11.0802	3,825	3.1%	115	$33,504	$27,000

Top 50 schools by graduates into this job

Counting every feeder program a school offers, not just its largest one.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#	School	Graduates / yr	Top feeder program	Grad rate	Net price	Acceptance
1	Western Governors University Salt Lake City, UT Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs	5,506	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	46%	$11,580	—
2	Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus Atlanta, GA Public · 2 feeder programs	4,976	Computer and Information Sciences, General	94%	—	14%
3	Southern New Hampshire University Manchester, NH Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs	3,363	Computer and Information Sciences, General	43%	$34,565	100%
4	University of Maryland Global Campus Adelphi, MD Public · 2 feeder programs	2,902	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	33%	—	—
5	Northeastern University Boston, MA Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs	2,507	Computer and Information Sciences, General	91%	$18,925	5%
6	University of the People Pasadena, CA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs	1,826	Computer and Information Sciences, General	34%	—	—
7	University of North Texas Denton, TX Public · 2 feeder programs	1,637	Computer and Information Sciences, General	61%	—	72%
8	Purdue University Global West Lafayette, IN Public · 2 feeder programs	1,635	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	50%	—	—
9	New York University New York, NY Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs	1,527	Computer and Information Sciences, General	88%	$29,023	9%
10	The University of Texas at Dallas Richardson, TX Public · 2 feeder programs	1,417	Computer and Information Sciences, General	76%	—	65%
11	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI Public · 1 feeder programs	1,414	Computer and Information Sciences, General	93%	—	16%
12	Collin County Community College District McKinney, TX Public · 3 feeder programs	1,378	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	20%	—	—
13	The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX Public · 2 feeder programs	1,358	Computer and Information Sciences, General	89%	—	27%
14	George Mason University Fairfax, VA Public · 3 feeder programs	1,254	Computer and Information Sciences, General	68%	—	87%
15	University of Wisconsin - Madison Madison, WI Public · 2 feeder programs	1,200	Computer and Information Sciences, General	90%	—	45%
16	Saint Louis University Saint Louis, MO Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs	1,062	Computer and Information Sciences, General	80%	$24,886	75%
17	University of Phoenix - Arizona Phoenix, AZ Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs	1,047	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	21%	$15,478	—
18	University of Florida Gainesville, FL Public · 1 feeder programs	1,020	Computer and Information Sciences, General	91%	—	24%
19	University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs	1,008	Computer and Information Sciences, General	97%	$22,055	5%
20	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, VA Public · 2 feeder programs	991	Computer and Information Sciences, General	86%	—	55%
21	Rutgers University - New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ Public · 1 feeder programs	983	Computer and Information Sciences, General	84%	—	58%
22	Florida International University Miami, FL Public · 2 feeder programs	938	Computer and Information Sciences, General	74%	—	55%
23	Wilmington University New Castle, DE Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs	931	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	20%	$16,588	—
24	Jefferson Community and Technical College Louisville, KY Public · 1 feeder programs	913	Computer and Information Sciences, General	35%	—	—
25	Pennsylvania State University - Main Campus University Park, PA Public · 2 feeder programs	913	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	86%	—	61%
26	The University of Texas at San Antonio San Antonio, TX Public · 2 feeder programs	913	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	53%	—	87%
27	Northern Virginia Community College Annandale, VA Public · 2 feeder programs	912	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	33%	—	—
28	University of Central Florida Orlando, FL Public · 2 feeder programs	857	Computer and Information Sciences, General	78%	—	40%
29	New Jersey Institute of Technology Newark, NJ Public · 2 feeder programs	848	Computer and Information Sciences, General	73%	—	65%
30	The University of Texas at Arlington Arlington, TX Public · 1 feeder programs	768	Computer and Information Sciences, General	54%	—	80%
31	Florida Atlantic University Boca Raton, FL Public · 1 feeder programs	711	Computer and Information Sciences, General	63%	—	66%
32	American Public University System Charles Town, WV Private for-profit · 2 feeder programs	703	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	57%	$10,199	—
33	University of Virginia - Main Campus Charlottesville, VA Public · 2 feeder programs	703	Computer and Information Sciences, General	96%	—	17%
34	California Institute of Arts & Technology National City, CA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs	698	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	56%	$34,431	—
35	Old Dominion University Norfolk, VA Public · 2 feeder programs	661	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	46%	—	90%
36	MyComputerCareer at Indianapolis Indianapolis, IN Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs	651	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	69%	$26,295	—
37	Salt Lake Community College Salt Lake City, UT Public · 2 feeder programs	651	Computer and Information Sciences, General	29%	—	—
38	University of Houston Houston, TX Public · 2 feeder programs	650	Computer and Information Sciences, General	65%	—	74%
39	Ivy Tech Community College Indianapolis, IN Public · 2 feeder programs	619	Computer and Information Sciences, General	40%	—	—
40	Northeastern University Professional Programs Boston, MA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs	619	Data Modeling/Warehousing and Database Administration	—	—	—
41	Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs	610	Computer and Information Sciences, General	94%	$11,888	6%
42	MyComputerCareer at Columbus Columbus, OH Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs	602	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	70%	$26,186	—
43	Columbia University in the City of New York New York, NY Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs	600	Computer and Information Sciences, General	96%	$15,315	4%
44	Southern Arkansas University Main Campus Magnolia, AR Public · 1 feeder programs	564	Computer and Information Sciences, General	49%	—	75%
45	SANS Technology Institute North Bethesda, MD Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs	550	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	—	—	—
46	ECPI University Virginia Beach, VA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs	547	Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance	42%	$21,909	75%
47	Michigan State University East Lansing, MI Public · 1 feeder programs	547	Computer and Information Sciences, General	81%	—	85%
48	Texas Tech University Lubbock, TX Public · 1 feeder programs	505	Computer and Information Sciences, General	69%	—	73%
49	Sacred Heart University Fairfield, CT Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs	503	Computer and Information Sciences, General	73%	$42,705	65%
50	Georgia State University Atlanta, GA Public · 2 feeder programs	490	Computer and Information Sciences, General	53%	—	55%

What database administrators earn

What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.

Median annual wage

$104,620

Mean annual

$110,090

Median hourly

$50.30/hr

People employed

69,990

What the range looks like

10th pct$60,230Median$104,62090th pct$163,320

Top-paying states

Top-paying metro areas

San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA

$138,620median

580 jobs

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA

$127,760median

1,470 jobs

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA

$133,180median

1,010 jobs

Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH

$132,370median

1,910 jobs

San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA

$130,780median

60 jobs

Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT

$129,010median

160 jobs

Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD

$123,730median

1,190 jobs

New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ

$121,550median

3,630 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34

-0.7%

Little or no change

Openings per year

3,800

new jobs plus replacements

Employment change

-500

78,000 → 77,500

Typical entry education

Bachelor's degree

Where the jobs are, state by state

Pick a state for in-state pay, the schools there, and the programs they run.

This occupation state by state: pay, jobs, and schools
State	Median pay	Jobs	Concentration	Schools	Graduates / yr
Texas	$114,400	6,430	1.02×	100	14,458
Georgia	$106,810	2,460	1.12×	49	8,498
Utah	$135,750	1,200	1.53×	14	7,121
Florida	$104,120	3,810	0.85×	65	7,091
Virginia	$93,320	5,940	3.21×	51	6,869
New York	$105,900	3,590	0.82×	75	6,399
Maryland	$124,300	2,300	1.85×	34	6,366
California	$113,060	7,240	0.88×	103	5,758
Kentucky	$87,390	650	0.72×	32	5,247
Pennsylvania	$100,110	2,450	0.90×	83	4,443
Massachusetts	$129,300	2,310	1.41×	40	4,213
New Hampshire	$92,110	250	0.80×	12	3,990
Michigan	$99,830	1,150	0.58×	48	3,726
New Jersey	$125,860	1,810	0.94×	41	3,646
Indiana	$90,090	930	0.65×	26	3,520
Missouri	$100,270	1,140	0.86×	33	3,034
Ohio	$97,190	1,860	0.75×	44	2,642
Alabama	$93,900	1,840	1.93×	40	2,506
Arizona	$104,280	1,120	0.77×	30	2,453
Wisconsin	$100,020	1,220	0.92×	33	2,011
Illinois	$104,650	2,340	0.85×	53	1,560
Arkansas	$82,480	420	0.71×	28	1,405
Washington	$118,140	1,730	1.08×	24	1,385
Connecticut	$108,270	810	1.06×	16	1,346
Nebraska	$100,020	610	1.33×	15	1,333
Colorado	$118,340	1,220	0.95×	22	1,328
South Carolina	$93,640	990	0.96×	30	1,245
Delaware	$100,910	670	3.07×	5	1,181
Minnesota	$100,700	1,020	0.77×	29	977
Oklahoma	$95,320	790	1.02×	36	967
West Virginia	$73,490	240	0.77×	17	948
North Carolina	$113,900	1,920	0.86×	27	930
Mississippi	$87,790	200	0.37×	19	761
Oregon	$100,260	1,060	1.19×	19	659
South Dakota	$82,540	170	0.83×	8	566
Kansas	$100,170	440	0.67×	12	520
New Mexico	$98,450	570	1.45×	13	510
Nevada	$109,670	380	0.54×	7	490
Tennessee	$115,500	2,020	1.37×	19	435
Idaho	$85,660	180	0.48×	9	411
District of Columbia	$118,540	560	1.78×	5	368
Vermontmoderate	$104,230	120	0.87×	4	319
Rhode Island	$106,020	280	1.25×	6	301
Louisiana	$98,270	290	0.34×	13	252
Iowa	$101,210	360	0.51×	15	240
Hawaiimoderate	$85,500	100	0.35×	3	188
North Dakota	$78,730	80	0.40×	9	154
Montana	$83,120	300	1.32×	7	108
Maine	$70,500	260	0.91×	8	107
Wyoming	$82,480	100	0.79×	6	67
Alaskalimited	$108,810	90	0.60×	2	10

Skills and tools

From O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupational database. Importance is a 1 to 5 scale.

What they do day to day

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.

Skills

Critical Thinking3.9
Active Listening3.8
Reading Comprehension3.8
Active Learning3.5
Speaking3.4
Writing3.3
Monitoring3.3
Mathematics3.0

Knowledge areas

Computers and Electronics4.8
English Language4.0
Customer and Personal Service3.9
Mathematics3.5
Telecommunications3.5
Engineering and Technology3.5

Abilities

Deductive Reasoning4.0
Problem Sensitivity3.9
Inductive Reasoning3.9
Information Ordering3.9
Oral Comprehension3.9
Written Comprehension3.9

Core activities

Working with Computers4.8
Making Decisions and Solving Problems4.2
Getting Information4.1
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events4.1
Analyzing Data or Information4.0
Processing Information3.9

Tools and technology

hotmarks an O*NET hot technology

AJAXhotAmazon DynamoDBhotAmazon Elastic Compute Cloud EC2hotAmazon RedshifthotAmazon Web Services AWS CloudFormationhotAmazon Web Services AWS softwarehotAnsible softwarehotApache AirflowhotApache CassandrahotApache Hadoophot

How to get in

How to become a Database Administrator

Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0

Typical entry education: Bachelor's degree

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.

Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 3 majors mapped to Database Administrators3 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+

11.0101Computer and Information Sciences, General
11.0802Data Modeling/Warehousing and Database Administration
11.1003Computer and Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance

Related careers

Jobs O*NET identifies as close to this one, with their own pay and outlook.

15-1243

Database Architects

$139,50067,140 jobs+8.7%

15-1211

Computer Systems Analysts

$105,850519,530 jobs+8.7%

15-1244

Network and Computer Systems Administrators

$99,130314,340 jobs-4.2%

15-1252

Software Developers

$135,9801,687,890 jobs+15.8%

15-1299

Computer Occupations, All Other

$116,580435,370 jobs+8.2%

15-1212

Information Security Analysts

$129,180190,650 jobs+28.5%

Common questions

What degree do you need to become a Database Administrator?+

Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Computer and Information Sciences, General, which awarded 73,454 degrees in 2024-25, 58.6% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Database Administrator?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 3 programs to this occupation. The largest are Computer and Information Sciences, Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management, Computer Software and Media Applications. Together they graduate about 125,389 people a year.

How much do database administrators earn?+

The median is $104,620 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). The middle range runs from $60,230 at the 10th percentile to $163,320 at the 90th. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.

Is demand for database administrators growing?+

BLS projects a -0.7% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, little or no change, with roughly 3,800 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career?+

1,456 institutions reported graduates from at least one of the 3 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.

What other job titles do database administrators work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Database Analyst, Database Administrator (DBA), Database Administration Manager, Systems Administrator (Systems Admin) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 15-1242.

About the data on this page

Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024-25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).

BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025
Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
Official source →
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34
Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
Official source →
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)
Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
Official source →
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohorts
Median graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Official source →
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest available
Graduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
Official source →
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018
Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
Official source →
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3
Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA

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Best degree programs for Database Administrators, ranked by enrollment

About database administrators

Fields of study that lead to this job

3 degree programs that lead to this job

Top 50 schools by graduates into this job

What database administrators earn

Top-paying states

Top-paying metro areas

Job outlook

Where the jobs are, state by state

Skills and tools

What they do day to day

Skills

Knowledge areas

Abilities

Core activities

Tools and technology

How to get in

How to become a Database Administrator

Every major mapped to this job

Related careers

Common questions

BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics

BLS Employment Projections

IPEDS Completions

College Scorecard, Field of Study

Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes

NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk

O*NET Database 30.3

Explore every U.S. college in one conversation