What the work is worth. Records of patients, students, and payments only matter if they are there when needed and never lost. The administrator is the reason they are.
An ordinary day. Keep an organization's data available, fast, backed up, and secure; tune performance, manage access, and recover from failures.
The path in. Bachelor's in computer or information science; vendor certifications carry weight.
From zero. The STEM Farm Data / Analytics / AI Operations track starts at zero-STEM intake and ends in this kind of work, with verified proof at every gate.
Take the STEM Compass assessmentZero to Database Administrator →
STEM program path. A path has a start, a direction and a destination. The assessment gives the direction, the career pages the destination, and the STEM Farm track the start at zero. A STEM program is a path to a career. Find the career that fits first, then the STEM Farm track that starts at zero and ends in that job with verified proof at every gate.
Database Administrator and the Custer County economy
Custer County is government and tourism and recreation-typed in the USDA ERS 2025 typology, flagged for housing stress and a retirement destination, a metro county. Its labor market is the Rapid City, SD commuting zone (6 counties), MSA rank #280. By local economy, database administrator ranks #13 of forty for this county.
The personality behind the work
- Detail Orientation. You remember complex facts and catch small errors before they become large ones.
- Meticulousness. You record exact notes and follow strict procedures without being told to.
- Composure. You stay calm and clear-headed when the situation is urgent and other people are not.
- Persistence. You keep going through hours of troubleshooting. A problem that refuses to yield is a reason to stay, not a reason to leave.
- Numbers & Data Affinity. You like living in numbers, tables, and measurements; quantitative work feels natural.
- Skepticism. You question whether the data is accurate, complete, or biased before you trust any conclusion.
Across the Rapid City, SD labor market
Same search, other careers in Custer County
What moves it
- WIOA-funded training pays for the credential, ages 14 to 24 and adults: find your local office.
- Registered apprenticeship — a wage from day one: apprenticeship.gov.
- FAFSA — free to file, the gate to nearly all aid: studentaid.gov.
- STEM Farm — the track from zero to the career the assessment says fits: the twelve tracks.
STEM program path: Database Administrator in Rapid City, SD → · All careers in Custer County →