Database Systems I

Course Description

Database Systems I covers relational database design, query languages, and the principles that keep data consistent and retrievable at scale. Students design a schema from a real-world scenario, populate it, and write queries that answer genuine questions about the data.

Learning Outcomes

Design a normalized relational schema from a set of requirements.
Write correct, efficient queries against a relational database.
Explain transactions and the guarantees they provide.
Identify basic performance considerations in database design.

Weekly Topics

Examines relational model basics from a practical angle, using a case drawn from real systems to motivate the concepts.

Builds directly on the previous week to extend entity-relationship modeling, with an emphasis on where the earlier techniques stop working.

Combines a short lecture on normalization with an in-class exercise students carry into the week's assignment.

Focuses on common mistakes and misconceptions around query language fundamentals, using student work from the previous assignment as material.

Introduces joins & aggregation and immediately puts it to use in a small design or implementation task.

Situates subqueries & views within the broader arc of the course, showing how it connects to what comes next.

Uses a guest dataset or scenario to explore mid-semester review in a setting closer to professional practice.

Introduces transactions & concurrency through short lectures and worked examples, building the vocabulary the rest of the course relies on.

Works through indexing basics in a lab-driven session, with guided exercises students complete and discuss in small groups.

Covers database design project i in depth, connecting the underlying theory to a concrete example the class builds together.

Examines database design project ii from a practical angle, using a case drawn from real systems to motivate the concepts.

Builds directly on the previous week to extend nosql overview, with an emphasis on where the earlier techniques stop working.

Combines a short lecture on revision with an in-class exercise students carry into the week's assignment.

Assessment

Assignments — 20%

Practical Work — 30%

Mid-Semester — 15%

Final Examination — 35%

Prerequisite Map

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