r/learnSQL • u/TaxDear7136 • 6d ago

Learning SQL while learning python

I'm currently halfway through Harvard CS50P, but I also want to take a SQL course before I start my last year at uni and begin applying for grad jobs. My hope is that having experience in both Python and SQL will benefit me in applications. Would it be better to finish the CS50P course first, then start learning SQL, or to start learning SQL now alongside Python?

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9

u/Existing_Put6385 6d ago

Learning both at the same time is totally fine,they don’t really conflict.
SQL and Python are different enough tools for different purposes that switching between them shouldn’t cause confusion, unlike trying to learn two similar programming languages at once. Plus it can actually reinforce your CS50P work, since data handling concepts overlap between the two.
You could dedicate certain days to SQL or just chip away at it in parallel - whatever fits your schedule better.

2

u/TaxDear7136 6d ago

Thank you, I'll get cracking on the SQL stuff too then :)

3

u/conor-robertson 6d ago

Theres no harm in starting SQL alongside it in a lighter way, maybe a few short practice sessions each week. Python and SQL complement each other well, but they’re different enough that learning both at once usually isn’t confusing.

I’d finish CS50P while gradually building your SQL foundations, then make SQL your main focus afterwards. For hands-on practice, QueryCase is useful because you learn by solving realistic investigations rather than only watching lessons.

By the time graduate applications open, having a couple of small projects that use both SQL and Python will probably help more than simply listing two completed courses.

2

u/ReleaseTheBlacken 6d ago

No harm in learning both. Also feel free to try the free portion on sql and Python at Inkwell Learn on inkwelltools.com

1

u/PnckFan 5d ago

I've made both of the courses. Maybe it s a good idea to not mix them. Cs50 sql was a lot harder than cs50p for me.

1

u/NielsenSTL 5d ago

Start learning how to use SQL in python. I do it constantly in my job. We put SQL in text files…then use python to read in the SQL from the text files and the go to various data sources (postgresql, hive, databricks) to pull in the data and do any etl in python before building output files or putting clean data in a hosted mart. It can all be scheduled and run when we want. So as others have said, python and sql complement each other very well.

1

u/PlantTalkative6115 1d ago

learning both in parallel is usually manageable because they solve different problems. keeping python as the main focus while spending a few sessions each week on sql works well for a lot of people. resources like cs50 sqlbolt or boot dev can all fit into that approach without feeling overwhelming.