GEN BUS 999 – SQL Fundamentals

Course Information

Title SQL Fundamentals

Number GEN BUS 999
Semester 8 Week Session: January 9 – March 6, 2023
Instructional Modality Online
Meeting Time Not Applicable (online)
Meeting Location Not Applicable (online)
Catalog Description Students learn to construct a wide variety of SQL statements – from beginning
to more advanced concepts – such as joins, common table expressions,
window functions, etc. Students also learn basics of query optimization and
data modeling.
Credit Hours 2 Credits – The credit standard for this course is met by an expectation of a
total of 90 hours of student engagement with the course learning activities,
which include regularly scheduled instructor-student meeting times, reading,
writing, problem sets, and other student work as described in the syllabus.
Pre-Requisites Graduate/Professional Standing or member of Graduate Business Exchange.
Designation & Attributes Graduate Attribute
Course Website (edX) TBD

Instructor Information

Instructor Name Cody Baldwin, Director (MS in Business Analytics)

Instructor E-mail [Link]@[Link] (I typically respond within 24 hours.)
Instructor Office Hours Fridays, 11:15AM-12:30PM (Virtually via Zoom)

Course Learning Outcomes

 Construct a variety of SQL statements.
 Query and prepare data in response to business questions.
 Design a database to meet a business need and technical requirements.

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Course Schedule
The following topics are tentatively planned during the following weeks. (However, this is subject to change.)

Week Dates Topics Assignment(s) Due

1 01/09 – 01/15 Introduction to Databases and SQL Activity #1, Activity #2
2 01/16 – 01/22 SQL Basics Activity #3, Activity #4, Homework #1
3 01/23 – 01/29 SQL Joins and Case When Activity #5, Activity #6
4 01/30 – 02/05 SQL Subqueries and Common Table Expressions Activity #7, Activity #8, Homework #2
5 02/06 – 02/12 SQL Aggregations and Window Functions Activity #9, Activity #10
6 02/13 – 02/19 SQL Optimization and Data Transformation Activity #11, Activity #12, Homework #3
7 02/20 – 02/26 Data Modeling Activity #13, Activity #14
8 02/27 – 03/05 Final Assignment Activity #15, Activity #16, Final Assignment

Grading

Grading Scale: Grading Criteria:

Grade Range * Assignment # of Assignments % of Grade

A x ≥ 93% Activities 16 (each worth 4%) 64%
AB 89% ≤ x < 93% Homeworks 3 (each worth 8%) 24%
B 80% ≤ x < 89% Final Assignment 1 (worth 12%) 12%
BC 75% ≤ x < 80%
C 65% ≤ x < 75%
D 55% ≤ x < 65%
F 00% ≤ x < 55%

* The final grades will not be curved.

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Assignments

Activities:
These are activities or quizzes in edX that will help you to learn the material. In preparation
for the activities, you will need to read and/or watch the material provided in the edX
modules.

Homework:
During the semester, you will have three homework assignments that will provide an
opportunity to apply skills learned up that point. (You learn by doing!) You will submit your
homework through edX.

Final Assignment:
There will be a final assignment at the end of the course that allows you to review and reflect
on the material covered in the class. It will be built around a business case study. The
assignment will be submitted within edX.

Required Textbook
No textbook is required for this course. Required articles and videos will be uploaded or linked to within edX.
They will not cost anything to view.

Representative List of Readings

Although there is no required textbook, readings will be provided from various books and documents, such as those
listed below, but they will be provided at no cost to students.
 “Do You Need All That Data? – Questions to ask for a focused search.” – Harvard Business Review
 “Can Your Data Be Trusted? – Gauge whether your data is safe to use.” – Harvard Business Review

Required Software
The primary tools used in this class will be SQL and Snowflake. The former tool is a free laguage and the latter is
being offered for free to UW students. You should NOT download the tool until instructed to do so during the
semester. Additionally, campus provides students with technology guidelines and recommendations for instruction.
Students should consult these resources prior to the start of the semester.

Late Work Policy

In order to be fair to all students, the only exception for late work would be with a doctor’s note. In those cases, the
completed work and doctor’s note must be submitted within two days of the original due date.

Regular and Substantive Student-Instructor Interaction

This course meets the regular and substantive student-instructor interation requirement as defined by the US
Department of Education. In regards to substantive interaction, the instructor engages students through direct
instruction, providing feedback on student work, and providing information about course content. In regards to
regular interaction, the instructor provides predictable and scheduled interaction with students consistent with the
course length.

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Campus Spaces for Virtual Learning & Testing
Dedicated on-campus spaces with high-speed internet are available for students to reserve for any exam/quiz taken
during the semester. Computers can also be requested.

Campus Resources to Help You Be Successful

As you complete the course, the following campus resources may provide helpful: University Health Services,
Office of the Registrar, Office of Student Financial Aid, and Dean of Students Office

Privacy of Student Information & Digital Tools: Teaching & Learning Analytics &
Proctoring Statement
The privacy and security of faculty, staff and students’ personal information is a top priority for UW-Madison. The
university carefully reviews and vets all campus-supported digital tools used to support teaching and learning, to
help support success through learning analytics, and to enable proctoring capabilities. UW-Madison takes necessary
steps to ensure that the providers of such tools prioritize proper handling of sensitive data in alignment with FERPA,
industry standards and best practices.
Under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA which protects the privacy of student education
records), student consent is not required for the university to share with school officials those student education
records necessary for carrying out those university functions in which they have legitimate educationl interest. 34
CFR 99.31(a)(1)(i)(B). FERPA specifically allows universities to designate vendors such as digital tool providers as
school officials, and accordingly to share with them personally identifiable information from student education
records if they perform appropriate services for the university and are subject to all applicable requirements
governing the use, disclosure and protection of student data.

Privacy of Student Records & the Use of Audio Recorded Lectures

See information about privacy of student records and the usage of audio-recorded lectures.
Lecture materials and recordings for this course are protected intellectual property at UW-Madison. Students in this
course may use the materials and recordings for their personal use related to participation in this class. Students may
also take notes solely for their personal use. If a lecture is not already recorded, you are not authorized to record my
lectures without my permission unless you are considered by the university to be a qualified student with a disability
requiring accommodation. [Regent Policy Document 4-1] Students may not copy or have lecture materials and
recordings outside of class, including posting on internet sites or selling to commercial entities. Students are also
prohibited from providing or selling their personal notes to anyone else or being paid for taking notes by any person
or commercial firm without the instructor’s express written permission. Unauthorized use of these copyrighted
lecture materials and recordings constitutes copyright infringement and may be addressed under the university’s
policies, UWS Chapters 14 and 17, governing student academic and non-academic misconduct.

Course Evaluations
Students will be provided with an opportunity to evaluate this course and your learning experience. Student
participation is an integral component of this course, and your confidential feedback is important to me. I strongly
encourage you to participate in the course evaluation.

UW-Madison now uses an online course evaluation survey tool, AEFIS. In most instances, you will receive an
official email two weeks prior to the end of the semester when your course evaluation is available. You will receive
a link to log into the course evaluation with your NetID where you can complete the evaluation and submit it,
anonymously.

UW-Madison Badger Pledge

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Students’ Rules, Rights & Responsibilities
During the global COVID-19 pandemic, we must prioritize our collective health and safety to keep ourselves, our
campus, and our community safe. As a university community, we must work together to prevent the spread of the
virus and to promote the collective health and welfare of our campus and surrounding community.

Diversity & Inclusion Statement

Diversity is a source of strength, creativity, and innovation for UW-Madison. We value the contributions of each
person and respect the profound ways their identity, culture, background, experience, status, abilities, and opinion
enrich the university community. We commit ourselves to the pursuit of excellence in teaching, research, outreach,
and diversity as inextricably linked goals. The University of Wisconsin-Madison fulfills its public mission by
creating a welcoming and inclusive community for people from every background – people who as students, faculty,
and staff serve Wisconsin and the world.

Academic Integrity Statement

By virtue of enrollment, each student agrees to uphold the high academic standards of the University of Wisconsin-
Madison; academic misconduct is behavior that negatively impacts the integrity of the institution. Cheating,
fabrication, plagiarism, unauthorized collaboration, and helping others commit these previously listed acts are
examples of misconduct which may result in disciplinary action. Examples of disciplinary action include, but is not
limited to, failure on the assignment/course, written reprimand, disciplinary probation, suspension, or expulsion.

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities Statement

The University of Wisconsin-Madison supports the right of all enrolled students to a full and equal educational
opportunity. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Wisconsin State Statute (36.12), and UW-Madison policy
(Faculty Document 1071) require that students with disabilities be reasonably accommodated in instruction and
campus life. Reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities is a shared faculty and student responsibility.
Students are expected to inform faculty [me] of their need for instructional accommodations by the end of the third
week of the semester, or as soon as possible after a disability has been incurred or recognized. Faculty [I], will work
either directly with the student [you] or in coordination with the McBurney Center to identify and provide
reasonable instructional accommodations. Disability information, including instructional accommodations as part of
a student's educational record, is confidential and protected under FERPA. (McBurney Disability Resource Center)

Academic Calendar & Religious Observances

See: [Link]