A cohort school for database professionals
Prove you can run production databases.
StepUp Tech Academy is a six-month cohort program in PostgreSQL, SQL Server, cloud and infrastructure as code. You do real work on real systems, every task is graded and recorded, and you graduate with a credential an employer can verify in ten seconds.
NEXT COHORT: CLOUD DATABASE OPERATIONS · STARTS SEPT 8 · 12 SEATS · APPLICATIONS CLOSE AUG 25
Upcoming cohorts
Small cohorts, real start dates.
There is no rolling self-serve enrollment. Each cohort shares a start date, a weekly pace, and a room. Start the free Linux month now, then apply to the cohort that fits.
Cloud Database Operations
Cloud Database Operations
The learning loop
Twelve stages. Zero guessing what's next.
Every module moves through the same twelve stages, so you never wonder what to do next. Learn the concept, practise it on a real server, recover from an incident, pass the checks, and defend your decisions in a technical interview.
GRADED ON REAL SERVERS · UNLIMITED ATTEMPTS · EVERY PASS RECORDED TO YOUR EVIDENCE LEDGER
What you will master
The stack the market actually hires for.
Two engines, two clouds, and the automation and incident skills that separate an operator from a button-clicker. Every choice traces to demand data from real job postings.
Linux
The ground every database runs on. The terminal, systemd, storage, networking, and the no-GUI discipline that makes you fast. This is the free on-ramp.
PostgreSQL
The primary engine. Architecture, MVCC and vacuum, WAL, roles and pooling, backup and PITR, replication, and high availability with Patroni.
SQL Server
The second engine. T-SQL and DMVs, recovery models, security and TDE, Always On - plus the translation table that maps every concept to PostgreSQL.
Infrastructure as Code
Terraform and Ansible. Provision databases from an empty cloud account, promote schema through dev, qa and prod, and keep secrets out of the repo.
Cloud - AWS & Azure
Managed and self-managed. RDS, Aurora and Azure SQL - what the provider absorbs, what it does not, failover behaviour, and the real cost shape.
The proof layer
Monitoring as code, incident command, a heterogeneous migration, and a capstone estate - all recorded as verified evidence that writes your resume.
Why the Academy
The difference between studying databases
and proving you can run one.
Admission, not open enrollment
You apply, and you are reviewed against the work you already did in the free month - not a personal statement. We admit people who have shown they will do the work.
A cohort, not a playlist
A shared start date, weekly deadlines, peers moving with you, and an instructor who sees your work. Structure comes from a clock and real feedback, not willpower.
Graded on real servers
Every lab runs on live cloud infrastructure that breaks in real ways. Graded automatically, unlimited attempts, with feedback that teaches - never just a red X.
The credential is the evidence
Every graded action writes to a permanent, verified record. Your certificate is a summary of it, published at a URL an employer can check in ten seconds.
Your resume writes itself
It assembles from what you actually did on real servers - ATS-ready, backed by logs, so you never have to invent a bullet point.
A human in the loop
Sage, your AI mentor, grades and tutors at any hour. A real instructor reviews your milestone work, judges when you are ready, and notices when you go quiet.
Designed and taught by Happy Afopezi, a Lead DBA with over a decade across thousands of production databases. The mentorship you would pay hundreds an hour for - encoded into Sage and backed by a real instructor.
How the program works
Four phases. The first one is free.
The free Linux month
The Linux foundation track, open and unpaid. Learn the ground every database sits on. No payment, no risk, no sales pressure.
Apply to a cohort
Reviewed against the work you did in the free month. Admit, waitlist, or decline. Admitted students pay a deposit and get a start date.
Six months, one cohort
PostgreSQL and SQL Server, cloud and infrastructure as code, taught through the learning loop on a shared clock. Graded work throughout.
A credential you can defend
A capstone you present, a certificate with a public verification page, an evidence-built resume and portfolio, and interview preparation.
The free month is the point.
Start with the Linux on-ramp and prove to yourself you will finish - before you pay a cent. The people who finish are the ones we admit.
Start the free Linux month →The roadmap
Everything you learn, in order.
A single path from the terminal to a two-engine cloud estate. You pass an assessment at the end of each phase before the next one unlocks - no skipping ahead, no falling silently behind.
Tuition
You never pay before you prove you will finish.
Small cohorts, real completion, real outcomes. The Linux month is free. Tuition is a deposit at admission and monthly installments across the program.
The free Linux month
The full Linux foundation track on real servers. No card, no commitment. Finish it and you can apply to a cohort.
Start the free monthCloud Database Operations
Deposit at admission, then monthly installments across six months.
- Every module: video, written guide, slide deck, and notes
- Real cloud lab servers, provisioned and torn down for you
- Auto-graded labs and assignments with unlimited attempts
- Sage, your AI mentor, plus a real instructor who reviews your work
- AI mock interviews and flashcards after every module
- A verified evidence record, public certificate, and auto-built resume
Evidence over hype
Don't take anyone's word for it.
Verify it.
Every graduate ships a public verification page. Any employer - or you, right now - can check the record behind the credential in ten seconds. No login, no screenshots, no trust required.
Prove it before you pay for it.
Start the free Linux month on real servers. Finish it, and you can apply to the next cohort.