how did you become a DBA? maybe this is more of a wiki type question, but I'd like to learn more about the (no doubt many) paths taken to become a DBA.
What path lead you to become a DBA?
The thing with being a "serious" DBA (and by that I mean, you are a person responsible for meeting a defined SLA on a system handling physical goods or other people's money) is that it is very difficult to get the job without already having had the job for 5 years - experience is everything in this game, a reputation as a safe pair of hands who isn't going to panic and make a bad situation worse, and has the maturity to weigh up commercial and technical considerations. That is what makes DBAs different from developers - that we need to make decisions in real time - and from sysadmins - that we are only one step removed from the cash that flows through the business, personal details of customers, stock levels in the warehouse, etc, so we are much more business-focussed.  

The usual way in is that you are either a developer or a sysadmin with an interest in databases who gets involved with DBA work, fills in when other DBAs are unavailable, and gradually work your way sideways into the job. That is the best route, it is almost like an apprenticeship. I dare say it is the same if you want to be a "web" DBA it is similar but I have no personal experience of that.