SQL optimization (inner join or selects) - sql

Question

I have a dilema, i had a teacher that thought me basically that inner joins are hell (he reproved me because I missed the delivery of the final proyect by 3 mins...), now i have another that tells me that using just selects is inefficient, so I don't know what is white nor black... could someone enlighten me with their knowledge?
Joins
SELECT
NombreP AS Nombre,
Nota
FROM Lleva
INNER JOIN Estudiante ON CedEstudiante = Estudiante.Cedula
WHERE
Lleva.SiglaCurso='CI1312';
No Joins
SELECT
NombreP AS Nombre,
Nota
FROM (
SELECT
Nota,
CedEstudiante
FROM Lleva
WHERE
SiglaCurso='CI1312'
) AS Lleva, (
SELECT
NombreP,
Cedula
FROM Estudiante
) AS Estudiante
WHERE
CedEstudiante = Estudiante.Cedula;
So wich one is more efficient?

Answer 1

Lets re-write the code so it's easier to understand:
SELECT E.NombreP AS Nombre
,L.Nota
FROM Lleva L INNER JOIN Estudiante E ON L.CedEstudiante = E.Cedula
WHERE
L.SiglaCurso='CI1312';
A table using a subquery may look like this:
SELECT L.Nota
,(SELECT E.Nombre
FROM Estudiante E
WHERE E.Cedula = L.CedEstudiante
)
FROM Lleva L
WHERE
L.SiglaCurso='CI1312'
What you actually did in your original query was an implicit join. This is similar to inner join, without declaring the exact joining conditions. Implicit joins will attempt to join on similarly named columns between tables. Most programmers do not advise or use implicit join.
As for join versus subquery, they are applied in different situations.
They are not equivalent. Notice what I have put in bold below:
A subquery will guarantee 1 returned value or return NULL; if there are multiple values returned in the subquery you will get an error for returning more than 1 value and have to solve the problem with an aggregation perhaps (max value, top 1 value). Subqueries that return no match will return NULL without affecting the rest of the row.
The JOIN (INNER JOIN) operates differently. It can match rows and get the single value you're looking for just like a subquery. But a join can multiply returned rows if the joining conditions are not distinct (singular/non-repeating). This is why joins are usually done on Primary Keys (PK's). PK's are distinct by definition. The INNER JOIN will also remove rows if a joining condition doesn't occur between tables. This may be what your first professor was trying to explain- an INNER JOIN can work in many cases - similar to a subquery- but can also can return additional rows or remove rows from the output.