A software tester is a team member responsible for checking the quality of new or integrated software. Without a tester, it is not possible to release a high-quality, ready-to-use product.
That is why this profession is becoming more and more popular in the IT industry. Data from the Statista website confirms that in 2020, there were around 1.49 million software developers and software quality assurance (QA) workers employed in the United States. By 2030, this number is expected to rise to 1.84 million 🚀
So how do you become a good QA Engineer?
You don’t necessarily need to graduate from college or university to become a tester. It will be enough to take professional courses and get a certificate. At the same time, you can obtain an internship or minimum work experience immediately during the course or after completing it.
Key skills of a software tester
In the next section, I will share six tips that can help you become a good QA engineer 💡
1. Knowledge of a bug tracking system
A QA software tester should be well versed in testing tools, opening and tracking tickets, and have a first-hand understanding of the company’s QA process.
Each development team chooses its model of teamwork. It could be:
- Waterfall model
- Iterative model
- Spiral model
- V-shaped model
- Flexible model
The variety of software development life cycle models is predetermined by many product types – from web application development to complex medical software. There is no doubt that a good tester should be aware of the work of each model to easily integrate it into the software development process and perform his functions 🔎
2. Knowledge of programming languages
It is usually not an essential requirement for a tester, but it is still vital for a good understanding of the development environment in terms of critical skills. In addition, a tester is faced with automated testing sooner or later, and then knowledge in programming will be helpful to you even more.
3. Knowledge of the server-side and database
Without this knowledge, a tester will not be able to perform all types of software testing required. Therefore, be sure to take a course on databases and the server-side during your training as a tester. It will be a big plus when passing job interviews.
4. Think outside the box
An essential skill for a tester is to think outside the box 📦 It is this skill of creative thinking that allows you to become a good QA engineer. Logic is fundamental, however imagination and finding new paths that are not immediately visible is a key skill of an excellent quality engineer.
5. Ask the right questions
A good tester knows how to ask the right questions. And it is precisely on such questions that the final quality of the product often depends.
Questions about application usage, end-users, peak load times, and browser / OS configurations need to be answered to focus the quality assurance work. Knowing the answers to these questions allows for concise testing and effective quality control.
The ability to ask straightforward common sense questions, along with the ability to ask questions strategically about details, is essential to test takers.
6. Be flexible
The ability to be flexible allows the tester to understand the essence of his work better ✅ One of the hallmarks of a good tester is the ability to anticipate user actions.
A reasonable quality-control professional must be able to think like the end-user. It means no script and limited logic. At the same time, many users follow a specific path, not all will. Emissions need to be estimated. Adapting and working in the wrong ways is helpful.
Forbes writes that you need to focus on flexibility and performance. Flexibility has become the watchword, and it is the responsibility of executive management to ensure that all new products and systems are designed to “work” in different environments.
Conclusion
Suppose you want to become a good QA engineer. You don’t have to do much. But it is worth paying attention to the crucial points: pump your soft skills, hone your hard skills with the help of specialized courses, practice, and gain experience in any way.
Pay attention to the tips from this article and find those points that still need improvement. Take them, and soon you will have no competition in the labor market among QA engineers 💪
