Software Testing As a Career - Complete Guide

This guide will take you through the In's and outs of software testing. If you plan to make a career in
software testing, this is a MUST RE!"

What is Software Testing?
Software testing is a process of rating properties of a computer system #program to decide whether it
meets the specified re$uirements and produces the desired results. In process, you identify %ugs in
software product#pro&ect.
Software Testing is indispensa%le to pro'ide a $uality product without any %ug or issue.
Skills required to become a Software Tester

(ollowing skills are indispensa%le to %ecome a good software tester. )ompare your skill set
against the following checklist to determine whether Software Testing is a really for you*
good software tester should ha'e sharp analytical skills. nalytical skills will help %reak up
a comple+ software system into smaller units to gain a %etter understanding and created
corresponding test cases. ot sure that you ha!e good analytical skills * Refer this link *
if, if you can sol'e atleast ,-E pro%lem you ha'e good analytical skills.

good software tester must ha'e strong technical skills . This would include high le'el of
proficiency in tools like MS ,ffice , ,pen,ffice etc , Testing tools like .T/ , 0oadrunner , etc..
and ofcourse deep understand of the application under test. These skills can %e ac$uired
through rele'ant training and practice. lso it's an added ad'antage that you ha'e some
programming skills %ut its -,T a must.

good software tester must ha'e a good !erbal and written communication skill. Testing
artifacts 1like test cases#plans, test strategies, %ug reports etc2 created %y the software tester
should %e easy to read and comprehend. "ealing with de!elopers #in case of bugs or any
other issue$ will require a shade of discreetness and diplomacy%

Testing at times could %e a demanding &o% especially during the release of code. software
tester must efficiently manage workload, ha'e high producti!ity ,e+hi%it optimal time
management and organi3ation skills

To %e a good software tester you must a G&'AT attitude. n attitude to test to break( )
detail orientation ) willingness to learn and suggest process impro!ements. In software
industry, technologies e'ol'ed with an o'erwhelming speed and a good software tester should
upgrade his#her technical skills with the changing technologies. 4our attitude must reflect a
certain degree of independence where you take ownership of the task allocated and complete it
without much direct super'ision.

To e+cel in any profession or &o%, one must ha'e a great degree of the passion for it.
software tester must ha'e passion for his # her field. *+T how do you determine whether
you ha!e a passion for software testing if you ha!e ne!er tested before? Simple TR4 it
out and if software testing does not e+cite you switch to something else that holds your
interest.





Academic *ackground,
cademic %ackground of a software tester should %e in )omputer Science. 5Tech# 5.E. , M) , 5) ,
5Sc* )omputers will land you a &o% easily.
If you do not hold any of these degrees than you must complete a software testing certification like
IST.5 and )STE which help you learn Software !e'elopment# Test 0ife )ycle and other testing
methodologies.

&emuneration
)ompensation of a software tester 'aries from company to company. 'erage salary range of a
software tester in US is 678,99: * 6;7,9:8. 'erage salary range of a software tester in India is Rs
<7;,:=8 * Rs 779,===.
lso, a software tester is also gi'e health insurance, %onuses, gratuity and other perks.

Typical Workday,
,n any typical work day you will %e %usy understanding re$uirement documents , creating test
cases , e+ecuting test cases , reporting and re*testing %ugs , attending re'iew meetings and other
team %uilding acti'ities.

Career -rogression,
4our career progression as a software tester 1. nalyst2 in typical )MMI le'el 8 company will look
like following %ut will 'ary from company to company
QA Analyst 1Fresher2 >? Sr. QA Analyst 12-3 year experience2>? QA Team Coordinator 15-6
year experience? >?Test Manager 18-11 experience2 >? Senior Test Manager 114+ experience2

Alternate Career Tracks as a Software Tester
,nce you ha'e got yours hand dirty in manual testing , you can pursue following speciali3ations
Automation Testing @ s an automation Test Engineer , you will %e responsi%le for
automating manual test case e+ecution which otherwise could %e time consuming. Tools used
I5M Rational Ro%ot , Silk performer and .T/

-erformance Testing , s a performance test engineer , you will %e responsi%le for checking
application responsi'eness 1time taken to load , ma+imum load application can handle2 etc.
Tools used AE50oad , 0oadrunner.

*usiness Analyst @ ma&or ad'antages Testers ha'e o'er !e'elopers is that they ha'e end
to end %usiness knowledge. n o%'ious career progression for testers is to %ecome a 5usiness
nalyst. s a 5usiness nalyst you will %e responsi%le to analy3e and assess your company's
%usiness model and work flows ,and especially how they integration with technology . 5ased
on your o%ser'ation you will suggest and dri'e process impro'ements.

Common .yths
Software Testing as a Career pays ess
!e"e#opers are $ore respecte% as co$pare% to Testers
)ontrary to popular %elief , Software Testers 1%etter known as . professionals2 are paid and treated
at par with Software !e'elopers in all BaspiringB companies. career in Software Testing should ne'er
%e considered as Bsecond ratedB.

Software Testing is &oring
Software Testing could actually BtestB your ner'es since you need to make sense of 5usiness
Re$uirements and draft test cases %ased on your understanding. Software testing is not %oring. Ahat
is %oring is doing the same set of tasks repeatedly. The key is to try new things. (or that matter ,
ha'e you e'er spoken to a software de'eloper with more than : years e+perience CDe will tell you
how %oring his &o% has %ecome off*lately.

/kay 0 am interested )where to begin ?
(or a complete new%ie, here is our suggested approach to learn Software Testing

4ou start with learning 5asic principles of software testing. ,nce done you apply for freelancing
1obs% This will help you gain practical knowledge and will fortify the testing concepts you
ha!e learned.
-e+t you proceed to .T/ * utomation tool , then 0oadrunner * /erformance Testing tool and finally
.uality )enter * Test Management Tool. ll the while you are learning ,we suggest you apply for
freelancing &o%s 1apart from other %enefits you will make some moolah too"2.
,nce you are through with all the tools , you may consider taking a certification. Ae recommend
IST.5. 5ut this is optional.
fter this , when you apply for permanent &o%s in %ig corporations you will ha'e many skills to offer as
well some practical freelancing e+perience which may %e of 'alue and will definitely increase your
chances of %eing selected.