Nowadays there is a steady rise in technology-related jobs and employment in this field has been increased by 12% from 2018 to 2028. Strong job growth and decent earning potentials and your talent in technology make the field an obvious career choice. The software QA analyst is a job that deals with utilizing the latest technology and solving issues. Sometimes they are called a QA analyst or a QA tester. A QA analyst needs to ensure an organization’s software is working properly. Once the software developers build a program, the quality analysts test it. Software programs often face issues or there may be missing key features and the quality assurance analysts stop the problem before they begin working in a testing environment. They employ to ensure high-quality standard products in all sorts of industries. In the tech world, the professional focus their work on software testing.
What does a QA analyst do?
QA analysts are specialists and they assess the functionality of the software and look for any bugs. Quality assurance is a stage performed many times in the software engineering process ensuring the final product is free of errors. The primary duty of a QA analyst is to run the code to see if it performs properly and is usable on various devices. If any issues are detected then it is thoroughly documented and reported back to the development team to be fixed. The QA analysts also perform various other duties which include:
- Creating a testing plan
- Utilizing the plan to assess functionality, performance, reliability, stability, and compatibility with other systems
- Fixing software bugs
- Searching for a way to prevent bugs from occurring
- Ensure the product is compatible with the target market
- Rebuilding correct software applications
- Making use of a variety of tools to compare the software to user requirement
- After testing recommending software improvement
- Creating training materials and instruct users on how to use the software properly.
Where do QA analysts employ?
A quality assurance analyst works in an office environment and they may require to work overtime during evenings and weekends to meet certain deadlines. IT companies that develop apps and other software hire QA analysts but they are not the only industry that requires these professionals. The professionals are also hired in various industries like software publishers, restaurants, insurance carriers, architecture and engineering services, scientific research and development services, depository credit intermediation, aerospace products, technical consulting services, and computer system design services. Software is a quintessential tool and quality assurance professionals are needed in any field that uses the software. Aspiring professionals will get the opportunity to tailor their career towards the field they are interested in.
How to become a QA analyst?
Here are given the steps to pursue your career as a QA analyst.
Step 1: Education Required
Most QA analyst completes their bachelor degree in computer science or programming. They must have a great understanding of various tools used to test software. A QA analyst should also know about data structure, artificial intelligence, and assembly languages. You may also complete your education in various other courses which include statistics and maths, programming language, operating system software, fundamental network technology, logical design principles, information management, physics, data management, and architecture. Mathematics should be a part of the core curriculum as well as general science and physics. Unlike other careers in the IT industry, there is no direct education path to become QA analysts. The IT field is becoming relaxed about education requirements, even Google no longer requires a bachelor’s degree for their programmers. An online course in computer science and a strong portfolio that demonstrates your knowledge of IT will be enough to make you an attractive candidate.
Step 2: Gain experience
To find a QA analyst internship, you may work with your advisor to find which IT company has a tie-up with your campus. You may also search online to find out opportunities for your intern in the field of quality assurance. Once you complete your degree you may start gaining experience in a similar field. Make sure your resume includes recent education and experience.
Step 3: Certification exam
If you have decided to specialize in software testing you may pursue further completing certification courses to increase your knowledge and likelihood of getting a job. There are various certification programs you may pursue in software testing and designing. ISTQB foundation level is the basic certification in the testing field. A software tester who has cleared ISTQB will be given priority compared to others.
Skills Required:
Basic knowledge about SQL and Linux command – software system has a large amount of data in the background. The data is stored in different types of databases in the backend. So there will be a situation when this data needs to be validated. The professional should know complex SQL queries. Most software applications are deployed in Linux machines so the tester must know Linux commands.
Knowledge and hands-on experience about various tools – Test management are an important aspect of software testing and without using proper techniques, the software testing process will fail. So the professional should know using a test management tool. Defect tracking and defect life cycle are key aspects of software testing. So the professional should have a great understanding of defect tracking tools.
Analytical skills – A good software professional should have sharp analytical skills.
Communication skills – The professional should have good verbal and written communication skills.
Time management skill – Testing remains a demanding job especially during the release of code. A software tester should efficiently manage workload and should have high productivity and organization skills.
