How To Get A Software Quality Assurance Job
Once you have a basic understanding of Quality Assurance, there are lots of options when it comes to applying for a quality assurance job. Working in QA is challenging and fulfilling, whether you are testing on an assembly line or doing quality assurance checks on software.
No matter why your interest lies in the QA field or if you’re a QA tester or trying to move up to a QA engineer position, all quality assurance jobs are important. You are the last line of defence before the product or service hits the market.
Quality assurance employees work as engineers and product managers to keep things running smoothly. Their attention to detail is essential as it can significantly affect the company’s bottom line. There can be a quick climb up the quality assurance career ladder from entry-level QA jobs or manual testing jobs to QA engineer jobs if you have the skills and determination.
Quality assurance is a great way to gain knowledge and open doors to not only other QA jobs but other areas like engineering, design, and product management.
Tips for Landing a Quality Assurance Job
How to get a QA job? While companies often post internally and externally in the hopes to hire competent staff for quality assurance jobs, you can do some things to give you a competitive edge when up against other job candidates.
Show Your Interest
While many of us joke about those who are seen as keeners at work, this trait is highly beneficial when looking to move into the QA domain. While a career in this area often means you aren’t the rock star that shines in the company, you have the opportunity to be the hidden gem.
Being detail-oriented and understanding the product is critical. Analyzing the good and the bad as the product or service moves forward is something that a company cannot go without when it comes time to launch. Show your interest and care about the hidden details.
If the company understands your love of the product, they will assume that you will be diligent in making sure it’s flawless and hits the market in top form.
Do Your Work Ahead of Time
When interviewing for QA analyst jobs or entry-level QA jobs, show the hiring parties that you are ready to go.
Come into the interview with a detailed knowledge of the product and service so they know that not only are you interested in it but you also have a working knowledge of it as well.
Demonstrate that you have spent time learning about the product to see what issues you can find. This isn’t to point out that the product is bad but to show that you are keen to improve it.
Note any issues and improvements that you think might help the product with the hiring manager. This demonstrates that you are already trying to work towards making the product the best it can be.
Use our list of 21 Critical QA Interview Questions (And Answers!) to help prepare for the interview and land yourself a quality assurance job.
Be Detail Oriented
A quality assurance job needs someone who is all about the details.
While those who skim over things to get the big picture have their place, QA needs people who focus on the minutia. Without attention to detail, something may get missed in a new product that could lead to failure. When other employees are pushing to meet deadlines on products creating and production schedule, it's up to quality assurance to make sure those deadlines don’t hamper the quality.
To work in a quality assurance capacity, make sure you are ready to examine every aspect of the product. You can model this approach when applying for your position:
- Make sure your CV, cover letter, and any other items the potential employer asks for are top-notch.
- Match your detailed cover letter with the position that was advertised. Don’t submit a generic CV.
- Have someone check for spelling and grammatical errors and double-check it yourself.
Your employer will doubt your attention to detail if you can’t complete a basic CV and cover letter without omissions and errors.
Understand the Purpose of QA
This might sound basic but many don’t understand why QA tester jobs are crucial. They don’t know how much rides on making sure a quality product is produced.
To gain employment in quality assurance, you have to be passionate about it. Understand why it's vital, why it makes a difference.
- Expand on how quality control jobs link to good customer reviews, repeat customers, and building trust in a company.
- Explain how you can work as a team with the company’s engineers, designers, and product managers and how to walk through things with everyone to make sure the product hits the market in its best possible form.
Experience is Helpful but not a Necessity
Having the right skill set is important but actual school training isn’t always necessary for a quality assurance job. While there are many programs for certification at the college and university level, you don’t necessarily need one to get into the field. If you get in on the ground floor in a QA tester job, you gain knowledge around the basics of how a company’s product is designed and works. It can be the beginning of a great career path whether you have experience or not.
Get Online Support
Whether you are new to QA or have been in the field for years, there are many ways to keep up on the news that affects your career.
Sign up for The QA Lead newsletter to stay in the loop. This is a quick way to access online support to enhance your work in the field and a resource to discuss how to lead QA teams and do web and software QA better. The QA Lead is a supportive community looking at the latest and best of automation and testing including web, mobile, database, gaming careers, web services, cross-browser, big data, data-driven, and regression test automation.
Online communities are a great way to work with QA professionals across the country. They will not only help you be current in your information at a job interview but can also make sure your QA skills lead to a life-long career. This can also include following QA blogs to gain insights from professionals in the industry. Check out our list of The Best Software Testing Blogs of 2019 or start following QA Experts and Influencers to gain inspiration and join in on the conversations surrounding QA.
Where Do You Find Quality Assurance Jobs?
The tech industry offers many jobs and potential career paths for QA professionals. Are you interested in getting a job in quality assurance? Let me know in the comments.