In the growing high-tech world, the jobs for the Quality Assurance (QA) Engineers are in pretty much demand. This is one of the most lucrative career options for those looking for growth and stability. Many people find this as a thriving career option that promotes sustainable job growth and enhanced earning potential. However, do you know what exactly Quality Assurance engineers do and what their job responsibilities are? This post will help you. Here, you’ll read the general scope of the Quality Assurance Engineers, along with the vital roles and responsibilities that they have to undertake to stand out in their career in this domain.
Being prepared is a necessary step in order to get your desired job. Knowing the roles and responsibilities of a Quality Assurance Engineer is crucial prior to applying for a QA engineer job. QA Engineer has to perform a myriad of roles and responsibilities in software development. Some of the major responsibilities include managing bugs/glitches, automating tests, detecting and preventing issues, creating test plans, and improving the test processes. Furthermore, they are accountable for improving product quality to take a business to new heights. So, before you jump into the section on the role and responsibilities of a quality assurance engineer, it’s important to know the job description of a QA engineer. Read on!!
Who is a Quality Assurance Engineer?
The Quality Assurance Engineer is an indispensable member of a software development team. QA Engineers are often accountable for overseeing software product development at every stage. They carry out various extensive test plans to verify whether or not the software program complies with ethical norms and adheres to the defined quality standards of the product. In addition, they also detect technical vulnerabilities or shortcomings in the software program and then, suggest strategic moves and tactical recommendations to overcome challenges.
Most importantly, Quality Assurance Engineers do not perform all roles and responsibilities alone. They work with team collaboration to identify bugs/glitches, carry out test reports, and discover essential product solutions. All in all, they strive to ensure a complete quality checkup of a software product before launching it in the market for common people. Their role is considered mandatory to boost a sustainable company’s growth in the competitive market by elevating the customers’ satisfaction level with superior quality software programs. In this way, they play a crucial role in increasing a company’s brand value and market size.
In short, a Quality Assurance Engineer is 100% accountable for delivering high-quality software programs for customers. Take a look at the primary roles and responsibilities of a Quality Assurance (QA) Engineer.
Roles And Responsibilities Of A Quality Assurance (QA) Engineer
Here is a list of the main roles and responsibilities of a QA engineer that you must be aware of if you are preparing to enter this field. Take a look…
1. Test Plans
With the help of a software developer and product management team, a Quality Assurance engineer carries out extensive test plans that examine the resources, goals, and architecture of the software program. The main focus of the QA engineer is to identify potential risks in the security system of the software program. This test plan makes him take proactive action to deal with the potential risks and issues. As a result, he saves the whole system from becoming corrupt/malicious. With the help of his fast, proactive solutions, he makes the system more efficient than before.
2. Several Test Cases Development
Another role and responsibility of a Quality Assurance engineer is to design real-world case studies to evaluate the performance of the developing software product. These cases ensure the correct evaluation of the software development. They notify the respective engineer about defects/flaws during the development stages of the software program.
3. Execution of Tests
Next on the list of the roles and responsibilities of QA engineers is the execution of tests. This step includes the execution of test plans as well as test case studies to verify the accuracy, security, and quality of the software product. Execution testing is considered to be of five types: functional testing, acceptance testing, regression testing, performance testing, and security testing. Let’s understand through the following pointers why the QA engineer performs these tests during product development:
Functional Testing: This test is done to check whether or not the software’s functionality is at par with norms and adheres to the defined standards of the product.
Acceptance Testing: The software is according to prospective customers’ requirements.
Regression Testing: Changes to the coding and decoding of the software do not pose new threats or issues.
Performance testing: Analyzes software’s performance under different circumstances to find its compatibility with others
Security testing: Detects technical vulnerabilities plus privacy and security challenges/risks.
By carrying out these tests, the quality assurance engineer can comprehend the issue and quickly find a solution to the problem with the developing team. Ultimately, he ensures that the final product meets quality standards.
4. Detecting Reporting and Resolving Issues
Another important role and responsibility of a quality assurance engineer is to identify issues and then find key solutions to resolve those issues. In this procedure, QA’s clear and systematic reporting of flaws, issues, or challenges helps the developer team to comprehend, plan, prioritize, and distribute resources to resolve the issues within a time range. For instance, if the engineer detects bugs or glitches during the execution of tests, his clear and systematic report helps allocate resources to solve bugs or glitches issues. Furthermore, with his support, the team can identify the history of bugs issues and former key solutions to find areas for improvement in testing.
5. Retesting of Bugs or Glitches
Retesting of bugs or glitches is yet another imperative responsibility of Quality Assurance Engineers. Yes, the Quality Assurance Engineer retests the efficiency of the resolution phase in which the developer team prioritizes bugs and discovers solutions to fix the issue. Quality Assurance Engineers play a crucial role when it comes to retesting bugs and glitches. It is essential to figure out whether or not solutions resolve fixes or glitches from time to time. Therefore, he carries out all tests once again to identify the status of bugs or glitches. This regular update of the bug reporting by QA engineers results in the identification of bugs’ issues in the initial stages. In this way, QA Engineers save the whole product development procedure from serious damage.
6. Automating Tests
In contrast to manual tests, automation tests are less time-consuming. Hence, Quality Assurance engineer relies on automation tests to speed up the process of testing and generate faster results about bug issues. With the help of automation tests, he performs complex testing to identify more bugs than before. Additionally, he can generate clear and concise bug reports with automation tools for a better understanding of the developer team.
7. Constant Improvements in the Quality
A Quality assurance engineer’s role is crucial in product development. From the first day of product development to the last day of launching the product for customers, a QA Engineer is an integral part of the team. He strongly focuses on quality improvement and testing process improvements at every step. Therefore, he carries out manual tests and automation tests as per the architecture of the software. It is his responsibility to verify again and again that the said product development stage is according to norms and defined standards. Apart from this, he researches the latest cutting-edge technology applications and tools to make the quality assurance ecosystem more advanced. He uses the latest technology to identify technical flaws and potential risks in the process.
8. Risk Mitigation Techniques
The constant tests that the QA engineer carries out mitigate potential risks and challenges. Early detection potential threats and security challenges plus resolution phases help companies a lot. The respective engineer plays a significant role in saving money, time, and resources that could be spent on the late detection of flaws/bugs. Additionally, he saves the company’s image that can go down if the failure or defect comes into the notice after the product’s launching.
9. Quality Test Certifications
A QA engineer certifies that he carries out all kinds of test plans, test cases, improvements, and updates of technology to improve the functionality and quality of the software product. With the help of test documents, he verifies that the final product meets high-quality standards and will not be the subject of any kind of harm or failure. And now, it is ready to serve customers with its best services.
10. End-to-end Customers Satisfaction
The Quality Assurance engineer plays an instrumental role in offering customers the right products. He ensures that the final delivery of the product surpasses the expectations and standards of clients or customers. By performing rigorous quality tests and examining all crucial aspects of testing, he becomes liable to foster the company’s brand value and customer loyalty. All in all, they play a crucial role when it comes customers’ end-to-end satisfaction.
Educational Qualification Required To Be A QA Engineer
The role of a quality assurance engineer is a gateway to endless opportunities. Generally speaking, employers recruit quality assurance engineers based on the following educational qualifications:
The prospective candidate must have passed a three-year undergraduate program in the computer science field, engineering field, software development engineering field, or any other related domain. This is because these educational qualifications are considered a framework for comprehending and organizing quality assurance methodologies.
The prospective candidates must have three years of experience working in a reputed organization as a software engineer, software developer, data analyst, and so on. This is because practical experience in the real world with industry experts offers valuable insights to engineers on different aspects of quality improvement.
Those candidates who possess expertise in software testing tools, automated test tools, quality assurance tactical recommendations, and product development strategic moves are always preferred for this role.
Courses
Having appropriate certification is crucial for growing in this field. There are numerous institutes offering courses in the computer science field. There are numerous advantages to joining these courses. Candidates can acquire in-depth knowledge in various aspects of quality improvements, including quality management control, quality management execution, theories, philosophies, and practical knowledge to implement learning in real-world cases. Aside from that, candidates can even choose to get add-on certificates to enhance their knowledge. These certificates allow them to explore more opportunities in this domain. CQA (Certified Quality Auditor), and Certified Green Belt/Black Belt are the most preferred industry-centered certificates for unleashing limitless potential in this domain.
Skills
A Quality Assurance engineer should have the following profound skills:
Efficient communication skills to elaborate on issues in a clear and concise manner
Critical skills to analyze everything in detail
Great time management skills to complete various tests within set deadlines
Technical expertise to introduce the latest cutting-edge technology tools
Team collaboration and coordination behavior
Expertise in harnessing the power of automation technology
Adaptability and flexibility to accept challenges
The ability to work with great spirits like positivity, enthusiasm, and improvements
Understanding of the diverse software architectures
Efficiency to hold accountability for actions and outcomes
Industries Where QA Engineers Work
As said earlier, the primary job of QA Engineer is to find and fix bugs in a product or program before its launch. They collaborate with developers to fix bugs or glitches whenever required. It is wise to say that they are an integral part of software development company. However, with more and more industries now rely on software, it would be comfortable to say that they are now required in almost all the industries, including IT, healthcare, automotive, and so on. This is because almost every industry now relies on software.
Salary
Salary range typically differs according to the chosen industry, its geographical location, and candidates’ qualifications and skills. In the leading IT industries, only deserving candidates can attain high-paying job opportunities. Employers always prefer hiring highly qualified and experienced candidates for this role. They always look for candidates who are able to perform various automated or manual tests throughout the product development life cycle, detect or report bug issues, and collaborate with developers and co-workers. Based on their specific qualifications, they hire them for high-paying job roles.
For entry-level positions, Quality Assurance engineers can expect an annual salary between $69,619 and $90,000 in the United States. In India, entry-level professionals’ salary is INR 3.8 lakhs per year.
Conversely, experienced Quality Assurance engineers can make up to $137,026 per year in the US. In India, a full-fledged working Quality Assurance professionals’ salary is INR 6,31,000.
Working Hours
Working hours of Quality Assurance engineers vary from industry to industry and in the location or region in which they offer their exceptional duties. Typically, they work for 40 hours per week. But, sometimes, they have to bear the burden of overwork due to approaching deadlines, the project’s development lifecycle, unexpected technical issues, and the slow process of various tests. Sometimes, they have to work in an emergency due to unexpected glitches or bugs.
The Bottom Line
So, this is about the roles and responsibilities of Quality Assurance (QA) Engineer. Hopefully, this article has been informative for you and has helped you understand the roles of a Quality Assurance engineer in detail. The most exciting part of working as a QA engineer is improving the quality of products at every stage, enhancing end-to-end customer satisfaction, and elevating the company’s image. You will always find yourself a significant part of a company’s decisions if you work with loyalty, honesty, and determination. Therefore, it is vital that you are equipped with expertise in software testing tools, software development processes, automated technology, and strategic planning to discover solutions.
The growing high-tech market always awaits highly qualified quality assurance engineers who can perform the responsibilities of a quality assurance engineer diligently every day. Top IT companies aspire to recruit deserving and loyal candidates for high-paying jobs. So, if you are looking for the QA Engineer profile, then make sure to get accustomed to these roles and responsibilities to crack the interview effortlessly.
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