Software QA testing is about checking for the quality and reliability of a system or application through a set criterion that will help determine its workability and effectiveness. The testing is usually conducted under controlled conditions where the environment and other factors are intentionally designed unsuitable or wrong for the product. This process allows the quality control people to detect the specific points in the product that needs further development or improvement.
Software QA testing work is one important and crucial process that is applied from the beginning of the project so that the product development is communicated well among the people involved in it, and concerns or issues are discussed. The work involves making sure that the software product being tested is bug-free, has met the necessary requirements, and processed within the given timeline and budget. The whole QA testing software process includes the validation phase which is the actual testing of the product for potential defects. This usually follows after the verification phase which is conducted through reviews, meetings, and evaluations of the whole production stage and which is described as the mechanism that can prevent the possible malfunction or failures of the product.
With the continuing high demand for information and technology experts in the United States, software QA testing employment is also on the upswing. Along with the healthcare service industry, the IT industry is enjoying high employment rates in the face of the fast-paced development of new applications and software products that service almost all other industries and sectors in their own conduct of businesses, services, and other forms of production work. Software engineers are on the forefront of the software technology development process, and along with their work come software QA testing jobs that require quality assurance expertise.
Software QA testing is popular in the industries of software development, software applications, computer hardware and applications, insurance, and banking. A majority of these people are male at 64 percent, while the women who similarly are into software QA testing work are at 36 percent. Fifty percent of these professionals have been in their jobs between one to four years, 22 percent for five to nine years, while 14 percent have been working in the same area from ten to nineteen years. On the other hand, the new professionals or those who have been in their job for less than a year is a minority at 1 percent.
QA testing software involves a lot of detailed course work through planning, review, and evaluations of the product. In some cases, the QA process can be repeated when tests actually detect and determine malfunctions or defects and these usually raise a lot of pressure in the work environment since a timeline and budget is set for the whole development process of the product.
Software QA testing jobs are still considered one of the most lucrative and most secure jobs in the US and everywhere else. Based on the popularity ranking of industries where they are present, software QA testing employment in software development, according to PayScale, has a salary range from $41,860 to $64,285. In the software applications, the annual pay comes around from $44,400 to $66,873; and computer hardware or software has $44,581 to $68,082. For insurance, the annual salary range is from $42,714 to $64,035, while banking has from $40,988 to $62,263.
Most companies which accept applicants for software QA testing jobs have a bachelor's degree in business administration, psychology, or sociology or an associate degree in applied sciences. While some have an engineering degree, and those who earned a higher degree or a master's degree often enjoy higher annual salaries. The size of the company, location, and industry also determines the applicant's pay scale.
QA Testing Career Advancement
Career advancement in software QA testing work is often assured after several years on the job and the growth of the company or institution. A QA specialist who has been promoted to the post of senior test or quality assurance engineer in the computer software industry gets an annual salary range from $67,711 to $93,776. A software quality assurance lead gets from $62,485 to $95,158, while a QA manager in the computer software industry receives an annual pay of $69,461 to $105,388.
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