You See the World Differently — That Makes You Ideal for QA

Everyone makes mistakes. Failure is part of the process. You win some, you lose some.

These expressions come naturally. Yet, many of us are still afraid of, or worried about, or just generally dislike what happens when things go wrong.

Not you — you love the challenge. You understand that the world is complex, and see it in ways others don’t. Maybe you consider yourself an artist_{How Artists Can Unlock Financial Freedom}, a creator, an intrapreneur (or entrepreneur), an innovator.

Sound familiar? If so, you’re primed for a career in quality assurance.

So what is QA, anyway?

Quality assurance (QA) is about debugging and strengthening tech. QA engineer_{How to Become a QA Engineers} are involved in every step of the software development process, testing at each stage to ensure everything is working well, intuitively, and within a company’s goals and parameters. 

Their value to an organization is simple and powerful: When code is deployed seamlessly and successfully, customers and stakeholders are happy. And without QA oversight, serious problems arise that can impact revenue, growth, and productivity.

The day-to-day work, of course, isn’t as dramatic. A QA engineer will typically spend their time reviewing drafted or preexisting code, writing code themselves, and running automated and manual tests to see how and at what capacity the software functions. Within these responsibilities are numerous chances to get creative, flex new skills, and take risks.

One of the biggest draws to the job — beyond the many opportunities to be an integral part of groundbreaking technological advancements (if you don’t believe us, read this_{Please Break the Software: The Importance of Quality Assurance}) — is the salary potential_{3 Lucrative Careers Within the Quality Assurance Industry}. Entry-level QA jobs for bootcamp grads start at around $56,000 a year, but move up the chain and you’ll be making $104,000 or more annually. Not to mention, the job continues to grow in demand_{Is Quality Assurance a Good Career?} — so you won’t have a hard time landing a role you love.

The qualities that make someone successful in QA

QA engineers are problem-solvers, meaning that ambiguity excites them and hurdles only motivate them to find a different approach. They’re fine coders, certainly, but it’s the right soft skills_{The Quality Assurance Engineer Skills You Need in 2024} and mindset that make for a truly stellar quality assurance engineer. 

Creativity enables them to think outside the box and tackle issues quickly, uniquely, and with confidence. Time management ensures they can work under constraints and keep up with the fast-paced, sometimes stressful, and rapidly evolving world of tech. Finally, strong communication allows them to work across the engineering realm to gather and apply feedback, and present and sell ideas to various parties.

How this played out for one of our grads

At first glance, it’s practically impossible to see how Kyle Kolodziej_{In QA and Never Looking Back: Kyle Kolodziej’s TripleTen Story}’s background fits into quality assurance. Over the course of his career, he’s been a chef, worked at a brewery, and acted as a sales rep for a wine and liquor brand and project manager in logistics. But dig a little deeper, and, like Kyle, you’ll start to see the connections.

“When I was doing projects, I found that I liked to break software and provide feedback,” he said of the role he held before joining TripleTen’s QA engineering bootcamp. “So basically, when I learned that doing that could be a job, I was all about it. Like, ‘Okay, cool, my work day in and day out will be breaking things and making developers feel bad about their life choices. This is great, I’m all about this.’”

An added bonus to making the career switch was just how vital his skill set would be for organizations. “It’s always needed,” he said.

You can’t have a product that hasn’t gone through QA. Kyle Kolodziej, TripleTen grad

Before he could even complete an externship at the close of his bootcamp program, he had landed a tech job at a small fintech company — seriously, it was that quick for this career changer! Reflecting on what’s different from his previous jobs, he confirms he’s “way happier” where he is now.

How to tell if QA is for you

Exploring a new career path can be as easy as asking yourself pointed questions about the kind of work and environment you like and thrive in — plus, it doesn’t cost a thing to do! Start with the following, and see if your answer is a resounding “yes”:

Want to be sure? Take our quiz

So those questions spurred further interest in pursuing quality assurance. Fantastic! We then recommend you take our free, two-minute career quiz, which can help you solidify your passions and inform your next moves. Good luck!