Interviews and Fresh Graduates

After conducting several interviews  with fresh graduates it was evident that most didn’t do well due to small mistakes.  Since they are graduates, they are obviously knowledgeable candidates but lacking in experience. Whenever possible I have suggested areas of improvement which can benefit them in the future. 

So I thought of jotting down my “5 cents worth“ for fresh graduates who want to start their career as an engineer in Product Quality.

1. Bust the myths 

• Testing is a very easy job.
• Testing is a job you should select if you don’t get a proper job
• You don’t need to get ready for interviews
• Recognition is very low as a Quality/Test engineer than a Developer

Consider the points above, they are myths! I won’t go into detail but will give a brief outline on overcoming them.

Testing is only a task. There are many tasks that we need to perform to assure product quality. What is product quality? It’s the customer expectation of a product. For e.g. when you want to buy a phone, you look at a particular brand. This is because branded phones are considered to be of good quality. So as Product Quality Engineers (Test Engineers), this is our role. Do you think this is an easy job?

2. Knowing the basics

Now you know that this is not easy, so when you have an interview it’s very important to be prepared.

First you need to be knowledgeable about the post and the skills and expectations if you haven’t already obtained this knowledge through your curriculum. If you have gained the knowledge then you need to brush up. You need to be aware of the basic terminologies such as Quality Assurance, Quality Control, Testing Types, Test Cases, Cost of Quality, Automation, etc.

This doesn’t mean that you should learn everything or parrot it out. Simply, know your basics.

May be you are applying simply to find a job rather than because you have a passion towards Product Quality. Either way, you need to prepare for the interview.

3. Understand the quality aspect of a product

To become a  Product Quality Engineer , you should be able to see the quality aspects of a product. Especially in product development we have to work with new products most of the time. So we need to be able to see the quality of the products and to know how to measure it. 

As consumers we look at this aspect a lot before we buy products. So we need to do the same thing when assuring quality in our work as well.

Let me give you an example, consider a pen. You are asked to check on the quality of the product. What you should look for? 

• Verify that the pen is built according the specifications.
• Usability aspects such as grip, clip, size, point etc.,
• The quality of the ink
• Performance of the ink and point
• All printed/embossed texts on the pen are spell checked

4. Get certified

If you are really passionate about being a Test Engineer/Product Quality Engineer, then you could follow a basic course. Most recognized entry level certifications are

• ISTQB - Foundation Certification – Certified Tester Foundation Level

         http://www.sl-stb.org/about_slstb.html

         http://www.sl-stb.org/foundation_certification.html

• QAI - Certified Associate in Software Testing

         http://www.qaiglobalinstitute.com/innerpages/Content.asp?ID=100

         http://www.softwarecertifications.org/qai_cast.html

So to all fresh graduates, I can say, push your paddles on these areas and the job will be yours. 

These points will help you in getting a start on your careers, but there are still more skills to be learnt in order to sustain and grow in the industry.