Select your current position
Pick a role and level — we'll show the growth path, skills and gap analysis.
Development path
Junior
0-2 years
Responsibility: Testing by test cases. Writing bug reports. Regression testing. Smoke testing. Learning the product.
Key skills:
Middle
2-5 years
Responsibility: Writing test cases and checklists. Exploratory testing. API testing (Postman). Acceptance testing. Working with TMS.
Key skills:
Senior
5-8 years
Responsibility: Project test strategy. Risk-based testing. Security testing basics. Mentoring. Quality process analysis.
Key skills:
Lead / Staff
7-12 years
Responsibility: QA processes for team/department. Quality metrics. Coordination with product and development. Testing prioritization.
Key skills:
Principal
10+ years
Responsibility: Quality culture. Company QA strategy. Balancing manual/automation. Process improvement.
Key skills:
Gap analysis: skills to develop
To reach the next level you'll need to develop:
Crafts effective prompts to generate comprehensive test suites covering functional, boundary, and negative scenarios. Uses AI to identify gaps in existing test coverage and suggest new exploratory testing paths. Produces structured test documentation and summary reports with AI assistance, ensuring traceability to requirements.
Independently designs comprehensive E2E test suites: risk-based test prioritization, cross-browser/cross-device test matrices, and data-driven scenario design. Creates E2E test strategies that balance coverage with execution time. Implements exploratory testing techniques alongside scripted E2E scenarios. Collaborates with automation engineers on E2E test automation priorities.
Independently conducts manual security testing: exploratory security testing sessions, authentication/authorization bypass attempts, and input validation boundary testing. Creates comprehensive security test plans covering OWASP guidelines. Collaborates with pentest team on vulnerability verification. Implements security-focused test design techniques.
Independently writes comprehensive BDD scenarios: complex multi-step workflows with scenario outlines, data-driven scenarios for parameterized testing, and background sections for shared preconditions. Collaborates with developers to align BDD scenarios with implementation. Reviews BDD scenarios from team members for clarity and completeness.
Independently applies unit testing knowledge in QA work: interprets test coverage gaps to focus manual testing, reviews unit test results for regression detection, coordinates manual and automated test coverage. Integrates test result analysis into defect reporting workflow.
Designs comprehensive test plans for webhook integrations covering event sequencing, idempotency, and failure scenarios. Validates payload structures against schemas and verifies correct handling of duplicate deliveries and out-of-order events. Sets up webhook inspection proxies to capture and analyze real traffic during integration testing phases.
Implements docs-as-code workflows for QA: test documentation auto-generated from test management tools, living test plans updated with each release, and traceability matrices in version control. Uses static site generators for test documentation portals. Automates test coverage reports as documentation artifacts.
Independently designs comprehensive integration test plans covering multi-system workflows and data migration scenarios. Applies structured test design techniques for complex cross-module interactions. Documents integration test matrices and tracks coverage across system boundaries.
Independently develops comprehensive mobile test plans with structured device matrices and exploratory testing charters. Applies test design techniques for usability, gesture navigation, and responsive layout validation. Integrates manual test results and device coverage reports into CI/CD workflows.
Independently designs test plans covering API version lifecycle including deprecation and sunset policies. Creates regression suites validating that new versions don't break existing client integrations.
Designs structured API test plans covering positive, negative, and boundary scenarios. Tests complex workflows with chained requests in Postman using variables and pre-request scripts. Validates API behavior against business rules, data contracts, and error handling specs. Compares actual vs documented API behavior and reports inconsistencies with detailed evidence.
Independently designs and executes manual accessibility test plans covering WCAG 2.1 success criteria across web applications. Tests complex interaction patterns with screen readers including dynamic content updates, modal focus trapping, and form error announcement. Performs cross-browser and cross-device accessibility testing, documenting findings with severity ratings and remediation guidance for development teams.
Independently evaluates test coverage across pyramid levels and identifies where manual testing adds the most value. Designs exploratory testing sessions targeting gaps that automation cannot effectively cover. Collaborates with developers to shift testing left and reduce reliance on expensive E2E tests.
Independently designs comprehensive test data sets covering edge cases and boundary conditions. Creates reusable data templates for regression testing. Manages test data repositories and coordinates data preparation across multiple testing environments.
Independently manages multiple test environments for different testing phases. Coordinates environment scheduling across QA team members to prevent conflicts. Maintains environment configuration documentation and handles environment refresh cycles between test iterations.
Career transitions
Possible career trajectories for the QA Engineer (Manual) role
📈 Growth 1
Where you can grow from this role
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