How to Switch from Manual Tester to QA Automation Engineer

Exploring the global labor market and studying vacancies, you can see that test automation engineers are already in demand in the same way as developers. A decade ago, the situation was very different. Becoming an automation engineer is easier when you have already worked in testing and know how the processes work. Therefore, the request for retraining from a manual tester to a test automation engineer is now relevant. Let's take a look at how this can be done together!

1. What is required from Manual Testers?

Manual testing is what many people start their journey in IT with, if they have no programming experience. It is widely believed that manual testers don’t need any special knowledge and skills to get a profession. But this is not so. It’s necessary to be well versed in the notions of testing, have at least an initial understanding of the tester's tools: bug trackers, Git, logs, databases, be able to formulate questions correctly, quickly find answers, and be very attentive,

The tester must know how test cases are written; how to work with bugs: search for and document them; what is user-story. In order to write test cases properly, you need professional training and special knowledge. Manual testing requires serious analytical skills.

2. What is required from QA Automation Engineers?

To get a position of a QA Automation Engineer, you will have to master the basics of a programming language. When the basics of the language are learned, it is necessary to study the frameworks and tools in this language. These tools can be a test execution system, an automated API testing library, user interface test automation, etc.. Basic requirements also include a deep understanding of computers and databases.

3. What difficulties will you meet while transitioning from manual testing to test automation?

Cherish DEV has an internal school for manual testers who have decided to try themselves as test automation engineers. We asked them about the main difficulties they faced.

The first thing that our testers noted was fear. At the beginning of the journey, it seems that the usual and such habitual work of a manual tester is stable, it has less responsibility and stress. However, having comprehended test automation, it is clear that the fears are unjustified. Besides, we all like logic puzzles, don't we? And in automation, you will often find challenging various cases.

The second strain is lack of time. Our employees are already working full time. After an eight-hour working day, you get tired, you don’t feel like doing homework, and often laziness tempts you to do nothing. Yes, this is hard. But this can be compared with parallel studying at the university and working. Many of us start working before graduating and manage our workload, homework, attending classes, and sometimes even partying. The main thing to remember is that this is temporary and mastering it you’ll get a new interesting profession.

And how without difficulties in mastering technical skills? It is complicated already at the initial stage of learning a programming language. First, many can’t choose it. But the choice can be made simply by studying the popularity and relevance of the language. We at our QA School started by learning Java. Testers admitted that sometimes they have to sit for many hours on a task. The process is often slow due to the fact that it is a completely new activity.

Another difficulty you may encounter is understanding how an IDE (Integrated Development Environment) works. You need to be able to open a project, clone to git, be able to perform commit and push, get acquainted with package managers (Maven / Gradle), figure out how an artifact is built. Although the students of our QA School admit that it was not so difficult.

Having mastered the basic skills, it will be much easier for you to deal with the framework and automated testing tools.

4. How will the skills of a manual tester help in the transition to test automation?

Some HRs and other specialists who conduct technical interviews note that on real projects, an automation specialist will not only be helped, but also really need the skills of a manual tester. A test automation engineer needs a theoretical background and experience in practical analysis of real applications.

Covering the maximum number of cases and possible problems with a minimum amount of time is the main goal pursued by both manual testers and test automation engineers. Being aware of this, being able to properly analyze and plan is what sets an automation engineer with experience in manual testing apart. An automator that has bypassed the stage of manual testing can simply write code. But to get the missing base, you need to turn towards functional testing.?

The ability to write test cases well will help you understand the logic behind creating automated tests.

It is also vital that a manual tester and a QA test automation engineer require almost the same soft skills. You will only need to learn the technical part. After all, manual testers already have experience working in a team, know how to prioritize, can correctly formulate a question and explain something. They are disciplined and able to think analytically.

Conclusion:?

The transition from manual testing to test automation is a logical outcome in a QA career (although it is not necessary). There are bound to be challenges in the learning process. But it is much easier for a manual tester to learn automation than any other person from scratch. The presence of work experience and the necessary soft skills play into the hands of manual testers. In order not to lose motivation, you need to understand the ultimate goal and think positively. The support of relatives and colleagues will also be favorable factors.