Why Testing?

I started to learn software testing in 2018.  Having  a degree  and several years of experience  in Electrical Engineering I decided to switch to software tester. Why?Well, at some point I’ve reached  a mid career level and now I think it’s time for me to try something different. I can provide several reasons why I decided to switch to software testing.

1. There is a myth that “Anyone can test”. I  do not agree with this point. Nowadays,  testing requires a range of skills which make you a good tester.  I believe that  I posses good analytical and communication skills. I also enjoy learning  new things. I hope those skills and my hard””working nature will help me to grow professionally in a new field.
2. In every field individuals with extensive experience and skills that  help their clients solve problems are able to make a good living.  I am definitely planning to become one of them, because there is nothing like a satisfaction feeling that comes from meaningful work.
3. Modern environment in software development industry offers  projects which are both challenging and interesting. There is a huge number of testing activities ranging from manual testing to automation, from test planning and implementation to execution and monitoring. There is also ever-growing list of tools and community of testers.  Looks like you never get boring working as a tester. Do you agree?
4. My previous experience and projects made me realise that I love to learn, gain new skills and  grow as a professional. Who knows, maybe some day I will become a test lead or start my own software project?  I often visit such places as producthunt.com. I love learning about and discovering new startups, software projects and tools. 

 

Availability

Starting from November 2021, I work full-time as a Test Analyst at WithYouWithMe I am based in Sydney, NSW, Australia.

 

Skills

I know that there are dozens of areas that I have not learned yet as a tester, but I believe  I already have knowledge and skills to make your software better. Here is the list of testing activities that I am familiar with and had an opportunity to perform in training

• functional testing
• “manual” testing
• test automation (Python, Selenium)
• usability testing
• mobile testing
• API / Web Services Testing
• exploratory Testing
• bug reporting

Testing Tools

• Selenium Web Driver
• Pytest,
• Google developer tools
• ​SOAP UI
• Charles Proxy
• Jira

 

Languages

• Python
• familiarity with HTML, CSS, JSON, YAML, XPATH.

 

Qualification

• Bachelor in Electrical Engineering (Russia)
• Certificate IV in New Small Business 

 

Training, courses

• 07/2022 – ​ Introduction To Cypress, Test Automation University
• 07/2022 – ​Technical Web Testing, Udemy, Alan Richardson
• 07/2022 – ​Playwright with JavaScript, Test Automation University
• 05/2020 – ​API Testing Foundations, Linkedin Learing
• 04/2020 – ​Unix for Mac OS X Users, Linkedin Learing
• 04/2020 – ​Certificate IV New Small Business
• 11/2019 – ​GitHub for Web Designers, Linkedin
• 08/2019 – ​HTML & CSS, Codecademy
• 07/2019 -​ REST API Testing with SOAP UI, udemy.com​
• 07/2019 – SQL basics, w3schools
• 06/2019 -​ uTest Academy, utest.com
• 04/2019 – ​ISTQB Certificate

 

Computer Proficiency / Other Tools

 

Git, GitHub, Unix / Linux command line Screen capture and video capturing software Familiarity with Jenkins, AWS

Mac / Windows Microsoft package WordPress Trello Google Docs Salesforce Zapier

 

Other Areas of Expertise / Hobby

• Audio editing. I worked as a freelancer for Podcast Rocket Agency. I edited audio for multiple clients and podcasts.
• Podcasting & Podcasts. I am a big fan of podcasts. I’ve been listening to podcasts since 2011 which really helped me to get where I am now. Since 2017 I was involved in the production of three different podcasts. You can check one of them – World Speaks English Podcast – a collaboration project of me and IELTS trainer Darian Sandmartin.
• E-commerce. I have been selling on Amazon since 2016 and launched 3 products. If you have kids or you are a dinosaur fan yourself, drop me a line. I would love to send you a demo sample of our new product. Always happy to get feedback from our audience.
• Website Building. You can check one of my websites thetesttaker.com which I started to help IELTS (International English Language Testing System) candidates to prepare for a speaking exam.  The main goal was to keep me committed to learning and improving my skills. 
• Music. This is my long-time passion. Underground house, electronic, jazz, broken-beat, music from the 60s, 70s and 80s. Here is the link to my Soundcloud Page. 

 

Languages

• English
• Russian (native)